SB Nation - Craig Stevens

Highlights from Titans on 2 with Jeff Fisher

smashville — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 01:21:23 -0000

The three top coaches, Jeff Fisher, Mike Heimerdinger, and Chuck Cecil were on Titans on 2 tonight. Here are some highlights:

Jeff Fisher:

(on wearing a Peyton Manning jersey earlier today): "Apparently I offended a few people, but you've gotta let that go. This was in respect to Tony and had just a little fun with a very worthwhile charity.

(on if there will be changes at QB): "There may be some minor changes, I'm not going to sit here and tell you what they are right now for competitive reasons. I've stood firmly being the fact that Kerry is our starter and Vince is our backup, so you're just going to have to wait and see

(on injuries): "I would say there's a really good chance they come back. I think Nick (Harper)'s going to need another week or two, and then I think Craig Stevens will be back. Two of those three guys back in the secondary would be very helpful for us."

Tests came negative so Lendale would be listed as probable if there was a game this week.

Mike Heimerdinger:

"We just didn't play very well...I have to find something to get us going and put us in better position to make plays and catch the ball and get that swagger back."

(on playing Vince Young in a wildcat offense): "I think that some of the better plays, Vince is a great athlete that needs to get on the edge. People are not letting him on the edge. I don't think Vince is going to do what Tebow does at Florida which is run the power off tackle consistently and go down in there because he is a great athlete that needs to get on the edge. We've looked at it, we have a package in there, but right now, I don't think we have those people to do those things, and people are not going to let Vince on the edge, and so we haven't done it.

(on putting Lendale White and Chris Johnson in the game at the same time) Well, that's a good idea, but one of them's going to have to lead block for the other one, and I'm not sure CJ is going to take on those linebackers from New England that were taking on Ahmard Hall. You know, both those guys, we've worked them before. Actually the two times we've had a package in which they were both in there and we were going to flex CJ out and make him a pass receiver and hand the ball off to Lendale, Lendale's gotten hurt the week before and has never made it through, so the two weeks we've had it, we haven't had them healthy to do it.

"I try not to coach Chris (Johnson) at all, I'm afraid I'll mess him up lately."

Chuck Cecil:

"Am I responsible for the way the defense is playing, everyone blames me? You know what? Absolutely. I'm the defensive coordinator. That's my job, to make sure the defensive plays well, and we're not. We're not playing as well as we should" "You talk about living a nightmare - that's what that was."

"It's really easy to go out and be positive and practice hard when you're 10-0. When you're 0-6 and everybody hates you and thinks you're a dog, you find out who you really are."

"We kinda feel like the field positions, they were playing on it too, but for some reason our guys weren't really very comfortable with it"

"Hey why don't you blitz? Six of the seven blitzes I brought we brought against them were big plays for them. Three of them were touchdowns."

Golden Bears in the Pros: Week of October 12th

Avinash — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:00:28 -0000

All thanks as usual to danzig for the video!

Marshawn Lynch, Buffalo Bills

Beast Mode is getting back to doing what he's always done--gets amped up, plays amped up, leaves amped up.

He's back. Or, at least the Browns' awful run defense made Lynch look like he's back. He had 125 total yards on 23 touches, he blocked well (while I saw Fred Jackson whiff on at least two blitz pickups), and he made a beautiful play on a wheel route down the middle for the longest gain on the day, a 35-yard pass reception. No, it didn't matter, and yes, playing Cleveland - one of the worst defenses in the league (not that Buffalo could exploit it) - certainly helped. But for this game, he was clearly the better back between he and Jackson - and that's why he starts.

See more about BeastMode's ability after the jump, plus a litany of other Golden Bear pro performances!

Jackson, who had a phenomenal start to the season, looked bad. He picked up 47 yards on 15 touches, but couldn't find holes in the run game the way Lynch did. As I mentioned, he had a couple of poor efforts in blitz pickup - an area where he's usually top-notch. This was just a bad game for a guy who had been Buffalo's most consistent performer to date.

One last note - Lynch came out of this game really early. Again. He's become known for getting super hyped before a game, getting worked up after one or two carries, and having to leave the field to either throw up or finish hyperventilating. He has not yet outgrown that. I have nothing against a guy being amped for an NFL football game - quite the opposite, actually - but as good as Jackson is, flip-flopping runners that early gets the offense out of rhythm, too. Maybe Jackson should start games and let Lynch take more and more carries as the game wears on.

Marshawn takes his cart on the road to New York for a do-or-die game for the Bills against the Jets.

Desean Jackson, Philadelphia Eagles

Jackson had a quiet game, letting his teammate Jeremy Maclin shine in the shredding of the Bucs (HT, Bleeding Green Nation).

The Eagles scored 33 points despite receiving next to nothing from DeSean Jackson, their top receiving threat. Of the three passes thrown his way, Jackson caught one of them – for one yard. Jackson also attempted one rush – and gained nada.

"That shows you how dangerous this team is when myself only has one catch and Westbrook has [eight touches for 35 yards]," Jackson said Monday evening on his weekly radio show on 950AM. "We have a lot of weapons.

You might be asking, "radio show"? Actually, it's pretty good, with lots of nice insights about how things are going for Desean and what he thinks of his fellow Eagles teammates. Oh, and he briefly gets his game on with the ladies halfway through. Smooth Desean...

#10 returns to the Bay Area to play the Raiders on Sunday.

Scott Fujita, New Orleans Saints

We strive to remain apolitical on this site, but we give kudos to Fujita for lending his voice and support to one of the bigger political issues of the day.

DZ: Do you have any concerns that teammates, fans, people will say Scott Fujita may be married and have kids, but maybe on the down low he might really be gay? Do you have concern that teammates, bloggers, the press will talk that kind of smack about you either behind your back or to your face?

SF: No, I have no concern about that whatsoever. I know who I am. My wife knows who I am. I don't care one way or the other Dave. I imagine that when some of this gets out guys in the locker room might give me a hard time, and they always give me a hard time. They call me the Pinko Communist Fag from Berkeley. I'm used to it. I can take it all.

Also, the thread on Canal Street Chronicles dealing with this subject was nice to look at. Lots of different opinions expressed without much rancour.

Fujita's Saints have a big showdown of undefeated teams with the Giants.

Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta Falcons

Tony G takes a SHOT at Oakland's bleaguered ~~refrigerator~~ quarterback.

Tony Gonzalez helped explain why Matt Ryan has succeeded as a young quarterback while players like JaMarcus Russell have struggled.

"On a scale of 1-to-10 in terms of work ethic, I hear [Russell]’s like a 3," Gonzalez said. "You hear rumors [from other players] about some of these young guys who don’t get it at all, and I’ve been around quarterbacks like that. Matt’s a 10, which is what you’ve got to be to be a franchise quarterback. At Pro Bowls over the years, I’ve talked to Peyton a lot about this, and that’s the key to being great – a willingness to be prepared at the highest level."

Justin Forsett, Seattle Seahawks

Despite Forsett's awesome play, he still has his weaknesses, as noted by Field Gulls. Hopefully he'll get through it one of these weeks and make the turn upward!

All of a sudden, Forsett has a wide open cutback lane (the triangle beginning between 89 and 74 and extending towards the end zone), a cornerback to beat and Owens to block in front.

Forsett times his cut poorly and runs up on Carlson's legs. Carlson could have blocked Harvey better, but not much better. He eventually pancakes Harvey. Forsett's initial hole is not gaping, it's a cutback lane after all, but it's clear and large enough for any rusher to explode through with a head of steam. Instead he stumbles and the defense swarms around him. He gains two, but if he gets through that hole cleanly, he should have no problem taking it to the house. One only needs to see how empty the right side of the field is to see the brilliance of this play call and how close it was to a touchdown.

Alex Mack, Cleveland Browns

Coach Mangini has plenty of positive things to say about his young center's progress.

"Over the last few weeks, I think Alex has really made a lot of stride. There are multiple plays on tape where he’s getting good drive at the point of attack, whether it’s him alone or whether it’s him as part of a double team. He does a nice job down the field. Sometimes it’s pulling on some of those outside runs and sometimes he’s on the backside of that and he’s not going to be a puller, the way that he’s able to cut off linebackers. He plays with a high motor. He’s pretty good at lining the target up and finishing the block. It’s nice to see his progress each week. I think it is a function of, as he’s played more, not just things have slowed down, but he’s slowed down a little bit. There were times early where, right idea, right place, just a little too quick getting there, a little too quick if you want to execute the assignment. I think he has a better sense now not just where he has to fit, but how he has to fit and at what tempo the fit needs to be at."

Brandon Mebane, Seattle Seahawks

Mebane contributed on a huge play in Seattle's rout of Jacksonville.

The good was Brandon Mebane. After going Zapruder Film on the replay, I am pretty sure Mebane stripped Garrard a split second before Lawrence Jackson. Jackson and Reed were single blocked on the outside and Cory Redding dropped into cover. Mebane navigated a triple team before twisting close enough to Garrard to drop a meat hook on the ball. Before he could slap it away, his indomitable bull rush freed Reed by briefly forcing a quadruple team. Reed disengaged from Tra Thomas and ran across the line. He shed the idle right guard, Uche Nwaneri, before breaking to scoop the ball and run 79 yards for the touchdown.

Zack Follett, Detroit Lions

Pain Train didn't get to toot the whistle this week, but he seems to be determined to bring the heat every week.

"Just from watching, I didn't see the passion," Follett said Wednesday. "I didn't see guys running down there full speed and, like, really wanting it. I feel kind of like a pit bull that's been caged-up that's been watching every week and just been waiting for my chance. So I think I finally get it this week, so I'm going to run down there and try to change the mentality of special teams."

The Lions struggled badly on coverage units in Sunday's 48-24 loss at Chicago. They released linebacker Darnell Bing make room on the 53-man roster for Follett, a seventh-round pick this year.

"I'm strictly special teams," Follett said. "Learn every position. Coach said I shouldn't be leaving here until 8 o'clock tonight. If that's what it takes, I'm going to make sure I know my job."

Thankfully, he's only on special teams, so he won't get any chances to sack...

Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

Acme Packing Company is higher on their quarterback than the current stats indicate.

Build around QB Aaron Rodgers: After four weeks, he's listed as only the No. 13 QB overall by Football Outsiders, but consider that they count sacks against the QB. He's currently sitting with a QB rating of 101.1. And that's with a disappointing season from WR Greg Jennings and awful pass protection. And as I described in an earlier post, the pass protection can be fixed.

Other Golden Bear NFL pro tidbits:

Kyle Boller had a nice run at starter, but suffered a mild concussion in defeat. Marc Bulger replaced him in relief and has also reclaimed the starting role.
Thomas Decoud had four tackles, two solo, and a pass deflection in the 45-10 beatdown of the Niners.
Nnamdi Asomugha is a superhero. He also happens to be the best player on an awful, awful team. His quote after the 44-7 Giants loss? "We're underachieving as a football team." Although the Raiders are shopping around players, Nnamdi is not on the list.
Will Ta'ufo'ou was involved with many other Bears rookies in unveiling a state-of-the-art fitness center for a North Chicago high school. He is still on the practice squad.
Craig Stevens suffered a concussion on a helmet-to-helmet collision with his teammate, eerily simliar to the one he suffered at Rocky Top.
Lavelle Hawkins was inactive for Sunday Night's game against the Colts. He still remains the fifth/sixth receiver in the rotation behind Washington/Scaife/another-guy-who-I-can't-remember.
Ryan Longwell had a 47 yard field goal and five extra points in the Vikings 38-10 victory.
Tully Banta-Cain had 3 tackles and a sack in a loss to the Broncos in overtime.
Arrowhead Pride ponders whether Ryan O'Callaghan will stay at right tackle or will be moved over to the Chief's more vulnerable left side.

NBA preseason

Ryan Anderson, Orlando Magic

His preseason stats so far have been impressive. He's had three games with double digit scoring. 22 points, 6-9 from downtown starting against the Hornets in Wichita, including sixteen points in 3 and a half minute stretch...had a rough 2-10 shooting night against the Grizz...12 points and six boards against the Rockets...also led the Magic with 16 points scoring against the Heat.

Third Quarter Collapse interviewed Anderson after his performance against the Heat.

If you don't start, do you believe you can help the team pack a punch off the bench?

Oh yeah, I mean, I think this team compliments my style of play. Dwight on the inside, four shooters on the outside. It's tough to guard, it's really tough to guard and because so many guys are going to be sagging down on Dwight, it's going to create open shots for everybody along the perimeter so I mean, I think that for myself, I think I'll definitely be competing in the rotation. Whether or not ... Brandon is a heck of a player, too, whether or not he's a three-point shooter, it doesn't really matter. The guy busts his butt and he does what he needs to do. He's a strong player, like I said before, so I mean, we have so many weapons, so many options so yeah, I'm obviously going to compete for my minutes, I'm not going to be handed anything so I'm going to fight and when I get in the game, just do what I do, just shoot the ball and rebound.

Here's what Stan Van Gundy has to say.

How have you've liked Ryan Anderson's play so far?

Ryan has been terrific. I mean, I remember people, Brian Schmitz especially asking me in pre-season and I mentioned that Ryan would have a chance to start at the four early with Rashard out, he was like, incredulous, now after two games I don't think people would disbelieve as much. Obviously he stretches the floor when we play offensively but you saw other things, I mean, in both games. He can put the ball on the floor, he's rebounded the ball pretty well, he's had more rebounds than Brandon in each of the last two games so he's playing extremely well and I'm really happy with the way he's playing. I thought again, like everybody else, his pick & roll defense tonight was not good but other than that, like I said, other than two guys, I wasn't really happy defensively. Now on the offensive end and on the boards, I thought we did a pretty good job.

Yellow fever will now weep silently into his White Castle burger.

Jason Kidd, Dallas Mavericks

Kidd suffered a minor ankle injury at practice, but didn't miss a beat with 5 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds and 5 steals against the Grizz. In his other two preseason appearances he went 17 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, +11 against the Wizards, and 7 rebounds, 9 assists and 3 steals, and a +7 against the Magic.

Leon Powe, Cleveland Cavaliers

Powe's surgery is ahead of schedule, and he could be back for the Cavs after the All-Star Break.

Sean Marks, New Orleans Hornets

I'm sure Marks is a nice guy, but...

Armstrong, Marks and Barron combined for 8 points, 8 rebounds, and 11 fouls. Project that production out over 48 minutes and you've got a big, steaming pile of crap

Wince. Rough.

Titans 27 Packers 13 A Bullet Point Recap

Jimmy — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 04:16:52 -0000

More photos » by John Russell - AP

Browse more photos »

Obviously nothing much to talk about from the first team. So we will go with a bullet point recap after the jump:

Chris Johnson is ready to go.
Kenny Britt needs to catch the ball that Collins threw to him.
Justin Gage needs to catch the next ball Collins threw.
Mark Jones made his case for making this team with a solid night returning.
Aaron Rodgers needs to shave that nasty stache.
Vince Young played well but still has some accuracy issues.
It was awesome to see Jason Jones back on the field and looking healthy.
VY needs to be more decisive when he decides to run. That stop and juke move doesn't work in the NFL.
Craig Stevens has no idea where he is on the field ever. He also has no idea what to do when he has the ball.
Speaking of VY's accuracy issues, took him 2 throws to get the fade to Dominique Edison right in the end zone. Edison is on the team.
It is a shame Chris Henry is blind because he can lay the wood when he runs the ball.
Writing this as I watch the game, Edison's second TD catch was unbelievable. That kid has some skills.
Larry Birdine was in the backfield all night. He isn't going to make the team, but he had a good night.
And Stevens gets a nice holding call to boot
William Hayes also got after the QB all night.
Mark Jones started the night hot but fizzled out as the night went on. I would say it is 50/50 on whether or not he makes the roster.
VY is clearly the #2

Tennessee Titans Morning Links: Blue Chippers Edition

August West — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:19:27 -0000

More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

This is what it looks like when KB is shooting his Ustream show in the locker room. Not really a joke there I just found that interesting... hang on: is Bulluck wearing a Lion King the musical t-shirt?!?!

Browse more photos »

Kenny Britt is getting a look at punt return duty. I seriously doubt the coaches get him to do this in a real game, but it shows the kind of 'put me in wherever coach' attitude that Fisher loves to see in a rookie.

Mike Lombardi at the National Football Post takes a look at who in the AFC South qualifies as a 'blue chip' player. For the Titans it's Michael Roos, Chris Johnson and Cortland Finnegan; with Bulluck, Griffin, Brown and Boom King being right on the cusp. If you swapped Chris Hope in there for Tony Brown I'd agree with that list a whole lot more... and Griff is definitely a blue chipper.

The Titans vs. Steelers game that opens the season on Sept. 10 will be preceded by a free concert featuring Tim McGraw and The Black Eyed Peas because the NFL hates my ears.

Follow us through the jump to find out who almost redeemed national football reporters everywhere with his tremendous Titans training camp report...

After hammering the national and local press for their lax coverage of training camp, Don Banks goes and proves us slightly wrong by turning in a great write-up of Titans camp. To bad he was only here for a few days. After an offseason that some saw as a little more lackadaisical than expected, it's great to hear things like this:

2. All you have to do to get a strong reaction from a Titans player this camp is mention the word "Baltimore.'' Tennessee's players are still smarting from their playoff-opening homefield loss to the Ravens in the AFC divisional round, and that's the way they want it in the wake of last season's 13-3 regular season and one-and-done playoff appearance. Suffice to say the theme of unfinished business hangs heavily in the air.

"There's almost nothing good that came from that Baltimore game, other than the fact that guys were in that next week working hard,'' Titans right defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch told me. "We had a bad taste in our mouth. Even though we went [an AFC best] 13-3 last season, nobody feels like we accomplished anything. That's the one bright spot, with the way the season ended last year, nobody's satisfied around here.''

The scribes at the Tennessean have unveiled a new feature: a stock report that offers quick updates on players' recent performance. It looks like it will he updated very regularly. That counts as cutting edge innovation at a Gannett newspaper.

Donnie Nickey and Ryan Fowler were fined $5,000 each for illegal hits in the Hall of Fame Game.

Hal pointed it out in yesterday's Camp notes, and it made an impression on Terry McCormick too: TE Craig Stevens was involved in multiple shoving matches yesterday as he tries to carve out a spot near the bottom of this crowded roster.

And finally, Jimmy is gone to the Windy City today to watch his beloved Cubs today (any readers in Chi-town?), so make sure you keep an eye out for him on WGN. Hopefully with Jimmy in the house, they'll class the place up a little!

If there's anything you would like to share with the MCM community, please take advantage of the comments, fanshots and fanposts to do so! Or, you can always email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com.

State of the Tennessee Titans Roster: Tight End

Jimmy — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:00:22 -0000

Tight end is one position on this roster that will actually be interesting to watch in training camp. Bo Scaife will enter camp as the number one guy, mostly just because he has been here for the longest and has shown some flashes of being a good tight end. We have had the Scaife debate here quite a few times so I won't waste much time on it, but if he is going to live up to being one of the top 5 tight ends in the game, which is how the Titans are paying him, he is going to have to not disappear for games at a time like he has done the rest of his career.

Alge Crumpler should enter camp as the #2. He proved to be a disappointment last year only catching 24 passes for 257 yards and 1 touchdown (Well, that and fumbling away the Titans' shot at moving on in the playoffs). Alge is still a solid blocking tight end and figures to move even more towards that role in 2009.

It will be interesting to see what they can get from Jared Cook. He is a guy with a TON of upside, see the highlight video after the jump, but it will probably take him a while to become the blocker the coaching staff will want him to be, but don't be surprised to see some packages with him in them early in season. He is a guy that can present a lot of match-up problems.

Craig Stevens will probably need a really, really good camp to make this roster.

Tennessee Titans Midseason Report Card: Receivers & Tight Ends

Jimmy — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 19:17:45 -0000

Brandon Jones

Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
19	216	11.4	0

Jones has been the most pleasant surprise of the season so far. He, unlike Gage, has been catching everything that is thrown to him. He had a couple of huge catches on the final drive at Baltimore and made some plays against Green Bay. I never thought I would say this, but he has been the Titans most consistent receiver in 2008. He gets a B.

Justin McCareins

Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
13	204	15.7	0

McCareins is who we thought he was. He catches some balls and drops some balls. It would be nice to see him stretch the field a little more, but I doubt he will ever be any more than he is right now. He gets a C.

Justin Gage

Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
13	182	14.0	1

Gage might be the biggest disappointment this season. He was probably the Titans' most consistent receiver last season and was rewarded for that with a pretty good contract. This season he doesn't seem to be able to catch....wait for it....a cold. No one expects Gage to be a big play guy, but the Titans need him to catch the ball when it is thrown to him. He hasn't done that this year, and for that he gets an F.

Lavelle Hawkins

Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
4	28	7.0

Hawkins is the wild card in this whole thing. He has shown that he will catch the ball, and that he has great field awareness with a nice toe dragging catch against the Colts. The problem with The Hawk so far this season is that he is having trouble learning the offense. Dinger is not going to give him consistent playing time until he knows he can trust him to be in the right place every time. The potential is obviously there, but he has yet to contribute as much on the field as we had all hoped for. He gets a C+.

Chris Davis and Paul Williams are both on the roster, but they are both non-factors (To be completely fair: Davis did have a big 21-yard catch against Houston and a catch in Blatimore).

Bo Scaife

Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
32	344	10.8	1

Scaife is quietly putting together another very solid season. All of the fuss before the season was about Alge Crumpler, who we will get into in a minute, but Scaife has been the favorite target again. He has good hands and is great at picking up yards after the catch. He made one of my favorite plays of the season in the opener against Jacksonville when he took a screen pass 44 yards. He gets an A.

Alge Crumpler

Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
13	134	10.3	1

Crumpler has been a big disappointment. I was really excited when they signed him in the offseason, but he has looked lost for most of the season with the exception of the TD catch to beat the Ravens. I think he will play a role in the second half, but he has to get an F at this point.

Craig Stevens has yet to catch a pass. He had one chace and stepped out of the back of the end zone for no reason. I guess one shot isn't enough to grade him on though.

Titans Agree to Terms with TE Craig Stevens

Jimmy — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 01:50:40 -0000

As Hook em' mentioned, the Titans agreed to terms with their third-round pick, TE Craig Stevens of California, on Tuesday. The terms of the contract were not announced. This leaves just first-round pick Chris Johnson and second-round pick Jason Jones left to be signed. Hopefully the Titans will be able to get both of them under contract before camp opens on Friday.