The Titans offense and Julio Jones: the missing piece for Ryan Tannehill?
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BVM) — The trade heard round the NFL community has finally come to a reality. Julio Jones is officially a Tennessee Titan after months of speculation and trade rumors.
This season, Jones will be wearing the number 2 instead of his notable number 11 after allegedly turning down his fellow WR teammate, A.J. Brown’s offer to take the number from him. This showing of selflessness from Jones reflects his idea on what he wants to do for this franchise. Titans GM Joe Robinson had only good things to say about Jones in a recent media session.
“In my discussion with Julio, his No. 1 goal wasn’t about targets. His goal is to win, whether it takes nine targets, two targets or none,” Robinson said in a zoom press conference on June 6. “That’s the mindset that he has and the mindset that we want here.”
After a season plagued with injury for Jones, he wanted to assure the media that his hamstring was fully healed.
“For me, at the end of the day, I believe in me,” Jones said in a press conference on June 10, after being asked if his age and past injuries will affect his contribution. A healthy Jones could prove very useful for the Titans passing attack as in the 2019 season at the age of 30, Jones amassed a whopping 1,394 yards on 99 receptions.
WR A.J. Brown received over 1,075 receiving yards last season meaning Corey Davis took the WR2 role on the passing attack. Jones will be taking over for Davis this season which creates a ‘pick your poison’ situation for defensive covers when deciding which wideout will receive the double coverage. With Ryan Tannehill throwing for over 3,800 yards in 2020, the Titans air attack looks incredibly promising for 2021.
Let’s work 🤝 @juliojones_11 pic.twitter.com/avkZe58qnh
— Ryan Tannehill (@ryantannehill1) June 11, 2021
In the backfield, the Titans boast one of the league’s best rushing attacks with running back Derrick Henry. Henry rushed for 2,027 yards and 17 touchdowns in 2020 and the return of a healthy offensive line shows promise for a similar outcome this season.
In 2020, the Titans offense ranked 3rd amongst the NFL with 6,434 yards in 16 games.
Jones himself has confidence in this Titans offense saying defenses will have to gamble with their schemes.
“I mean, defenses, you’re really going to have to pick your poison,” Jones said. “If you stay in the box, put nine in the box. A guy like Derrick Henry in the backfield, you got to respect him. So then, that’s when me and A.J. go to work outside. Then if you only got eight in the box, Derrick gonna go to work in the backfield. Great offensive line, things like that. Scheme, stuff like that. I mean, you just gotta pick your poison at the end of the day.”
One question mark for the Titans comes at the offensive coordinator position as Arthur Smith was replaced by former Titans tight end coach Todd Downing after Smith was hired as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. This move by Titans head coach Mike Vrabel is not uncommon as Smith was also promoted from tight end coach to offensive coordinator two years ago.
In the end, the Titans offense is quite promising as a whole. After two consecutive playoff run’s in 2019 and 2020, the Titans will look to break through in 2021 with a new look thanks to Julio Jones.
