Jamalisms Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Additions of players and coaches should help improve the Titans Defense. The Titans defense surrendered a bunch of points last year and, although the offense has seen more change, the front office has been busy working on improving the less than stellar performance of 2012. Mid-round additions from the draft include rookies Blidi Wreh-Wilson and Zavier Gooden. These two players will be called on to contribute to a depleted group of cornerbacks that only featured four players before the draft and an already young linebacker core, respectively. Other draft additions on the defensive side of the ball include defensive end Lavar Edwards, cornerback Khalid Wooten and safety Daimion Stafford. While no defensive rookie is guaranteed to start, many are expected to see early action and will add much needed depth to a defensive roster that has been the subject of a wide-ranging overhaul since Jeff Fisher’s long tenure ended two short years ago. Veteran safeties Bernard Pollard and George Wilson should help fill the void at strong safety while Sammie Lee Hill and Ropati Pitoitua add depth and size along the defensive line. All four players bring needed experience to the young roster, especially Pollard who is already penciled in as a starter and will bring a Super Bowl ring and experience playing on a defense led by future hall of famer Ray Lewis to add weight to his words. The additions should help get things back on track for 2013, but how the players will be used is up in the air thanks, in part, to a coaching staff addition of NFL scapegoat and pawn in the NFL’s ongoing legal battle with retirees – Gregg Williams. Williams has worked with defensive coordinator Jerry Gray, (a recent addition to college football’s Hall of Fame), in the past but the exact nature of their working relationship this time around is somewhat unknown. After the defensive showing of 2012 and in the wake of offensive coordinator Chris Palmer’s firing, Gray was long-expected by many to be at risk of being sent to the unemployment line. He wasn’t fired, but the addition of a high-level assistant raises the question of who is really the defensive authority. Added to the confusion is a backdrop of talk from players and the Titans in general about scheme changes and an aggressive nature. Aggression is a Gregg Williams hallmark, his calling card. Pollard didn’t mince words in this article by AP writer Teresa Walker: ''If a guy coming across the middle, if a guy come up to you, if a guy wants to pick a fight, we as a defense we're going to fight and we're going to ask questions later,'' Pollard said. ''We're not going to worry about what happened at that point. I'm not worried. The guy has an opposite jersey on so we're going to fight him.'' If you review offseason news on the Titans’ defense, Williams is often highlighted and Gray is an afterthought. See the article by Walker, for instance. Much of this could be attributed to the logical linking of oft-called for improvement and the newest addition to the coaching staff. Maybe it’s only natural to talk about Williams so much. After all, in terms of linking Gray to retained authority – it was he, not Williams, who was seen shaking hands with Munchak in the war-room on draft day and the staff has repeatedly reinforced that Gray is the defensive coordinator. Despite that, there is a sense that Williams’ influence will grow. Peter King had a pretty well-rounded take on all of this a month ago. Assuming Williams does take over, not a done deal by any means, it won’t be official for some time. If nothing else, the Titans will be slow to unveil his role until after he’s had time to prove to the team and league that behaviors of the past won’t resurface. Regardless of how the balance of personalities and power shakes out in 2013, it will be one of the more interesting things to watch moving forward. Having Williams on staff has clearly captured the attention of Titans players and an attitude of ruthlessness is seeing the first glimmerings of resurgence. Opposing players and coaches will take note of Williams’ history and influence as well. If the Titans strike the right balance on defense through Gray and Williams, it may prove to be as important a change as any single free agent addition.Follow Titans Report on Twitter: @TitansReportFollow Jamal on Twitter: @JamalismsClick here to view the article Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctm Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 If you believe Pollard's talk about a new attitude and team culture, then Griffin and CJ are going to have to s**t or get off the pot. I get the feeling if they play passive, then they will get called out in the meeting rooms. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmac362 Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Watched the video of pollard answering questions on titans website. It was great. Mentioned "knocking the piss" out of someone a couple of times. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannynj Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Explain how Gregg Williams is a scapegoat. The guy admitted to doing what he did, took his suspension and is moving forward. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
titanruss Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 If you believe Pollard's talk about a new attitude and team culture, then Griffin and CJ are going to have to s**t or get off the pot. I get the feeling if they play passive, then they will get called out in the meeting rooms. You are under a poor and false assumption that both of these players aren't trying. JLocker10, and No1TitansFan 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctm Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 You are under a poor and false assumption that both of these players aren't trying. Facts: CJ had very poor yards after contact, one of the worst in the league Griffin missed more tackles (22) than any safety in the league. Both are passive, weak, players. Hammer, and HOTT 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OILERMAN Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Why did Webster keep them then? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pragidealist Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Explain how Gregg Williams is a scapegoat. The guy admitted to doing what he did, took his suspension and is moving forward. The story line is Williams was all hyperbole and was used to set an example. *shrugs* I don't know. Munch said somewhere that he called around and double checked his own impression - and that was his basic take .... Not in those words Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pragidealist Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Why did Webster keep them then? Given that Webster has shown so far to have a good eye for talent - it might be more interesting to try and answer that rather than assume he's an idiot Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pragidealist Posted May 7, 2013 Report Share Posted May 7, 2013 Facts: CJ had very poor yards after contact, one of the worst in the league Griffin missed more tackles (22) than any safety in the league. Both are passive, weak, players. Not sure Griffin is weak. I've not seen him avoid contact. I just think his strengths are in other areas. Hopefully Pollard can help balance that Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OILERMAN Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 Given that Webster has shown so far to have a good eye for talent - it might be more interesting to try and answer that rather than assume he's an idiot Name all the talent Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctm Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 Why did Webster keep them then? My guess is they were trying to avoid something like the Pittsburg scenario. Harrison, Mendenhall and Wallace all leave in free agency. The Steelers then have to use their top three draft picks on Jones, Bell and Wheaton to replace them. After the Titans replaced Cook with Walker, then all of the free agents and draft picks were used to arguably upgrade the roster. Warmack, Hunter & BW-W replaced Harris, Hawkins and Mouton. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pragidealist Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 Name all the talent So you're saying you don't like our drafts the last two to three years... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OILERMAN Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 Name all this Webster talent Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pragidealist Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 Name all this Webster talent Personally - I like all our first and second round picks for the last three years since he supposedly gained more draft control Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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