The Tennessee Titans finished the 2018 season 9-7. A very eventful season full of inconsistencies from just about every position. Today I will be breaking down and giving position grades at every position on the offensive side of the ball. The next article I write will be full of defensive grades for the 2018 Titans defense.
The Titans offense overall in 2018 was not good. They ranked 27th in points, 29th in pass yards, 7th in rush yards, and 25th in total yards per game. So lets get the grades started.
QB
Marcus Mariota- 14 Games 228/331 68.9% 2528 yards 11 TD 8 INT 42 Sacks 2 fumbles lost
Blaine Gabbert- 8 Games (3 starts) 61/101 60.4% 626 yards 4 TD 4 INT 5 Sacks 0 fumbles lost
As Mariota struggled to finish games and stay healthy Blaine Gabbert stepped in multiple times this season, and like the rest of the Titans season he was inconsistent. He would miss an easy wide open target then place a ball perfectly later in the game. Onto the franchise QB however we saw another season full of injuries. It all started week 1 when he left the game in Miami with a stinger. That stinger continued to nag at him throughout the season. In fact he was not able to go in a week 17 win or go home matchup against the Colts due to the stinger that got re-aggravated in the week 16 win over the Redskins.
When Mariota was healthy this season we saw the franchise guy everyone knew he could be. However he was not able to consistently stay healthy. His best game clearly this season was a game against the defending champs where he completed 30 of 43 passes for 344 yards and 2 TD along with 10 rushes for 46 yards. This being a game that just showed flashes of what we can hope for next year. Mariota who is full of so much potential has yet to play to his full potential so for that reason, the inconsistency, and being unable to stay healthy this year he won’t earn the grade that you would expect a franchise quarterback that has led his team to three straight winning seasons.
QB grade: C+
RB
Derrick Henry- 215 rushes 1,059 yards 4.9 YPC 12 TD 15 Rec 99 yards 1 fumble lost
Dion Lewis- 155 rushes 517 yards 3.3 YPC 1 TD 59 Rec 400 yards 1 TD 1 fumble lost
Just looking at Derrick Henry’s stats you might think he was one of the most consistent backs in the league this year. Well that would be false. Henry did not have a game of more than 60 yards until week 14 against the Jacksonville Jaguars when he ran for 238 yards and 4 TD. That was just the beginning of a beast mode like December for the 247 pound back. Henry went on to run for 626 yards in December and earned AFC player of the month for December. For the Titans to be successful in 2019 they will need to see more of this Derrick Henry, but for this season he was very big piece for the Titans in the last month of the season and a big reason they won 9 games.
Dion Lewis who signed a 4 year $19.8 million dollar deal this offseason did not live up to expectations. Lewis only averaged 3.3 yards a carry this season and one TD. Lewis who was picked up to be an explosive back, his longest run was only 36 yards. Lewis actually had a much better season catching passes out of the back field. He was a primary and reliable check down target for Mariota all season long. He actually had the second most receptions and yards on the team. So even though he did not run the ball as well as the Titans would’ve liked to have seen he was very good out of the backfield.
RB grade: A-
WR
Corey Davis- 65 Rec 891 yards 4 TD
Taywan Taylor- 37 Rec 466 yards 1 TD
Tajae Sharpe- 26 Rec 316 yards 2 TD
Darius Jennings- 11 Rec 101 yards 0 TD
Cam Batson- 8 Rec 82 yards 0 TD
If you can not tell by looking at the stats it was Corey Davis then everyone else. The Tennessee Titans are in desperate need of another top receiver to complement Corey Davis. The Titans number 2 receiver this year was a RUNNING BACK. Giving an already handicapped Mariota who was hurt on and off all year even less opportunities to make explosive plays. I would consider this a major need for the Titans in the offseason. Even after 2nd year receiver Corey Davis had a great year and fell just short of 1,000 yards.
Tajae Sharpe has been significantly underwhelming since his rookie year. He went down with an injury last year and missed the entire season. Then this year barely had a catch a game. Taywan Taylor on the other hand took a step in the right direction for the Titans. Showed some real explosiveness and down the field potential. He had the longest catch of the season for a wide receiver at 55 yards.
WR grade: C
TE
Jonnu Smith- 20 Rec 258 yards 3 TD
Anthony Firkser- 19 Rec 225 yards 2 TD
Luke Stocker- 15 Rec 165 yards 2 TD
MyCole Pruitt- 9 Rec 102 yards 1 TD
Delanie Walker- 4 Rec 52 yards 0 TD
The Titans saw Jonnu Smith growing before their very eyes game after game before going out with an injury in week 13. This injury of course hurt the Titans, but the injury that killed the Titans the most was the loss of their most valuable weapon over the last few years Delanie Walker. The Titans lost Delanie Walker in just week 1 in Miami. Tight end play struggled the next several weeks. Jonnu Smith then broke out and was becoming a consistent weapon for the Titans just to hit the IR the week after his best career game in Houston.
The Titans were now at a point where they were playing 3rd and 4th string tight ends. Then out of nowhere MyCole Pruitt came in and played very well for the Titans. It was a platoon type of position this year for the Titans this year and they did a great job of picking each other up and being primary targets for Mariota and Gabbert. Titans tight ends combined for 67 receptions for 802 yards and 8 TD.
TE grade: B+
OL
LT) Taylor Lewan-
LG) Quinton Spain-
C) Ben Jones-
RG) Josh Kline-
RT) Jack Conklin-
RT) Dennis Kelly-
The offensive line this year was really bad. Taylor Lewan who became the highest paid offensive lineman in NFL history this past off-season was a pro bowler and a leader on this team once again. The only other bright spot we saw out of this O line was when Dennis Kelly came in to replace Jack Conklin due to injury. This is another major need for the Titans this off-season is adding something to the interior line. Whether it be moving Conklin to guard or making a move in free agency. It was very clear that Mariota was not protected good enough this year. The Titans allowed the 10th most sacks in the NFL allowing Mariota to get sacked 47 times.
OL grade: C-
The Titans offense majorly under performed this season. With the news breaking today that Matt LeFleur the Titans offensive coordinator will be the head coach in Green Bay next season their will be lots of offensive moves to be made in the off-season.
Overall 2018 offense grade: C
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