The Tennessee Titans had enough going their way in the first half against the Ravens to believe they were in position to make this one interesting. Instead, one sequence at the goal line flipped the mood in a hurry.
Tennessee was creating some disruption up front, with Jacob Martin, Marcus Harris, and Jermaine Johnson combining for two sacks and helping keep the offense in the game. The attack also looked sharper than it did recently, even with Carnell Tate’s late-half fumble clouding things a bit. On the whole, there were signs of life.
Then came the possession that changed everything.
Midway through the second quarter, the Titans had a chance to tie it at the goal line. OC Brian Daboll kept handing the ball to Tony Pollard, five straight times. The results never changed much: a little bit here, a little bit there, and finally a failed fourth-down try when Pollard couldn’t get the needed yardage.
Baltimore took over on the turnover on downs and made Tennessee pay. The Ravens drove down the field and finished with a touchdown pass to Mark Andrews, turning what could have been a 14-14 game into a swing that tilted hard the other way.
There’s been plenty of talk about Tennessee needing to be more aggressive on offense entering Week 4, and this wasn’t about criticizing the decision to go for it on fourth down. The issue was the approach inside those five plays. Running the same concept over and over left the Ravens with no reason to adjust.
It also fit an ugly trend. Last week against the New York Giants, Tennessee lost on a goal-line interception in the fourth quarter. This time, the offense didn’t get the same kind of mistake, but it did get stuck in a conservative groove that ended in the same place: no points.
That’s what makes the sequence so frustrating. This wasn’t a case for forcing a throw on fourth down. It was a case for making Baltimore respect something other than Pollard pounding inside repeatedly.
Ward’s first-drive interception was a fluke, but outside of that, his 135 first-half yards were the best opening-half total he’s posted this season. Pollard had given the offense something to build on, too, with 13 carries for 38 yards and a touchdown.
But the Titans seemed to settle in just when they should have kept pressing. Daboll leaned on the run at the worst possible moment, and the momentum disappeared almost immediately.
There are still two quarters left, but if Tennessee comes up short, this goal-line series is the kind of decision people will keep circling back to.
In Other News...
Titans Suddenly Have A Lineup Problem They Can't Afford In Baltimore
The Titans head into their Week 4 trip to Baltimore with more uncertainty than they probably wanted this early in the season, as injuries have put parts of the lineup in flux. Tyjae Spears and Garrett Dellinger are among the players listed as questionable, and Robert Saleh has already acknowledged that availability is still very much up in the air as the week moves on.
For a Tennessee team trying to stabilize its rotation and settle on the best mix up front, the timing is not ideal. Baltimore has a way of exposing any soft spots, so the Titans may have to adjust their starting group if the injury report breaks the wrong way, and the last thing they can afford is another last-minute scramble before kickoff. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Walk Into Baltimore Facing A Derrick Henry Problem Again
Baltimore brings the old problem right back onto Tennessees schedule, with Derrick Henry set to face the Titans after moving on from the franchise following the 2023 season. Since joining the Ravens, Henry has been piling up the kind of rushing production that once made him the centerpiece of the Titans offense, and now Tennessee has to deal with him from the other sideline.
For Robert Salehs group, the challenge is familiar even if the uniform is different: find a way to slow a runner who still forces defenses to commit extra attention while Tennessee keeps pushing forward with Cam Wards development. The Titans task gets tougher up front, too, with two injured offensive linemen now on injured reserve, leaving less margin for error in a matchup already shaped by one of the leagues most familiar headaches. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Keep Finding Painful New Ways To Waste Their Chances
The Titans are already in a familiar and uncomfortable place after four weeks, and the latest loss to Baltimore only added to the growing list of small failures that have turned into big problems. Tennessee had chances to keep itself in the game, but the afternoon kept tilting the wrong way, from special teams mistakes to a late interception that undercut any hope of a rally. Former Titan Derrick Henry also found the end zone, another painful reminder that even the good moments have a way of slipping out of reach.
What makes the slide harder to watch is how many different phases have taken turns letting Tennessee down. The offense faded badly in the second half, while Brian Dabolls decisions were part of the broader conversation around how the game unraveled. Even Carnell Tate, who turned in a notable performance, was part of the story in a way the Titans could not afford after a costly fumble, and the result left them still searching for their first win. [Read more 🡒]