The Tennessee Titans continued their winning ways in impressive fashion, dominating the lifeless Kansas Chiefs in a 34-10 rout.
The Titans were led by the Thunder & Lighting combo of LenDale White and Chris Johnson, as each runner surpassed 100 yards on the ground while taking it to the house from long distance. As a team, the Titans rushed for a franchise-record 332 yards against a Kansas City run defense that was ranked last heading into today’s game.
Here are my thoughts on today’s dominating victory.
Game balls
LenDale White had an impressive afternoon, rushing for 149 yards on 17 carries while scoring three touchdowns. I must say that I was impressed with the big man’s ability to out-run the Chief defense on his 80-yard scamper. White should be commended for his willingness to share the load with rookie RB Chris Johnson by putting his ego to the side.
After several near misses, Johnson was finally able to break a long one in the 4th quarter. His 66-yard TD run cemented a strong performance that consisted of 168 yards on 18 carries.
CJ got two TD celebrations for the price of one as he first dove in for the score and finally, decided to put on a display of his percussion skills on a set of Chiefs’ drums conveniently located near the end zone.
Thunder & Lightning should also be expected in next week’s forecast against the Colts, another team with a matador run defense.
The rest of the guys
The defense wasn’t asked to do entirely much thanks to a putrid Kansas City offense, but veteran stalwarts Albert Haynesworth and Keith Bulluck continued their stellar play.
Haynesworth attained a sack while accumulating three tackles and knocking out Brodie Croyle for the game and possibly the entire season with a knee injury. Bulluck chipped in with a half-sack and 8 tackles (five solo, three assisted).
As for special teams, Rob Bironas maintained his perfect ways by making all of his field goal/extra point attempts.
The return coverage continues to serve as the team’s kryptonite by allowing a couple of long returns. These are the kind of mistakes that you can live with against an inferior opponent such as Kansas City but against the better teams, this disturbing trend could end up biting them in the backside.
It was nice to see “The Hawk” finally soar. On a day when throwing the football was often an afterthought due to the dominance of the ground game, Hawk was able to get his feet wet with a few short grabs. Hopefully, we will continue to see more of the rookie from Cal as the season progresses.
Final thoughts
1. It’s great to see Alge Crumpler become more of a factor in the passing game. I’m expecting bigger and better things from Alge the rest of the year.
2. Kerry Collins could play another 10 years if his jersey’s gonna be as clean as it was at the conclusion of today’s win. The Chiefs didn’t even sniff Collins on the afternoon.
3. Some things never change.
Ironically, the franchise’s single-game rushing record that fell today also took place against the Chiefs. In 1977, the RC combo (Rob Carpenter and Ronnie Coleman) powered a 296-yard Oiler rushing attack in their 34-20 victory over KC.
4. The wrong place at the wrong time.
Nick Harper dropped a sure interception and responded by spiking the pigskin in frustration. Unfortunately, his outburst took place in the presence of an official, who predictably flagged Harper for his excessive display.
5. Gotta feel sorry for Tony Gonzalez.
He was one of the only Chiefs to show up today, catching 6 passes for 97 yards. Unfortunately for Gonzo, he’s stuck in Kansas City as a result of the team’s inability to make a deal at last week’s trade deadline.
What are your thoughts on the Tennessee Titans reaching the 6-0 mark?
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