The Tennessee Titans came out of Week 1 with plenty of problems, but the one that may linger the most is right in the middle of the offensive line.
Austin Schlottmann’s first outing as the team’s center did not go the way Tennessee hoped. The offseason addition was expected by many around the team to settle in as the starter for 2026, and while that idea drew some early skepticism, Titans fans gradually warmed to the thought of him working with his former offensive line coach and coordinator again.
That optimism took a hit in the opener against the New York Jets.
Schlottmann finished with a 56.1 Pro Football Focus run-blocking grade, which ranked last among Tennessee’s five linemen. The film backed that up.
He held up at times, but he had real trouble moving defenders and creating lanes in the run game. For a Titans offense that badly needs to run the ball with more consistency, that’s a concern.
His pass protection was harder to judge because so many of his snaps came with help from left guard Peter Skoronski or right guard Fernando Carmona. But when Schlottmann was left alone, the issues were obvious. On one play, former Titans nose tackle T’Vondre Sweat blew him off the spot immediately and forced Cam Ward to throw the ball away.
Now the challenge gets even tougher. Schlottmann could be lining up against Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis this Sunday when Tennessee faces the Philadelphia Eagles, though Carter is on the Eagles’ injury report. That interior matchup is a far bigger ask than what he saw from the Jets, and if his play doesn’t improve quickly, center could end up being one of the weakest positions on the roster.
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Titans Have An Offensive Problem Cam Ward Cant Keep Hiding
The Titans offense has spent too much of the past 18 games fighting the same problems in plain view, and the screen game has become one of the easiest to spot. What was supposed to be a simple way to help Cam Ward settle in has instead turned into another source of frustration, with the operation around those plays not matching the kind of rhythm Tennessee needs to get moving.
Brian Daboll now has to decide whether those calls are worth keeping in the playbook at all, or whether the Titans are better off leaning on other ways to simplify the offense and create cleaner answers for Ward. Tom Bradys recent comments about the early weeks under a new coordinator only sharpen the point here: this is the stage where good offenses start trimming the fat, and Tennessee still has to figure out which part of its passing game is helping and which part is just getting in the way. [Read more 🡒]
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Anthony Hill handled a bigger role in Grays absence against the Jets, but the Titans still have to prove that performance can translate against a far more demanding opponent. Grays return would give Tennessee a steadier look in the middle and another piece to help a defense that is already under pressure to hold up as the schedule gets tougher. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Make An Early Defensive Change Robert Saleh Couldn't Delay
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Robert Saleh confirmed the move while the staff continues to sort through what it has in veterans Cedric Gray and Cody Barton. The timing says plenty about where the Titans are right now, trying to stabilize the front seven quickly after Week 1 and leaning into the player who made the strongest first impression, even if the larger linebacker picture is still unsettled. [Read more 🡒]