For this week’s Tennessee Titans/New York Jets question & answer exchange, I corresponded via email with Joe Caparoso, who writes for Fanball’s Turn on the Jets blog.
Our thoughts and opinions regarding this week’s pivotal Titans/Jets matchup are after the jump.
Total Titans: Do the Jets fans expect a letdown of sorts after an impressive two weeks, from the dismantling of Houston to the emotionally charged victory over the Brady bunch? Or is Ryan the type of coach to keep his team…ahem….humble?
Turn on the Jets: I think most people are anticipating some type of let down this week. It was a very emotional win last week for the franchise and the Jets have all of a sudden become the national media’s favorite team. The Titans need this game more than the Jets, so it is a dangerous match-up for them. This will be a big test for Ryan and the Jets early on, because a great team would take care of business at home this week and be able to match the Titans intensity.
Total Titans: Mark Sanchez has looked “Matt Ryan-esque” in his first two NFL starts. What are your thoughts regarding the rookie signal-caller’s performance and do you expect him to continue his solid play as the season goes on?
Turn on the Jets: You can from the beginning of pre-season that the Jets made the right
decision by trading up for Sanchez. Whatever “it” is at the
quarterback position, this guy has “it.” He has suprisingly good arm
strength and is very mobile in the pocket. Also, he has brought a new
energy to the Jets offense. He is probably due for a couple of rough
outings, but I think the sky is the limit for him in the long run.
Total Titans: The Jets 3-4 defense is FAST, and will be keying on stopping Chris Johnson. Will they drop 8 or 9 into the box and dare us to throw it? (knowing Revis is a stud DB)
Turn on the Jets: The Jets are going to attack and be aggressive every week, regardless of who they are playing. They will come after the quarterback and come after Johnson and try to get him down in the backfield before he builds up a head of steam. We will likely be without our #2 and #3 corner this week (Sheppard and Strickland) so it will be interesting to see how often Ryan leaves Dwight Lowery on an island.
Total Titans: Tell us a little bit about Vernon Gholston…What impact has he had in
first two games this year and will he keep his starting job when Pace
returns?
Turn on the Jets: Gholston was pretty good week one against Houston but didn’t play that
much last week against New England. Pace will be the starter as soon as
he returns, he is one of the Jets best all around defenders and they
are very anxious to get him back.
Total Titans: Last but not least, look into your crystal ball and tell us who will win this Sunday’s Titans/Jets matchup?
Turn on the Jets: I think the Jets win a tight one 21-20.
______________________________________________________________________________
Turn on the Jets: How does a secondary with Cortland Finnegan and Michael Griffin struggle so much against the pass early in the season?
Total Titans: That’s the million dollar question that’s been floating around all this week after the debacle against the Texans. In a recent article taking a look at new defensive coordinator Chuck Cecil struggles, I attributed the Titans’ atrocious pass defense to a lack of execution.
Right now, the pass defense is woefully out of sync and has been caught in the wrong place at the wrong time on far too many occasions. Hopefully, Griffin, Finnegan and crew will all get on the same page and play up to their talent levels starting this week against the Jets.
Turn on the Jets: Do you detect a real sense of desperation around this team, since another loss and another Colts win would put them 3 games back before September even ends?
Total Titans: I’ll stop short of calling it desperation in respect to the head coach of this football team, Jeff Fisher. He’s been in this hole before, starting 1-4 in 2002 before rallying to finish 11-5 while making the AFC Title Game that year.
However, the Titans are well aware that falling behind 0-3 with the Colts continuing to win would do a lot of harm to their postseason aspirations this year. Therefore, I do expect the Titans to play with a great sense of urgency this weekend against the Jets.
Turn on the Jets: Have the Titans referenced the beating the Jets handed them last often when talking about getting ready for this game?
Total Titans: I haven’t heard too much talk centering around last year’s matchup. However, there’s a locker room full of Titans who remember how the Jets ended their undefeated season last year at LP Field.
The focus of this week’s game is obviously avoiding an 0-3 start but in the back of their minds, I’m sure the Titans will use last year’s outcome as an extra source of motivation this Sunday.
Turn on the Jets: How excited are you guys about Kenny Britt?
Total Titans: Britt’s a talented kid who has the athletic ability to make plays in the passing game while serving as a solid blocker when the Titans run the football.
He got off to a slow start due to a hamstring injury, but since then, has displayed the potential to be a more than adequate downfield threat for the Titans. I’m excited about watching this guy develop in the years to come.
Turn on the Jets: How firm is Kerry Collins grip on the starting quarterback job? A few more losses and do you think we’ll see Vince Young?
Total Titans: Kerry Collins is the quarterback of this football team and barring injury or perhaps if the Titans were mathematically eliminated for playoff contention, KC is going to be the guy in the huddle.
Of course, if the Titans were to continue their slide, there could be the urge to insert Vince in the lineup to possibly provide some type of spark but to be honest, I consider that a very unlikely scenario.
_______________________________________________________________________________
On behalf of Total Titans, I’d like to send out a big thank you to Joe for participating in this week’s Q&A exchange.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
