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Winners and losers of the Tennessee Titans' preseason game against the Seahawks

tabnews August 18, 2024
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The Tennessee Titans' reserve players and practice squad candidates battled through most of their 16-15 win over the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday in Week 2 of the NFL preseason. It was an ugly affair that featured no Titans starter and the reserve players struggled to maintain a rhythm on offense while allowing a few long drives on defense.

There were more penalties. Offensive errors were commonplace. The pass rush was good, but plays where the rushers missed their targets almost always ended in completions. The special teams were also marred by penalties. This was not a good picture for many of the young players and teammates who were trying to earn a spot on the roster.

Here are the winners and losers from Saturday's game for The Tennessean.

Winner: OLB Jaylen Harrell

The seventh-round pick has emerged as a near-certain candidate to make the 53-man roster after training camp due to his coaching style and the Titans' lack of depth at the outside linebacker position. Harrell cemented his reputation with a performance in which he tallied two sacks, forced a fumble and rushed another throw.

The urgency to find depth in the pass rush has diminished somewhat after Arden Key reportedly won his appeal of a six-game NFL suspension. But Harrell's leg strength and off-ball quickness will put him on par with — if not above — veteran Rashad Weaver in the rankings of third-down specialists.

Losers: The offensive tackles of the second team

Jaelyn Duncan and John Ojukwu both had ugly first periods. Both were ejected for a false start, Ojukwu for a holding and Duncan allowed a sack in the first quarter. The Seahawks have a good defense, but they rested just as many starters as the Titans. It wasn't like the two had any problems with Leonard Williams or Dre'Mont Jones.

Based on practices over the past two weeks, it's getting harder to see Ojukwu's path to the 53-man roster, which is a big surprise after he started as right tackle for the first two weeks of training camp. Duncan's position seems a little stronger, but no one should be surprised if Geron Christian Sr. or Leroy Watson IV steal the spots from him.

Winner: RB Jabari Small

Small wasn't just the Titans' primary running back in the second half; he also took over the assignments in the first half ahead of the veteran Hassan Haskins. Small didn't exactly set the field on fire with his tailback skills (he carried seven balls for 13 yards), but he showed his value in other ways. He caught four balls for 24 yards before going in for concussion evaluations, but perhaps most importantly, he showed his talent as a blocker, stepping in in pass defense and keeping backup quarterback Malik Willis clean early on a nice blitz pickup.

Small's road to the roster is a bumpy one. With each passing week, it's becoming less likely that the Titans will have more than three running backs, and Small doesn't have Julius Chestnut's running talent or Haskins' versatility on special teams. But his value in the passing game is an interesting asset. Small getting injured late on only complicates things.

Winner: Brian Callahan's situational experience

Callahan's first preseason as head coach wasn't particularly eventful when it came to testing his coaching skills. But he did get a few opportunities to handle difficult situations on Saturday. He got to throw his first challenge flag in the second quarter, successfully overturning a catch call. And he got to call his first two-minute drill, which ended with a touchdown pass from Mason Rudolph.

There's no way to actually simulate coaching a live football game. These repetitions are valuable to Callahan and the Titans' staff. Let's consider it a success that his first situational opportunities went well.

Loser: The secondary level

Seahawks backup quarterback Sam Howell was one of the NFL's most productive passers last season, so it's a little unfair to give the Titans' backup cornerbacks and safeties low marks against a starting passer. But… Howell ranked 23rd in the NFL in completion percentage last year, and he came out and destroyed the Titans' twos with a 79% completion percentage.

Tre Avery, Gabe Jeudy-Lally and Jarvis Brownlee Jr. had two tough games in a row in the preseason. Last week, they could easily be excused as backups among the starters. The fact that the coverage didn't get much tighter in a game with only two players sounds a little concerning.

Nick Suss is the Titans reporter for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at [email protected]. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @nicksuss.

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