When the Tennessee Titans kick off their 2021 season this Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, all eyes will be on the offense and how the newest trio of Derrick Henry, A.J. Brown, and Julio Jones begin their tenure as teammates.
But while excitement surrounding the debut of the trio is high, concern still exists surrounding their rapport and the totality of their on field chemistry. Throughout the majority of training camp and the preseason, the trio along with Ryan Tannehill, haven’t been able to practice together often.
Jones himself nursed an injury throughout the majority of training camp and the preseason, therefore limiting the amount of time spent towards gelling on the field with Tannehill and the rest of the offense.
Under normal circumstances, that’d be a big cause for concern.
Not only do big puzzle pieces like Tannehill and Jones need valuable practice time to iron out certain key details like timing and where Jones breaks at the top of a certain route, but you need these details ironed out before the regular season begins so you can avoid mistakes that can occur as a result of chemistry not being where it’s supposed to be.
However, luckily for the Titans, Sunday’s game presents a unique opportunity for Tannehill and the rest of the gang to get off on the right foot without having gone through rigorous periods of chemistry building on the practice field.
What does this opportunity possess for me to say such a thing?
Let me explain.
Arizona’s Situation in the Secondary Is Dire
From an outside viewpoint, it’s concerning how bad the Cardinals’ corner situation is right now.
— TreJean Watkins (@TreWatkins099) September 9, 2021
Of course chemistry is important, but when you have a favorable matchup like the Titans will have on Sunday, maybe the concern level regarding chemistry can be lowered just a bit.
The Cardinals are coming into Sunday’s game with a dire situation at the cornerback spot.
Malcolm Butler, an ex-Titan and a piece the Cardinals were going to count on a great deal this year, abruptly retired just last week. The move, which was completely unexpected, left Kliff Kingsburry’s secondary in a state of chaos. Now without Butler, Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph will have to rely on a few question marks to slow down Julio Jones and A.J. Brown.
Joseph himself said that he feels good about the corner situation, but on paper, it looks about as shaky as it can get.
Robert Alford, one of the three projected starters for Joseph’s defense, hasn’t played a football game since 2018. Marco Wilson, a 2021 fourth round rookie who had a bit of a shaky tenure during his time at the University of Florida, will be thrown into into the fire in his first official NFL game. Byron Murphy is the other projected starter, but although he has some question marks himself, he has a bit of reputation as an improving young slot corner.
With red flags starring in such important roles, the Titans might not have to worry too much about every last detail related to chemistry being on point and firing on all cylinders.
Jones and Brown, if we’re going by matchups, should be able to win more times than not and provide a number of opportunities to work through whatever small details that remain incomplete. It sounds elementary in retrospect since these players are professionals and professionals going at it with one another will never be classified as easy or a walk in the park.
But when you have a shady corner situation like the Cardinals currently have, I think you can say the Titans will have a number of chances to warm things up for the long road ahead that’s known as the NFL season.
With CB1 Malcolm Butler's retirement, it looks like this 4th-rounder will be starting on the perimeter against A.J. Brown and Julio Jones in Week 1. Both offenses top-3 in neutral offensive pace, too. #Titans home eruption incoming. pic.twitter.com/QfaZvxUZeU
— Hayden Winks (@HaydenWinks) September 6, 2021
Like I mentioned before, time spent on the practice field working on details tied to a specific player is the safest method you can use to help build chemistry.
But a matchup against a suspect secondary during in game situations can certainly help build chemistry as well.
