This is the OTP pre game presented by Farm Bureau Health Plans. When it's crunch time for your health coverage, trust Farm Bureau Health Plans to implement the perfect game plan. With over seventy seven years of protecting Tennesseeans, they know how to win. With Amy Wells, I'm Mike Keith, Snicker's hot seat Titans Radio's ever reliable Rhett Brian. How many of the Snickers are you going to steal on? Behalf of coach mack Zero?
Well, I mean, can we gets?
But I'm not going to do that.
It's not as full as it is, not as full as it was.
The last person was who was in here was Dave McGinnis talking about stealing the snickers.
He clearly did that.
Jar is precariously low. I are you, I mean this is a crime.
Are you accusing Coach MAXX?
Straight up?
I am. Can I say something because this is just by the way, This studio is fantastic and with all the cameras and the things that you can monitor, you could probably catch him red handed with his hand in the snickers.
In now he said he was going to take the whole jar.
I'm thinking about getting some crime scene tape and like taping off the area disgusting for Prince.
I mean you and you could see him taking the whole.
Jar too, and he put it in his bag.
With zero to walk out with seventy four waters.
Yep, three hundred and sixty.
I think he still grabs a couple of like face masks like from COVID whenever.
He sees it. I've never seen then.
I think he just grabs a couple every time.
Remember he got he got a whole box. And when he left Green Bay that time, Yeah, to.
Exit the stadium, you had to go through the locker room and there was a bad, a giant box of masks and Mac just grabbed the whole box and we walked out and he just handed them to me and was like, here, hold these.
That's the most empty I've ever seen the Snickers jar. And all the time.
That is coach Mac, now that I think about it, though we've only won seven games since he stole all those masks.
I'm not superstitious. I'm just a little stitious, and I think we need to do something like that.
You need to take those back.
Give them back, return them, return the masks, return of the Mac.
No that's that's not true. But anyway, good to have you with us, Rhett.
I'm glad to be here.
The OTP pregame relies on five topics, okay, and so we're getting ready to go to Buffalo. So the first topic is pretty simple. Give me your scenario how the Titans go into Buffalo and win on Sunday at twelve oh two Central Time.
Scenario is this. You continue to do what you had done in the last couple of games. Tony Pollard is a huge part of this and continuing the success with the run game. But if you can somehow mix in RPO stuff and hit on a couple of bang bang, big down the field type, you know, explosive plays, I think that would ignite something in this offense that they're looking for. Defense is playing well for you. Ryan Stonehouse comes off of a game where he had a seventy
five yard punt. So you do that and you play clean football and don't turn it over, and I think you can play keep away with those guys and come out of there with a win. But you've got to overcome the atmosphere because you know the first thing you said on the Brian Callahan Show, this week is they have been there in a month, and we know what it's like to show up at high Mark Stadium anyway, because those people are outrageous. They're really going to be outrageous.
Multi levels up because it's been a minute.
And it's going to be a beautiful day, sixty six degrees or something.
A kickoff, it's like prime football.
Well, I mean every I mean, if you're going to the game, then you're going to that game, meaning you're not gonna wake up and go, well, it's raining or maybe.
It will tailgate much on TV, well.
Yeah or some I mean, you're not doing that, and people do that all over the league. They want to say they don't, but you always kind of like it if you're the opposing team and there's something that's happened, you know, it's a little windy, or there was rain earlier in the day or whatever, because you know it's gonna knock just that little edge off the crowd. Not happening.
Sundow's Summer Day in Buffalo, Well.
Chamber of Commerce.
And by the way, the people in Buffalo serious about their tailgating. I wouldn't be surprised as somebody tailgating there right now I'm serious, Wild RV's lawn chairs whatever.
All right, So give me your scenario, Amy Wells, of how the Titans go into Buffalo and win on Sunday.
I think if the Titans are able to handle their own business, and by that I mean play a clean game, limit the penalties, are able to force some turnovers, are able to handle the things that are fully in their control, and play a clean game, I think they give themselves a pretty good chance of winning this game. I like a lot of the different matchups, both offensive and defensively. I like just the way these two teams go together. I think it gives a lot of advantage Tennessee Titans.
But you gotta play a clean game. You have to handle the controllable things that you can control, and that's penalties, that's takeaways, that's not giving the ball away, that's handling your own business. And if the Titans can do that, I think they give themselves such really good chance.
I think it's Josh Allen largely the story. Josh Allen has not thrown an interception this season. Wow, he is going to throw in interception at some point.
How about Sunday calls and averages?
Well and he has thrown the balls. Troy Aikman said it on Monday Night Football. He said, now he's thrown the balls that could have been intercepted, but they weren't caught. I think that's where you start, is if you get a chance to have an interception, you got to intercept the pass. The other thing he's done well that. This is incredible. The Bills are seven of seven converting fourth downs. Wow, so they're converting thirty four percent of third downs, but
one hundred percent of fourth downs. So that takes their conversion rate up to around well over forty percent. Actually, if you add those conversions in, so you can't let them get fourth and ones. You can't let Josh Allen be sneaking there and at the goal line, which they use him for because he's six y five two hundred and forty pounds. The other part of that, along with the conversions, fifteen touchdowns in twenty two red zone possessions only five field goals. Yeah, so you've gotta make them
kick field goals. They're gonna move the ball. Guess what it's gonna happen. You stop Josh Allen and you give yourself a chance.
If you do the other thing, you're.
Gonna right stop him. I think you're gonna hope that you catch it when he throws into you, and that you force him into situations where their offense has to come off the field without having scored a touchdown. And so that's the part of it on the other side. And this is really incredible about them statistically already this year, their defense has ten takeaways. They've also seen six possessions by the opposition inside their twenty where the other team
hasn't scored points. So every time you get down there, you've got to score, whether that's a field goal or a touchdown, you've got to score. Now, the Titans have actually been very good. Their best offensive statistic to this point is thirteen red zone trips, eight touchdowns, so that is very solid. You like to be over sixty percent, you'd like to get it to over seventy percent. But you get down there and the Titans are scoring, score touchdowns, but at least get a field goal. I think if
that's the game it becomes. If you're getting off the field on defense, catch the ball with Josh Allen because you're gonna have an opportunity. And then on the other side. Just keep producing, just keep finding ways to keep grinding points out, whether that's touchdowns or field goals, and stay in this ball game. I think you've got a chance to win because what you said about matchups is correct
in that the Bills have had some injury problems. Listen, and what they've done is such a veteran team style of how they've played this year. They've the best they could have hoped for coming out of training camp with how the schedule was set through six games was four and two. Guess what they are four into because they've they got a quarterback, they got all these veterans, They know how to win. They win the games they should win.
I mean, this is really who they are. They haven't been overwhelming for the most part though, And that's the thing you say, Okay, with this defense the Titans have, you've got a chance to match up. Yeah, but the game has to go in my opinion, you know that the topic being how did the Titans go in and win? I think these sort of ancillary factors with the chess moves, it's kind of how it has to go down.
Yeah, I think that's strong. That's good analysis.
Much reasons too why I mentioned the run game being a part of this because in one of their losses was Baltimore, they ran all over them, right, and so they are beatable. But you're right about now the going inside the twenty and them not allowing a touchdown or a score. Little of that skewed because Greg Zarlin missed a couple of well chip shots.
But that's the whole thing is you you can't get down there and Breeze Hall rushed for over one hundred yards. They're giving up one hundred and forty yards rushing per game in part because they've had and they've had injury situations. But you've got to make the field goals, right, you know that. I mean if if the Jets make the field goals, they win the game.
Uncle Nick as you call him, yes's.
The former Jets kicker who's kicked in Orchard Park more than once. Which is one thing you really like about Nick Folk in this matchup is he's been through the swirling wins and we've all been down on the field there before. It's a thing.
Oh, it's very real. It is very real.
I One of my favorite sideline memories is you coming down to me during a game and saying, what is he kicking into.
The wind or with the wind? And my thought was, who could tell? Because it really is.
It feels like you're just standing in the middle of one of those money things.
That shoots the money machine.
Yeah, because the wind comes from everywhere.
And I remember just kind of chuckling and being like, well, I think.
It's coming from this way, but who really knows. It's everywhere. It's wild.
To your point about Josh Allen said the crazy sat I saw on him this week, I believe about forty percent of his rushes are either for first downs or touchdowns. To go back to your fourth down part, Wow.
Well he's I mean, he's amazing. When I saw him at the Senior Bowl, I didn't really know what to make of him because I'd never seen an arm like his ever before ever. I mean, it was and I'm talking about you know, and there have been times where I've snuck down on the field over twenty plus years to go see somebody throw just because you wanted to or to see somebody kick or catch, or you wanted to determine how big somebody really was or how not
big they were. And when I watched him at those practices. I've still and the Titans quarterback Will Levice absolute gun. This guy is something to that level and even beyond. And he is so big. He is such a big human. But you know when he was at Wyoming he completed I'm looking at it here fifty six percent of his passes.
Wow.
And I mean remember hit the game a couple weeks ago in Houston where he went nine out of thirty.
Yeah.
So this offense is set up for him, but they take advantage of what he does well. He runs really well. To Ret's point. In his career, Ret, he has fifty six rushing touchdowns. Now think about that. He has started one hundred and nine games counting playoffs, and he has fifty six rushing touchdowns. Me and I mean he can run. He can. I mean early in his career he had a couple hundred yard rushing games, but now he's up
to twenty five games with three hundred yards passing. He's passed for four thousand yards each of the last three seasons. He hasn't thrown a pick this year. I mean, he's been well coached and they've stayed with him at different points. You know, last year he threw eighteen picks, and it's like, well, that's his game. He's gonna have a nine for thirty.
He's going to throw eighteen picks on a year. But he's so good at the things he does, and when they are able to dictate with him, they don't lose. When you can get in the back and forth game, it's a it's a little different.
That's interesting that he because you're right, and that's where my question mark has always been with Josh Allen. Is you feel like, I mean, he's got the size, he's got the ability, he's got the skill. He's got these magnificent games with all of the statistical whatever you want. But then he has some games like Houston, and then he has some games where he's throwing picks all over the place and you're just wondering, like, where's the consistency.
But I guess that over time when you zoom out a little bit and look at his career, kind.
Of a wash.
No, I mean I think it's better.
I think it's better than a lot.
Oh absolutely. I mean it's seven seventy two and thirty seven as a starter.
Okay, yeah, that's better.
But what they've said, and this is where McDermott and the GM Brandon Bean have been so smart is they've said this is our guy period. And I mean, Rhett, you remember him as a rookie.
Were you traveling his rookie year potentially?
Oh? Was that that was the Nick Williams game. Yes, it was.
That's what's in my mind as you're describing his style of plane. I think about the growth year over years since that.
Yeah, he threw for eighty two yards right. He mostly ran right, and that was the whole thing. I mean, they were running here, they were running like student body left and things with him. But what they've done I think as well, if not better than any franchise in the league, is they got their guy and they said this is our guy, and we're just going to do this, and we're going to build him out. And then the second year, by the end of the second year, he
was better. And then by the third year, he's throwing for four thousand yards yep. And we go get him ste find Diggs and on and on and on, and we have a running game, and we play defense and he can always play in the weather because he's big and he has a great arm. Yes, we might have to deal with eighteen interceptions in a season which some people would consider, oh gosh, what's happened, And they're like,
but he threw twenty nine touchdown passes. Yeah, and it's like, and we win again because we know some It's like, the Bills are so smart because they understand they have the guy that can get them there in their weather situation, with their cap situation, in their division, they've won the division four straight years. Yeah, in their division situation. He matches up with our defense. If we have to hunker down in a game and just run it, run it,
run it, fine, whatever, it doesn't make any difference. We're not going to go undefeated, and every once in a while he's going to do something that's probably not going to help us win. But guess what, he's a two time Pro Bowl quarterback and again the stat seventy two and thirty seven as a starter, we will win two thirds of our games.
Yeah, that will win more with him win a lot feriore.
Yeah, but understanding that with his quirks, there are wins attached to that.
Pent Mike, I think because of him, Yeah, I think the oppressive thing about him in twenty twenty four is because due to injuries and a couple of other things. Obviously the trade of Stefan Dix. He's done it without a true number one wide receiver.
High and that brings us to topic number two. Topic number two is how does Amari Cooper factor into the game on Sunday. He was acquired on Tuesday from Cleveland, and he already has twenty four catches on the year for two hundred and fifty yards and two touchdowns. But we saw Monday night in that game with Khalil Shakir banged up, with Kean Coleman being a rookie, with their best receiver really being Dalton Kincaid the tight end, they
needed to go get him a receiver. They've gone four and two without replacing Stefan Diggs, and now they're getting Cooper at this incredibly cheap price for the remainder of the season, at just the right time, at just the right moment. How do you think he factors in on Sunday?
Ret Bryan, Well, I'm gonna cheat because earlier this week on Titans programming, you mentioned how he'd been traded, and I had forgotten this, But he played against the Titans in Dallas the first game he's traded from the Raiders to the Cowboys, and he had what five for fifty six in a score, five for fifty eight in a score, five for fifty eight. Yes, yeah, but first game, and look, you look at what he's done and by default now he's their leading receiver at two hundred and fifty yards
two touchdowns. But you're talking about guy his whole career has averaged almost over fourteen yards of catch, his last two years in Cleveland over one thousand yards, receiving over seventy catches and I think fourteen combined touchdowns. And you know he can make a difference. He absolutely can. I'm interested to see what they do with him, and certainly he's a vet and can They'll put a package together
for him. But you're right, Khalil Shakir, Dalton Kinkaid, those are the two people who have made it work through the first six games this year, and predominantly for Shakir out of the slot. But they do the same thing with Dalton Kincaid a lot as well. Kean Coleman has his place that he can grow. But this is a viable option for Josh Allen.
You agree, we're going to see a lot of Amari Cooper.
I think we are going to see a ton of Amari Cooper. I think that that was first off the point, and I think he's something. He is someone that can fit in so easily just because of the way that he plays as a receiver. I think that he he's kind of a plug and play guy, Like he doesn't need a ton of reps with their offense, he doesn't need a ton of time in their system to learn what it is. He can come in and just go
and make an impact right away. So yeah, I think that Amari Cooper is going to be a big part of what they end up doing on Sunday. Also, I'm interested to see how they continue to use tight Ends because it seems like more and more and more seeing you're seeing the tight Ends get more involved. You mentioned Dalton Kincaid and what he's been doing it. I'm curious to see if they're going to be a part of this or if this is going to be the a MARII Cooper show.
What I'm interested in with them at tight End is do they and can they get Dawson Knox more involved? You know, because Dawson Knox has been to a pro Bowl. Yeah, but Ken Caid is now the focus. I mean, Ken Kid had seventy three catches last year as a rookie. So do they use Dawson Knox or is that a chip that they use, you know, down the line looking at a trade possibility as we get closer to the trade deadline on November fifth, Because he's a really good player.
Caught a touchdown the other night. Yep, he's a really good player and still a young player.
Good athlete, oh yeah, good athlete.
And that's what scares you about how they when he's in the game, you think, oh well, now in their offense, he's the fourth option, but is he really? I mean, he's certainly way better than a fourth option in terms of his talent.
And thinking about Amari Cooper now in the mix to your point kind of what they do with tight ends, what does this do for some of the other receiving corps if as targets are shifted, Like, what does it do for Mac Hollins in this offense?
Mac Collins who had the best game of his career against the Titans. Yeah, in September of twenty twenty two when he was playing for the Raiders eight catches, one hundred and fifty eight yards in a touchdown. Didn't do as much last year playing for the Falcons against the Titans, two catches for twenty seven, but he's another big veteran receiver who caught a touchdown pass on Monday Night Football. I want to go back to Amari Cooper for just
a second though. I made the comment earlier this week, and I meant it that I think of all the receivers who could have been traded to the team the Titans are going to play this Sunday, he's the absolute worst, oh in terms of worst for the Titans. And what I mean by that is, this is a guy. When he's coming out of Alabama, he's compared stylistically to Marvin Harrison because he's just He's always open, he can run the entire route tree, he has speed, and quietly his
NFL career has been like that. Yeah, because he's been traded three times, it's almost as if he's judged as less than We'll get this. Five Pro Bowls, seven thousand yard seasons, he's on the cusp of seven hundred catches and he's still just right at thirty years old. Doesn't it feel like he ought to be like forty five years old.
Yeah, to be older than that, like Brandon.
Cook's yea, well, Brussell multiple trades, Yeah.
He holds the record with Eric Dickerson having been traded four times. Brandon Cooks does. But do you remember when Amari Cooper came into this building in twenty fifteen for a pre draft visit?
Oh?
Yeah.
And what was interesting about that year is that was the quarterbacks year.
Yep, yep.
And so it was either going to be Jameis Winston or Marcus Mariota or Leonard Williams who's gone on to have a super career is a is a perennial Pro Bowl type defenseive lineman, and then Amari Cooper yep. And to us internally, he was always the sleeper of the group if we got out at number two or we moved back a spot or two. Rustin Webster really liked him,
and we all really liked him. Most people thought of the four guys at the top, there's a very good chance he would end up being the best player, which he has in terms of his accolades and his production. No disrespect to Leonard Williams, who's also been good, but just the consistency factor of the Marvin Harrison comparison and ret We did these interviews and we put them out there, and that was by design. Yeah, yeah, we wanted people smoke screen.
I think it was.
Yeah.
I mean, it was more wanting people to understand that we were doing the whole.
The thing, the complete due diligence.
We weren't doing We weren't just saying we're taking this quarterback and this is it. We were assessing every option of what that first round could look like. Was my thought or my understanding of what we were being asked to do, was to show that the Titans were were pursuing every avenue.
But I do think there's some smoke screen to it. I think you said it, well there, it wasn't just smoke screen, but you wanted the Titans. You wanted everybody because Tampa was taking Winston. They had to take Winston. He played at Florida State. He's from down that way. I mean, you know he's he's from Birmingham, Alabama. I mean, that's what they're doing.
It all fit.
They are taking Winston. Jameis Winston is going to Tampa. That's what was the worst kept secret in the world. We were really the number one pick. Yeah, in Turn of the Unknown and will the phone ring in this? Well, when it came time to interview Cooper, we were told good luck.
Yeah, he doesn't talk.
And we found the thing he likes to talk about, and that is playing receiver. And we're going to show you a clip of this which will make you understand from nearly ten years ago why he will be ready to play this Sunday. He got it. Then, he's proven over the last nine plus years he's done that, and even nearly ten years later, you can bet he gets it now. This is a little bit of the conversation with a MARII Cooper from his pre draft visit in twenty fifteen.
The precision routes, that's something you have to work on that's not natural. Hands might be natural, leaping of speed might be natural, but the routes and running the routes in such a way that you can't tell what Amari Cooper is going to do you change speed? So well, how did you develop all of that?
I've been doing it for a long time. I've played receiver every year that I've played football, except for one one a year when I was smaller. And I started playing third grade. But I've been playing. Before I started playing organized football, I was still playing football running routes out there, so it's kind of innate. I can read the body language of the defender and know when I got them. So I'm just I'm just blessed I'm able to do those type of things.
You're a student, obviously, who have you studied to watch moves and different accelerations and things of that sort.
Well, I don't really.
I don't really study a lot of other receivers. It's just when I was growing up and coach wanted to me to run a slant route or an outright, I had already been doing it in my backyard without knowing I was doing it, so when he showed me how to do it, I was already really able to do it. So I don't know, I'm just I don't know.
That's amazing because most people when they start playing in the backyard, they want to be the quarterback or the running back. What made you want to be a receiver and take that so seriously?
Well, so my after school, my after school camp, we played at the barnyard every day after we finished our homework. And you're right, everybody wanted to play running back. The counselor played quarterback, so I would line up in the backfield. But since everybody wanted to play running back, he one day he told me to go at receiver. And after I went a receiver, I just enjoyed the process of catching the ball because I really didn't know how to
catch at first. I would always catch with my chest, so it was kind of a challenge to catch it with your hands. And I would catch it and be so satisfied with catching the ball that I would always just stop. He would say, no, you have to run after you catch the ball. You have to try to shake their defenders. So I think that's what made me start really liking it. Was a challenge.
One the guy always wanted to play receiver.
Yeah, his whole life, that's his thing.
And the route tree, I mean, the whole thing. He knows it. Just give him, give him a package and let him go.
So if you were discussing as we were Tampa and how in twenty fifteen they were definitely going to take Jameis Winston, which they did, the best non secret of this week is that Amari Cooper is going to be ready to play for Buffalo against the Titans.
Yeah, yeah, he's good. Don't worry about it, guy.
The problem with the Amari Cooper story too, that is so difficult at this moment. Last year, his best game of the season for the Cleveland Browns.
Was against these Tennessee Titans.
Seven catches, one sixteen, including a forty three yard touchdown. It's also the best day Deshaun Watson has ever had as Brown's quarterback. Yeah. Why why is that?
I don't know.
I don't know, but I don't like it. Yeah, So there's that.
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Tighten Up Holme is at the forefront of all that we do. It's why we're so committed to caring for the places and spaces in which we work and live. Ashley the official furniture provider of the Tennessee Titans. The otp pregame continues with topic number three, and that is Jamal Adams has been waived by the Tennessee Titans did not play a lot of football for the Titans. Certainly disappointing it didn't work out, But I don't think a total surprise to anyone internally externally.
No, I don't think so.
I think that this was a situation of wanting to find a veteran player to be in that secondary. I think that was what it was. I mean, didn't break the bank bringing him in. He had all very reasonable amount of money spent. It was one of the It was kind of a flyer, you know, you throw it out there. You see, he seems really interested in coming here. He seemed very excited about the program and what the
team was trying to do. And as things kind of evolved and the pieces kind of settled into place, and you know, you kind of figure out who's who in the zoo and where everything fits together, and it just didn't feel like the right fit anymore. And you know, he's had a long career, he's had injuries, he's kind of in a unique set of circumstances.
Of his own.
And so, I mean, is anybody really surprised. No, do I think it's a huge hit to the defense.
Not really.
I think this is just one of those things where the hopefully the two sides can kind of part ways, and that's that, you know.
The I mean, we've seen so many people come and go over the years for a myriad of reasons. I mean, I think about just not that long ago in training camp, Sadiq Charles was to talk at right guard and then he up and retires one day. It happens, things happen. You're right about having a safety for this defense because with the defense that Denard Wilson uses, Amani Hooker is the mainstay, and then there's a rotation sometimes with that
other spot, you know. And they wasn't too long after they did the Jamal Adams things they did Quandre Diggs they did so I think between having bodies and just trying to work out guys. Veteran presence though in the secondary, I think was one of the main objectives.
Well, Elijah Molden was not going to be the fit for this defense, which is why they traded him to the Chargers. And he's doing fine there, which is not surprising. He's a good football player. But they they were looking for veteran presence, so they went looking for Adams to add him as a veteran presence. I don't know. Maybe they got Digs in some part because of his friend Adams being here possible and it's worked out great. But
that was what Dinard Wilson wanted. He wanted more veteran to put with Amani Hooker, so you know what you got. Adams was inactive at Chicago, made one tackle against the Jets. He started the Green Bay game and made three tackles. He played as a reserve at Miami and then he was placed on non football or reserve non football injury and that was done on the twelfth, So that was done on Saturday. I guess he did not play in the Indianapolis game. Where he is at this point in
his career. He actually, as we tape, this turns twenty nine.
Today, happy birthday.
So he's a free agent and able to go somewhere. And I think the other part of this that is important, maybe not as much to wins and losses, is sometimes you want to do right by a veteran player as much as possible. If it's not working, which it's not, then let him go. Yep, then give him a chance. I mean, how many more years? Jamal Adams says, I don't know, he's a guy who was very hard on his body because of how he hit people. And he's a pro. He certainly made some money, he's been a
big name. If he gets a chance to land somewhere where he can do something for the rest of the year, that gives him a chance to you know, win a championship or be nearer family, or you know, in a system that can use him. You know, agents certainly are aware of certain things. Other players, veteran players are aware of certain things. It does not hurt you to be professionally positive in that way.
You want to give him the opportunity to find whatever situation works better for him than where he currently is. It doesn't do anybody any good to keep a player in a situation where it's clearly not working. Rarely does either side benefit from that.
No, And I mean if you were in a situation where financially it would be of good benefit to you to have the player on the team or what you know, on whatever list they're on, or to trade them or to do whatever, that's one thing. But this deal was so team friendly, yep, that which is why they took
the flyer in the first place. Financially they lost almost nothing. Yeah, and so they took the flyer, it didn't work, and then rather than continue on with it, they part as much friends as you can and allow him to go on and do what's best for him. That's the way you hope it goes. I think doing right by the player is a big deal, or is a bigger deal than probably what we know on a day to day basis.
And I also think that it's an important reputation to establish when you have a young staff, so when you have a new head coach, when you have a second year general manager, when you're in a position where this group as a staff is still establishing its identity within the NFL. I think to be able to point to future free agents, to be able to point to your own guys to say, listen, this was a situation and ability where we wanted to do whatever we could to
take care of the player. I think that goes a long way, not only within this building but throughout the National Football League.
Both of your point valid because that's what I'm thinking the whole time we're talking about this. It also cements the very positive reputation that Ran karth On and this staff has, Like he you know, he's still knew in this as the general manager. Still you know, knew in this window of time. And these players and agents talk to one another all the time. And I think when you have that look that Okay, you know what, Tennessee's must be a cool place to play, that must be
a really good outfit. And whether that pays something down the road in it evidend, you never know, but yeah, that's good business is looking out for the player first.
Well, the other part that you have too, that you didn't feel like you have coming out of camp is you you're obviously more interested in seeing some Julius Wood at safety. Julius Wood is a player that the Titans claimed off of waivers out of Dallas on August. He played special teams at Chicago and then he was inactive for the next three games. Well, then the situation happens where on Saturday they go ahead and put Jamal Adams on reserve non football injury and here's Julius Wood getting
a chance to play against Indianapolis. So now, at this point in the season, not only have you established where you think you are with Jamal Adams, which is just not there, you're also saying we have the confidence to give this guy more of an opportunity. I mean, that's how it looks at first, blush to go with Mike Brown as the backups behind Quandre Diggs and Amani Hooker, and let's see what this guy can do. You know you, I think you've got to have that sort of feeling
in your mind. I mean, because while you want to do things for good reasons, right, you want credibility and you want to be kind, it's still about one of football games, right, That's what it comes down to. You wouldn't do this if you didn't feel like you're okay at another spot, and or you want to see more, not necessarily at safety. I don't think Julius Wood's gonna play safety. I guess they feel like he could, if need be, now more so than he could a month ago.
But let's see this guy on teams. Let's see him get after some people. Let's see how he fits in the forty eight on game day. Let's take a look. We know what we got Mike Brown. He's a good special teams player. He's played some safety at different points. Now, let's see where Julius is at.
Julius while he's not Jamal Adams in terms of career, much younger and a chance to work himself into this thing. Had a chance to hang out with him a little bit earlier this week. He was one of the players at a Play sixty school show that we did with t RAQ and nice young man. Kids loved him. He had a great message. He's a good size dude. Doo he is he has he's a long player.
Well, and these are the guys you know when you go Jamal Adams, Julius Wood. You know a guy who was a high number one pick and a three time pro bowler all pro to a guy who was not drafted. Nobody's saying they're the same player. But where the Titans are right now, you're looking to build out this forty eight, this fifty three, this sixty nine man roster, trying to figure out how to get the pieces in place so that next offseason you don't have to turn over thirty roster spots.
Yeah, that's a great point.
And here's his background. He's originally from Columbus, Ohio. Julias Wood did not generate any college interests coming out of walnut Ridge High School. He opted to attend Lynn Junior College, in Brenham, Texas. His two years in the JUCO ranks offered the opportunity to grow both physically, and he blossomed into a run stopping safety presence. He then transferred to East Carolina one hundred and seventy four tackles, five pass deflections,
four interceptions in two years for the Pirates. He ran four to six at East Carolina's pro day on March the twenty six, twenty twenty four. So he's a rookie, I mean, who knows. I mean that's a that's initially where you go. All right? Topic four? Who's your Titan for Sunday? That you got to see? Who's somebody you can't say, Tony Pollard? Who's your what?
Okay, you're gonna say Tony Palk. Why can't I say?
Because we've a stabbed But Tony Pollard's got to play well for the Titans to have a chance.
I like these rules. But okay, continue, but we'll let you start. No, I don't want to start. We'll let Red start right, redstart?
Who who's the player you gotta see on Sunday that if we're talking about a Titans win, he's had a good day.
Will Levis. Okay, I want I want Will Levis to lead this team and do this. I think it'll be a shot in the arm for him, a shot in the arm for this team and his teammates. And I think a good day for him and a win would be just what the doctor ordered.
Okay, I can't say Tony Pouller, but he can say the quarterback interesting. It's all right.
Person was an obvious answer.
It's a great answer. It is a really good answer. I think my person is Jeffrey Simmons. I want to see Jeffrey Simmons be the disruptive presence that we know he can be. We've obviously understand that he's had some injury issues and he's trying to overcome all of that.
But it's go time, big, Jeff. I need to see you get after it.
I'm staying on defense with artist Ernest Ernest Jones.
The fourth.
I just think in this game, with the way the quarterback is gonna run, and with what they're gonna want to do with their run game, especially, God, did Ray Davis look good the other night for the Bills.
Ray Davis did a fantastic job in ninety seven yards rushing he's fifty five one.
Hundred and fifty two scrimmage yards.
Yeah, a lot.
Ray played great.
Uh.
I'm guessing they'll get James cook back. They got Ty Johnson, they got the quarterback who can run. I mean they do things with Curtis Samuel.
You're gonna have to try to plug that up.
Yeah, and you know you you're gonna have open field situations on even pass rushes with Josh Allen. I mean he drops back and somebody's coming at him and he jukes the first guy on a blitz. Ernest Jones is gonna have to win some against Josh Allen because he'll have some chances. Kenneth Murray will too. But it just feels like this is a game where Ernest Jones could be a big factor. All right, final topic, what's bothering Amy Wells?
So many things? Your rules to your games? Right off?
There?
It is my head there it is okay.
No, I have other things. Of course, there are things that are bothering me. Can I Can I offset it with a nice thing too? This feels kind of like a negative point. Can I do like a negative and a positive?
Well?
Sure, okay, So here's the thing. Things that are bothering me for starters? Did you guys read this article about how the owners can't decide if they want to allow video on the sidelines.
Have you guys been keeping up the Atlanta meeting?
Yeah, from the Atlanta meeting, and it's always been swirling. It's been swirling since fifteen or sixteen.
Okay, so let me stop for a second. They had the owner's brief fall meeting at Atlanta on Tuesday. They did, and Jacksonville got to prove for their stadium.
They did.
Atlanta got approved for Super Bowl sixty, sure did, and then there were some other ancillary topics.
Yeah, and so this is a topic that is not new.
It's a continued conversation and these owners just cannot decide whether or not and head coaches too, I should say, cannot decide whether or not they want to allow video on the sidelines during games, the All twenty two video in place of pictures. This specific article that I read, there were cited situations where a coach really went after a player for missing a block because that's what he saw on the picture, but when he went back to the tape, that's not at all what happened. He made
the block just fine. The picture just caught an odd angle or a weird movement.
And so can I give another quick clarification.
So the pictures are on the tablets.
They're on the tablets now. They used to be literal pictures that were printer that were run down from the press box, and then technology got really special and they could print them on the sidelines. Yes, and so everybody thought, oh my goodness, we're basically the Jetsons riding on those is the future, this is the future. Well then they got moved to tablets. So we're still looking at pictures. We're still making Yeah, we're still making pictures.
Yeah.
And they're trying to decide, even though the video.
Is available, whether or not they should.
Whether or not it should be allowed for I mean, what is it?
Here are the two arguments, let me tell you, Mike Keith, and this is what's getting my goat a little bit here here let me explain. So the two sides are one side that says, if you are not a good enough coach to be able to look at the game on the field and the pictures that you are given, the still shots and deduce what needs to happen in game, you it's your own fault, terrible.
You need to learn how to do this better.
A good coach is able to do that, and that is one of the key differentiators between a good coach and a great coach is the ability to see, analyze, and adjust as it's happening in front of them.
These so they shouldn't need videos.
They you should not require. This is the dumbing down of the coaching profession. Okay, by giving everybody video, it makes everybody a little bit stupider, and you don't need to work harder to figure it out.
Could you even tell she's married to a coach?
You would never know. On the opposite side is a.
Notably younger generation of coaches saying, if everybody is able to see what's going on and deduce it as it's happening based on the video, don't you have to be a better coach schematically because everybody.
Is seeing what's going on.
So the level of coaching is now, how are you able to adjust to the chess game and figure it out? I think that this is such a silly conversation to even be having. If you have the ability to have the technology to make a game better for both sides like this is It's not like only the home team gets.
To see the video. Everybody gets to see the video.
Everyone has the ability to make the adjustments to continue to like make a better game because all of a sudden, everybody's able to adjust, and so everybody wins when video is involved. I think I understand, and I am the first one to want to preserve the integrity of old school football in every possible way. I like it big and mean, and I like it dirty, like in the trenches where everybody is just a like old school football
is what I like. In the snow like, I like aggressive, just like run it down their throats football in the snow.
And the rain and the mud. Get it.
But give these people video, Like do the right thing here. This This is such.
A no caveman's game with technology.
But yeah, I want a caveman's game.
But let's all be able to watch it at the same time figure out what's going on.
You know, it'd be so proud of you right now, ks Bud Adams Junior, because mister Adams made the greatest argument for replay in the late nineties that there was. It was so mister Adams, it was succinct, It was on point and it was easy to understand, he said, and Rett will remember this as I do. When they decided to do replay, there were a lot of people who said, let's go damage the integrity the games, gonna make eight hour games. It's never gonna work. It's terrible,
you know. And mister Adams said, and I'm paraphrasing, he said, if we can fix something, why wouldn't we do that? If we can make it right, why wouldn't we do that?
And it makes so much sense.
Hello, I mean, but people twenty five years ago, people were arguing this vociferously, and it's like now, you really wouldn't find anybody who would say get rid of replay, right, There's there's been no big move for get rid of rep Yeah.
Mister Adams was a big proponent of replay because of something that happened to the Oilers Championship game.
Yeah, with don Or the former that Mike Renfro, Mike Renfrow.
So there was that, But that is that example of what you're talking about with mister Adams is exactly why he's currently in a top twenty five list for a contributors category. To be a twenty twenty five Pro Football Hall of Famer because he had those ideas, he had those things that he lent to my start.
A new league. Yeah what what what like steal the best players from the other league so we can be better? What like? Uh? Oh, I'm not afraid to make Warren Moon the face of my franchise. When some people don't want to step forward with a black quarterback, that's silly. Guess what. He's really good, but had the vision.
To go, hey, we're gonna get in our in our league, and I know he's better off in the New York market, right And without that, there is no guarantee with Super Bowl three. You can't have the modern day NFL story without mister Adams.
It's ridiculous. He's not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. That's just me.
It's also me anyway.
That's what that No, that was what was bothering me.
But I also want to hit a little bright spot because this doesn't all have to be about.
Things that are making me a little happy, okay, a little joyful. Uh did you guys see that J C.
Latham don't seventy five thousand dollars to hurricane relief not only in Tennessee and the places that needed in Tennessee and the Carolinas, but also in Florida. Florida, and he went to IMG in Bradenton, which is really hard hit by both storms.
Area.
Yeah, it's right outside of Tampa. And I just thought that for a young player to so early in his career recognize the platform that he has and the impact that he is able to have in other people's lives, and to proactively want to do that. Nobody asked him to do this, He sought it out, and I just think that that's such an incredible thing. It's an awesome thing to see out of any human, let alone somebody who is so new in their career, somebody who's so
new to having this platform, this paycheck. There's a lot of things about just him as a person that have been so impressive to all of us in the first part of his rookie year twenty one. Yeah, he's twenty one years old, but look at the way that that twenty one year old human has just impacted so many people's lives and it has nothing to do with football, and it's not because a single human told him to.
I think it's incredible It is fantastic.
First of all, his servant's heart. He's got it, no question. How many conversations have you had with Jacon Latham?
Multiple?
Yeah, few.
He's a very interesting person and he is very wise to be twenty one years old. It's incredible if that's me at twenty one years old, you go, this guy's a jack. Yeah, I mean, good grief, clam he is. I really I had a lengthy conversation with him yesterday in the locker room and I came away, So I've been impressed since he walked in the door. But golly, so the fact he did that not a huge surprise.
I think as the franchise comes out of the wilderness, which will happen, I mean, it's going to happen. It doesn't feel like it right now. But if you've been here, if you were here in two thousand and four, in two thousand and five and the start of two thousand and six, if you were here two thousand and nine through twenty fifteen, sometimes it takes longer than others. I
don't think it's going to take that long now. But this franchise is going to come out of the wilderness, and you're going to look back at things that happen that you really don't want to hear about right now because you're in the wilderness. But one of the things you're going to look back on and be thankful for is that the Titans took J. C. Latham at number seven. Yeah, not referencing any other player that they could have taken
that everybody you know would have been fine. I'm just saying for where the franchise is, for what their need was at tackle, for who the human being is, for how he's going to be a good player for a long time. I mean, there's several things that are happening that are positive that aren't reflected upon because again, wilderness, wilderness, and that's okay, and and we you know, we understand. You know, it's not just now. It's the last two
years combined, and I mean, it's a thing. But you will look back and you will say, this was a really good thing. Picking j C. Latham for this entire organization was a really good thing.
He's going to be a cornerstone piece of this time, to be.
A cornerstone piece of the foundation for a long long time.
On and off the field.
Well, that's the point for the for the organization, right Yep, I think it's will.
Put anyway, that's what's bringing me joy.
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Ratt, thank you for being here. I'm glad this studio. By the way, Hey, is it fan? Thanks that nice coach Mack is trying to get it named after him.
Not if he keeps stealing our candy.
Yep, we're surprised that he's trying to do that, but.
We've got a couple things we have to do. Will you bear with us? Oh, okay, so we need you to be a model for us. M H. So he's got the little Caesars. It's time for the key ingredients of the game, delivered by little Caesars. The Titans got their first interception last Sunday, but they didn't get any quarterback sacks. So this Sunday in Buffalo, let's do both. Titans defense isn't giving up many yards, but they need more big plays. Key number one, the Titans defense gets
after the quarterback and creates turnovers. Key number two. Keep Tony Pollard's momentum going. Tony Pollard has a grand total of one hundred and eighty one yards rushing in the last two games. The Memphis product has been the Titans' most consistent weapons so far, and he's getting stronger. Maintain the Tony Pollard momentum, and finally, the Titans have to clean it up. Cut the penalties, cover punts, catch the catchuple passes, don't miss chances to make a big play
on offense, defense or special teams. The Titans have lost three one score games that have all had their winnable moments, but the Titans didn't play clean enough. That needs to change. Sunday in Buffalo.
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Eleven o'clock Central Time, Sunday, This guy, this lady, Yes, Brad Willis, Ramon Foster, coach Dave McGinnis, and a cast of thousands Titans Countdown, presented by Farm Bureau Health Plants, which also sponsors the OTP. Eleven am Central on your favorite Titans radio station, including one four to five per zone in Nashville for Red Brian and Amy Wells. Mike Keith, thanks you for joining us for the oh T