Titans vs. Texans: Grades, Notes and Quotes
There haven't been a lot of games that looked winnable on the Tennessee Titans' schedule this season, but a game against the Houston Texans was certainly one of the them.
The Titans were unable to take advantage, losing 20-6 and sending them to their sixth straight defeat.
Zach Mettenberger was unable to break his personal losing streak as an NFL starter. He's now 0-8 as a starter and has thrown an interception in every start.
With everything that has gone wrong, the defense has still put together valiant efforts to give the offense a chance. Who knows when the Titans will see another win, unless the offense figures out a way to score more than seven points.
A high-powered New Orleans Saints offense is up next on the schedule.
Grades for the Titans
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| Position | Grade |
| QB | D |
| RB | B- |
| WR | C- |
| TE | C |
| OL | F |
| DL | C+ |
| LB | C+ |
| CB | D |
| Special Teams | C- |
| Coaching | C |
There is no way to reach for a moral victory in a loss that felt much more lopsided than just a 14-point differential.
The main weak spots were at quarterback and on the offensive line. They've both been the primary weaknesses in Marcus Mariota's two-game absence.
It's true that Mettenberger had very little time to throw, but his decision-making was still very poor. There were several times when he held on to the ball too long and allowed the feisty Texans pass rush to get to him.
Mettenberger ended up with an interception and a fumble. He was also sacked seven times.
This game absolutely validated the Titans drafting Mariota, and the offense should improve somewhat when he returns.
The offensive line wasn't just poor in pass protection. It was also mediocre at best in its run blocking. Antonio Andrews had to break a lot of tackles to accumulate his 64 yards on the ground.
Byron Bell's horrible unnecessary-roughness penalty killed a Titans drive that pushed them out of field-goal range. When an offense is struggling to string together scoring drives, every point is precious. Bell taking that penalty just before halftime can't happen if your team is playing disciplined football.
Andrews and Dexter McCluster were the lone bright spots on the offense. McCluster has really come into an important role as a running back, receiver and kick returner.
These two have the chance to become a special combination of different styles. Whenever the Titans did find any rhythm against the Texans, it was because these two were heavily involved.
It's hard to find positives on this team, but McCluster is certainly one of them.
The defense did its job for most of the game. It left the offense within striking distance until Nate Washington beat Coty Sensabaugh to help put the Texans up by 11. With the way the offense was stuck in neutral, there was no way it was going to be able to erase that deficit.
Bishop Sankey Fumbles on Kickoff Return
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No one probably had a rougher day at the office than Bishop Sankey. Antonio Andrews had already supplanted him on the depth chart at running back, and now it will be interesting to see if he remains the kickoff returner.
Sankey fumbled at a crucial point in the game—when the Texans had just captured the lead. The Titans in effect never got the opportunity to take back momentum, and the game gradually unraveled from that point on.
He also failed to return another kick cleanly, but he was able to recover that fumble to avoid the turnover.
It's very possible Sankey may not even see the field at all next week if rookie David Cobb returns, per Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com.
At a crowded position already, it will be extremely difficult for Sankey get back to the top of the depth chart after Sunday's performance.
Zach Mettenberger Gets Pummeled in the Loss
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The offense's ineptitude cannot be put squarely on Mettenberger's shoulders. He has had his fair share of rough games in his young career, but this one may have topped the list. He was hounded all day by a ferocious pass rush that Whitney Mercilus and J.J. Watt led.
The Texans totaled seven sacks, while also getting 14 quarterback hits on Mettenberger.
With Mettenberger not being mobile, it really kept the Titans offense from having virtually any chance to throw the ball with success. Getting the ball out quickly was the only way the Titans were going to stand a chance.
Head coach Ken Whisenhunt thought Mettenberger could've gotten the ball out quicker, per Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com:
"Whisenhunt said Mettenberger could've gotten ball out faster. But also noted he was under attack all day
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) November 1, 2015"
The only reason the Titans were even able to keep the game close was thanks to a rushing attack that had some moderate success at times. Despite that, the Texans stuck to their game plan of constantly putting pressure in Mettenberger's face.
Opponents will continue to employ this strategy against the Titans until they prove they can stop it. They haven't done that in any of their six losses.
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J.J. Watt Unstoppable Again vs. Titans
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It's safe to say J.J. Watt owns the Titans. He's always had success against them, and he continued that trend in this win. He was a big reason why the Titans could literally get nothing accomplished in the passing game, with the exception of a few short completions.
The Titans decided to try blocking him with a single lineman, and Watt commented on that being a bad idea, per John Glennon of the Tennessean:
"JJ Watt on why #Titans tried blocking him 1 on 1 at times: "I don't know. I do not know, but they did. I told them they shouldn't have."
— John Glennon (@glennonsports) November 1, 2015"
Who knows if Mettenberger could've had more success passing the ball if not for Watt's relentless motor that makes him one of the NFL's best defenders. The Titans had absolutely no answer for him, and Mettenberger was seemingly target practice.
It's worth noting that Whitney Mercilus was also unstoppable as he finished with 3.5 sacks of his own.
Ken Whisenhunt on the Loss
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Frustrations are well over a boiling point after dropping another game at the hands of a team that wasn't playing good football in prior weeks.
Whisenhunt pinpointed the struggles of this game more so on the players, per Jason Wolf of the Tennessean:
"Whisenhunt puts #Titans' loss on players: "At some point in this game it comes down to 1-on-1 matchups." https://t.co/x9UgxKFYKB
— Jason Wolf (@JasonWolf) November 2, 2015"
There were many areas where the Titans were just simply outplayed, and the most obvious one was in pass protection.
However, the secondary also gave up another deep touchdown pass from Brian Hoyer to Nate Washington. This one went for 42 yards, and Coty Sensabaugh was clearly beat by a step against the aging veteran. It put the game well out of reach for a sputtering Titans offense.
Mettenberger also made plenty of mistakes; the big one was the interception that was intended for Dorial Green-Beckham. The ball was thrown behind Green-Beckham on a well-designed pass play.
This team has very little room for errors in order to win games, and it's making way too many to even beat below-average teams like the Texans.
Zach Mettenberger on the Titans' Game Plan
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The game plan was executed effectively in the early going. It kept the game close by establishing a power run game with Antonio Andrews.
Even when the Titans were down 10-6, they still stuck to the game plan of running the ball with the duo of Andrews and Dexter McCluster. The Titans had a puncher's chance of sneaking out with an ugly win until the game became a two-possession deficit.
Mettenberger commented on having to change the game plan toward the end (via the Titans official Twitter account):
"Mettenberger: We stuck the game plan as long as possible, but when you're down two scores, you have to change things up.
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) November 1, 2015"
The wheels really fell off when the Titans had to throw the ball more. The Texans knew this was coming, so they just pinned their ears back and put enormous amounts of pressure on Mettenberger in the pocket.
This power-running game plan is still a formula the Titans need to stick with in future games. It would've been much more successful with better pass protection and no J.J. Watt wreaking havoc on nearly every play.
Taylor Lewan on His Performance in the Loss
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Taylor Lewan is widely considered the leader of this struggling offensive line, but it's been tough sledding for him in his second NFL season.
He had very little luck blocking Whitney Mercilus, who finished with 3.5 sacks on the day. Lewan was very candid about his performance, per Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com:
"Titans LT Taylor Lewan: "I definitely played one of the worst games I ever played in my... https://t.co/pWy7WoP9sA pic.twitter.com/QvcKjvnfdX
— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) November 1, 2015"
It's disheartening to see a unit performing so badly when a team has invested two first-round draft picks on it in recent years. Lewan's ceiling is still very high, but this game was definitely a step in the wrong direction. He really needs to step up in the second half of the season and be a leader by example for this offensive line.
There are plenty more formidable defenses left on the Titans schedule, including the Carolina Panthers and the New York Jets.
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