There have been many topics swirling around the 1-5 Tennessee Titans this week after suffering through a miserable afternoon against the Buffalo Bills, and for good reason.
The Titans again failed to hold a halftime lead and the offense struggled mightily with Mason Rudolph at the helm. On top of that, their number-one-ranked defense could not hold up and the team gave up 34 straight points.
Offensively, the passing game was pedestrian at best, and the running game was nowhere near as effective or dynamic as it has been in previous games. Somewhat of a surprise considering the defense they were facing.
The only RB in the NFL to not face a single stacked box this week (min. 10 carries) was #Titans Tony Pollard who rushed for 61 yards on 16 carries, -4 Rushing Yards Over Expected (RYOE) per @NextGenStats via @ZebraSports #Jaguars pic.twitter.com/g3UFOIZpWp
— 𝕋𝕣𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕤 🅓. ℍ𝕠𝕝𝕞𝕖𝕤 (@TravisDHolmes) October 22, 2024
Not only has Buffalo struggled to stop the run in 2024, but according to NextGen Stats, Tony Pollard did not face a stacked box at all in the game — the only running back in the NFL that can make that claim in Week 7.
Pollard did rush for 61 yards on 16 carries, but that wasn’t enough to force the Bills’ defense to change their plan.
This speaks volumes about where the Titans’ offense sits in 2024. They lack an identity and almost seem to refuse to focus on their running game, even though it has been somewhat successful throughout the season. With the right tackle position being a liability in the passing game, focusing on the running game should be an easy decision.
Yes, Tyjae Spears was out in this game. But Pollard has been dynamic and has already demonstrated the ability to carry the offense. Before the game, this was set up as the perfect match-up for the Titans to take advantage of, yet, even being up at halftime they did not change their approach.
Many things have gone wrong this season for the Titans, and they have a lot to fix moving forward. Tony Pollard has not been one of those and they should feed him the ball as much as possible. Tune in Sunday when the Titans face the Detroit Lions to see if they learned from any of their miscues.
