I rarely write this kind of post, but this fits what I think well enough I think it's worth a post of its own.  My FO colleague Doug Farrar, who runs Yahoo's Shutdown Corner blog, does a weekly podcast with NFL Films guru extraordinaire Greg Cosell, who produces the NFL Matchup Show. Talking about the Titans in this week's episode, here's what Greg had to say:

Well, I gotta tell you, here's what I think every time I watch Hasselbeck, and I've seen every game on film. I haven't gotten to the one this week yet, but I've seen every other one from this year. And every time I watch Hasselbeck, I say the same thing to myself: he throws to the right receiver, at the right time, with accuracy. And, just, I hate to sound cliched, but he understands defenses, he understands his offense, the route combinations, where people will be when they're supposed to be there. And you mentioned to the red zone, he has a great understanding that things speed up in the red zone, Doug, and that every thing has to happen a little bit faster. And there's a lot of quarterbacks that's can't understand that or can't make that leap in their actual play.

The first part of that is exactly what I'm seeing from Matt Hasselbeck in a nutshell, and then the thing about the red zone is another really great point, and in fact the Titans rank first in the NFL in red zone passing in Football Outsiders' DVOA rating. One thing I sort of tried to hint at in my post earlier this week, but now have the updated numbers on, is the Titans are also particularly good on third down, where they rank third in the league in DVOA, even though they're almost insanely pass-heavy.

The broader question is, can the Titans keep it up? I think Hasselbeck thus far is doing an awful lot of things that look like repeatable skills. The key is to find a second and third receivers, beyond Washington, who will consistently be in the right place for Hasselbeck to throw them the ball, and of course the defense. That's a topic for another post, though. no comments

I don't normally pay much attention to injuries on the Titans' upcoming opponent, but the Steelers have more than the usual amount, and at some critical positions.

Nine players, six of them starters, did not practice due to injury on Wednesday, according to the NFL injury report.  That and more follow, after the break.
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In preparation for this Sunday's Tennessee Titans/Pittsburgh Steelers battle, per the norm, we'll have some questions answered by a blogger who muses about this week's Titans' opponent.

Have any questions you'd like to have answered? Feel free to make your contributions in the space below. no comments

There's not necessarily any deep meaning to these, but I found these statistical tidbits on the Titans' offense to be interesting.

• The Titans have started five drives in opponents' territory this year. On those five drives, they've scored 6 points. Total. Two made field goals, two punts, and an interception.  I've written before about the effect of field position, and it's rare to squander great field position like that and be successful.
• By contrast, the Titans are actually doing better on drives that begin in their own territory. By my methodology, they're averaging 2.1 points per drive when starting inside the 20 and on the 20, and averaging 2.2 points per drive when starting between their 21 and the 49.
• The Titans have run the ball 6 times on third down, 4 of those times on third-and-one.
• The Titans have called a pass play 48 times on third down, including once on third-and-one. Yes, that means on the 49 times the Titans have been in third-and-two or more, they've called a pass play 47 times.
• The ball was thrown Kenny Britt's way 9 times on third down. The Titans got 7 first downs on those passes. No other player thrown the ball more than once has converted more than half the time.
• Your top pass target on third down the last two weeks? Lavelle Hawkins.

That's all for now. If there are any stats you're curious about, let me know and I'll do my best to answer them. no comments

There were a lot of good things that happened in yesterday's win over the Browns, things that the Titans can build upon.  Encouraging things.

The o-line didn't push the Browns around but they did give Chris Johnson some room to run for the first time this year.

The pass protection was very good, giving Matt Hasselbeck time to throw and keeping his uniform clean.
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In a game that was higher-scoring and more lopsided than I anticipated, the Tennessee Titans today scored a decisive victory over the Cleveland Browns by a final score of 31-13.  The Titans took control of the game in the second quarter with a pair of scores, one early and one late, and effectively ended it with an interception Jordan Babineaux returned 97 yards for score late in the third quarter.  The Browns had a bunch of yards and added a score, but the game was never again competitive.

For me, the Browns essentially lost the game on five big mistakes:

• Linebacker Chris Gocong lost contain on a cutback by Chris Johnson. One false step later, Chris Johnson had his longest run of the year, for 25 yards.  One third down conversion later...
• Matt Hasselbeck threw his first touchdown pass of the day, to a wide open Craig Stevens. The playcall was a simple smash combination, and both corner Sheldown Brown and linebacker D'Qwell Jackson took Nate Washington, and the safety couldn't get over in time. Titans lead, 7-3.
• After a Browns field goal, Matt Hasselbeck found Jared Coook on a drag route over the middle. Cook ran by linebacker Scott Fujita, and then defensive back Usama Young was slow to react, took a bad angle, and then tried to bring Cook down from behind. It didn't work, and Cook raced 80 yards to give the Titans a 14-6 lead.
• Late in the first half, the Titans ran a run-and-shoot staple, the old "switch" play. Nate Washington ended up with no defender covering him, and picked up 57 yards down to the 4. One play later, Matt Hasselbeck had his third touchdown pass of the game, and the Titans had a 21-6 halftime lead.
• Down 24-6, the Browns have first-and-10 at the Titans' 29. Colt McCoy scrambles right after pass pressure from Shaun Smith, and throws the ball away. Unfortunately, rather than throwing the ball away, he throws it right to Jordan Babineaux, who takes it back 97 yards for a score and a 31-6 Titans lead.

The Titans, by contrast, didn't have any of those killer mistakes. The Browns had a couple bigger passing plays that helped set up their two early field goals, but otherwise had to chisel out gains in smaller chunks. They made it to Titans territory on their first five possessions, but only got those two field goals and didn't crack the red zone until the fourth quarter.

There was, of course, more to today's game than that, like Chris Johnson's most productive day this year and Jake Locker making his NFL debut in garbage time (his only attempt fell incomplete), but it's a big play and passing league, and the Titans had those today and the Browns didn't.

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The Titans today take to the road for the second time in the 2011 regular season, and for the first time this year weather may be a factor.  Jim Wyatt noted it's a cold and blustery day in Cleveland, with whitecaps on Lake Erie.  The forecast includes steady rain in the afternoon and wind in the 25-35 mph range. Sounds like a challenge for both Matt Hasselbeck and Colt McCoy, neither of whom has the strongest arm.  The inactives are coming out for today's game, and here they are:

CLEVELAND BROWNS: LB Titus Brown, TE Jordan Cameron, OL Oneil Cousins, DB Eric Hagg, QB Thaddeus Lewis, WR Carlton Mitchell, OL Steve Vallos

TENNESSEE TITANS: DT Zach Clayton, CB Chris Hawkins, C Kevin Matthews, LB Gerald McRath, DT Malcolm Sheppard, QB Rusty Smith, OT Byron Stingily

For the Browns, questionable players who will start include CB Sheldon Brown, WR Josh Cribbs, and tackles Tony Pashos and Joe Thomas.  Peyton Hillis also returns to the lineup, as expected.  The Titans' only notable injury is Gerald McRath, who was listed as questionable.  I'd expect Will Witherspoon to get work in nickel packages.  As expected, Chris Hope returns to the lineup after missing the two previous games.

Especially with the weather, I'm expecting a close, low-scoring game, and for the Titans to come out on top, they'll probably have to run the ball much more effectively than they have so far this year.  That's a doable proposition, but not a guaranteed one.

Feel free to leave your comments here during today's game. no comments

Former Titans offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger has passed away after a battle with brain cancer.  He was diagnosed last year during the season.

Dinger served as the OC on two occasions, from 2000-2004 and 2008-2010.  He was also the OC for the Jets in 2005, under Herman Edwards.  That coaching staff was let go following an injury-plagued season and Dinger returned to Mike Shanahan's Broncos, where he had previously worked as their receivers coach.

He was generally regarded as the best OC in the Tennessee era of the franchise.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Heimerdinger family.  R.I.P., Dinger.

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In preparation for this week's game, I watched last week's Cleveland Browns game.  In Week 3, the Browns beat the Miami Dolphins at home by a final tally of 17-16 thanks to a last-minute touchdown pass from Colt McCoy to Mohammad Massaquoi.

Here are somethings I noticed in watching the game:
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In preparation for this week's Tennessee Titans/Cleveland Browns matchup, we had the privilege of getting some questions answered by Nick Shook of Bloguin's Browns Beat blog.

As the two surprising 2-1 teams prepare to face-off this weekend, Nick and I touched on a variety of subjects, ranging from whether the Browns will focus more on stopping the struggling Chris Johnson or the effective passing attack led by veteran Matt Hasselbeck, to his prediction for this Sunday's contest.

The Total Titans/Browns Beat Question/Answer exchange...after the jump.

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