Dolphins vs. Titans: Tennessee Grades, Notes and Quotes
You can officially argue that the Tennessee Titans have hit rock bottom after suffering a lopsided loss to the Miami Dolphins.
The Titans fell to 1-4 after a 38-10 loss to a Dolphins team that had their own set of problems entering the contest.
There were no moral victories in this loss, as the Titans were decisively handled. The game was never really competitive on their end.
Now the real question is: Where do the Titans go from here? Questions surrounding Ken Whisenhunt's job security will begin to surface, while Marcus Mariota is looking more and more like a rookie quarterback.
Position Grades for Titans
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| Position | Grade |
| QB | C+ |
| RB | C- |
| WR | C |
| TE | B- |
| OL | C |
| DL | D |
| LB | B- |
| DB | C- |
| Special Teams | C+ |
| Coaching | D |
The excuses have run dry for this coaching staff. It's clearly not getting the most out of the talent on the field, which showed against a mediocre Dolphins team that clearly wanted the win more than the Titans did.
It was hard to get motivated for this game with two struggling teams, but the job of a head coach is to get his players motivated every week, regardless of circumstances. You would have a difficult time debating that the Titans were motivated against the Dolphins.
The biggest coaching question mark concerned the situation with Marcus Mariota when he got injured. He clearly didn't look like the same quarterback afterward.
Whisenhunt was clearly upset about the low hit on Mariota, according to Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site:
"Whisenhunt low hit on Mariota: "I think it was done with the idea of trying to hurt our QB and that's (bulls---) football." @Titans
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) October 18, 2015"
You always applaud the head coach sticking up for his players, but you eventually have to start questioning the 3-18 career record that Whisenhunt has as head coach of the Titans.
The game plan was uninspired with conservative play calls and only got aggressive late in the game, when the Titans were already too far behind.
The Dolphins offense offered little to be worried about heading into the game but changed that notion quickly. It looked comfortable from the beginning of the game and had a huge chunk of its success running the ball with Lamar Miller.
There were times when Titans linebackers had some success against Ryan Tannehill, most notably Brian Orakpo and Wesley Woodyard. Woodyard's role has really expanded over the past two weeks.
Still, you can't get lost in the two interceptions that the secondary had on Tannehill. They were horrible throws, yet Tannehill still threw the ball with relative ease the entire game. He made himself look much better than what he projected heading into the game.
The third-ranked Titans defense definitely took a major step back in this game.
There was not much offense to speak of, either. It was by far the worst game of Mariota's young career, and the running game never got any kind of rhythm.
Delanie Walker had another inspired effort in the loss and seems to be one of the few players who will continue to keep fighting. We saw that same fight last year during a 2-14 campaign.
Mariota Injured Mid-Game
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It was inevitable that if the protection didn't get better, Mariota was going to face an injury. We saw it with Jake Locker, and Mariota wasn't immune to the same thing happening.
The Dolphins presented another aggressive defense that loves to put pressure on quarterbacks. They hadn't been producing lately but still had the talent to wreak havoc.
Much of the success the Dolphins enjoyed was thanks to only having to rush four defenders, according to Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com:
"How bad was #Titans protection? All 4 of Cameron Wake’s sacks were part of a pass rush of 4 or fewer defenders, per @ESPNStatsInfo.
— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) October 18, 2015"
Ndamukong Suh got much of the attention heading into this game, but Cameron Wake is equally as talented. He managed four sacks for the Dolphins and made things very difficult for the Titans early on.
Mariota will most likely be fine to play this week against the Falcons, but he was never the same after taking that hit. It could have been a season-ending injury, so there's always a silver lining.
You can't help but wonder if putting in Zach Mettenberger would have been the right move at that point. Mettenberger can make NFL throws, and you have an obligation to protect your franchise quarterback at all costs.
It Doesn't Get Any Easier Against Falcons
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The Titans just passed the easier part of their schedule, and with zero wins to show for it. They've now lost three straight games of a four-game homestand, with the Falcons up next.
This was viewed as a game that the Titans must win to stay relevant into the second half of the season. Unless they have some major upsets up their sleeves, it looks like the Titans will be traveling down the same dark road they did last season.
Ken Whisenhunt's 3-18 record as head coach in Tennessee should now be a major concern. You could certainly make excuses for last season's team due to its lack of talent. However, another 1-4 start should make his seat very hot.
The Falcons will bring a much more talented offense, including a running back who has burst onto the NFL scene as a force to be reckoned with. Devonta Freeman will run all over the Titans next week if they bring the same lack of intensity they did against Lamar Miller.
Whisenhunt will have to pull off some upsets, including a win over the Falcons, to reverse the dark cloud that is descending over his coaching tenure. A win over the Dolphins would have silenced some of the criticism, but it will now grow louder than ever after this loss to a bad team.
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Highly Ranked Titans Defense Takes Big Step Backward
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A big reason for optimism heading into this particular matchup was that the Titans were statistically ranking high on defense.
However, this game proved that statistics can sometimes be deceiving.
The Dolphins faced very few challenged moving the ball up the field from a Titans defense that was ranked in the top quarter of the league heading into the game. Ryan Tannehill threw the ball will very little pressure, and Lamar Miller had a monster game, rushing for over 100 yards.
This game showed that any NFL quarterback is capable of burning this Titans defense. Perhaps the Titans just don't have the talent in the secondary to battle a quarterback who can make the necessary throws.
As much heat as Tannehill was taking leading up to this contest, he's still proved that he can make NFL throws on occasion. On this particular occasion, he made just enough throws to allow his team to take full control of the game. The Titans were never able to gain back any momentum, even after Tannehill threw two interceptions.
Ken Whisenhunt on Mariota's Low Hit
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There was a lot to say after the game about Mariota's low hit at the hands of the Dolphins' Olivier Vernon.
Whisenhunt was not shy in condemning the hit, via Jason Wolf of the Tennessean:
"Whisenhunt on late hit on Mariota: "I think it was done with the idea of trying to hurt our QB &… https://t.co/jgIsQ6sqSI
— Jason Wolf (@JasonWolf) October 18, 2015"
These are the kinds of things you worry about when facing teams that have very little to play for. It's fair to classify the Dolphins as one of those teams, and they played that role very well. This game plan was expected, as previous teams have had success using this aggressive strategy against the Titans.
The Titans were once again poor in pass protection for their rookie quarterback. Mariota did have the worst game of his young career, and you have to wonder if the grind of the season is starting to wear on him.
It's becoming clearer that Mariota will only go as far as his offensive line takes him. Until protection gets better, it will be extremely difficult for him to keep evolving into the successful NFL quarterback that he has all the tools to be.
Brian Orakpo on Different Dolphins Team
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Sometimes you just have to give credit where credit is due. That's the case with the Dolphins rising up to the challenge in unfavorable circumstances.
Brian Orakpo was one of the few bright spots for the Titans defense. He commented on the play of the Dolphins, via Teresa Walker of the Associated Press:
"#Titans LB Brian Orakpo says Campbell made big difference. #Dolphins "completely different team." "Like starting from scratch."
— Teresa Walker (@TeresaMWalker) October 18, 2015"
It is ironic that the Dolphins came out and played the same role that the Titans have failed at trying to play all season. The Titans played that role against the Colts and came up short. They played that role against the Bills and also came up short.
This was a game that the Titans should have won.
Now the Titans must reel off some upsets to even stay relevant, and it starts by salvaging at least one win against the Falcons on this historically rare four-game homestand.
Upsets do happen in the NFL, and the Titans will desperately need one to keep the ship from fully sinking in 2015.
Kendall Wright Supporting His Rookie Quarterback
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Kendall Wright had some controversial comments following last week's loss to the Bills, but this week he was defending his rookie quarterback, via the Titans twitter page:
"WR @1kendallwright: "Marcus handled it like a pro. He's banged up and he's playing his heart out." pic.twitter.com/Ga5HaSaj3W
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) October 18, 2015"
Sticking up for your franchise quarterback is what leaders do, so it's refreshing to see Wright defending the Mariota on the latter's tough slide.
The relationship between Wright and Mariota has the potential to be a great one for this team in the future. These two are arguably the most talented offensive players on the team.
A lot of things need to be sorted out on an offense that is still very raw with inexperience. Wright can actually be considered one of the veterans, so it's good to see him making comments like this after those he made last week.
This team will continue to be in oblivion until it learns to maximize the talent of players like Wright. The Titans will be in much more trouble if Wright begins to lose interest in playing for Tennessee.
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