The Tennessee Titans’ 2022 campaign officially came to an end on Saturday night after a 20-16 loss at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field.
Despite the deck being heavily stacked against them, the Titans still managed to put up a tremendous fight. In fact, they should’ve won the game and sent Jacksonville packing instead.
But none of that matters now.
The Titans’ incredibly frustrating and disappointing season is finally over, and now the fun begins, as Tennessee is almost certainly going to make massive changes all across the roster this offseason.
While the Titans have questions on both sides of the ball offseason, the offense has more and bigger ones, with Tennessee needing pretty much a complete overhaul of the unit.
More conversation will be had about that in due time, but for now let’s take a look back at Saturday night and see what the biggest takeaways from the 2022 season finale were.
Was it really a fumble?
The officiating on Saturday night stunk as a whole, and an argument can certainly be made that the biggest play of the game never should’ve happened.
Dobbs’ fumble caused quite the controversy, as not only was his arm and the ball moving forward, but such a close play received all of two seconds of review time before being confirmed.
The fact is, even if you call that a fumble, his arm and the ball moving forward should’ve made it a called incomplete pass on the field, which would’ve meant the Jaguars’ touchdown wouldn’t have counted if the incomplete ruling was reversed.
And perhaps it shouldn’t have been a fumble altogether, which would’ve forced Jacksonville to drive down the field to tie or win the game, assuming Tennessee doesn’t convert on third down and run out the clock.
It is what it is and there’s nothing we can do to change it, but worth mentioning nonetheless because, you know, context.
Todd Downing did nothing to save himself
Downing had one last chance to salvage whatever he could when it comes to saving his job, but instead he only added fuel to the fire that he should be let go immediately once the season is over.
On top of some bad play calls and personnel usage, Downing was also his normal predictable self, with the Titans offensive coordinator calling a whopping 24 run plays to four pass plays on first downs.
In what should be Todd Downing's final game as #Titans OC:
24 first down runs.
4 first down passes.
— Austin Stanley (@AustinStanley81) January 8, 2023
After two years, Downing has proven fully incapable of learning from his mistakes. There is seriously something wrong if he isn’t given his walking papers.
Titans always have a shot with Mike Vrabel
Despite nobody giving them a chance to win in Week 18, the Titans not only gave the Jaguars a run for their money, they really should’ve won the game.
It was another stark reminder that as along as Mike Vrabel is the head coach, this team is usually going to be competitive no matter what is going on.
Anyone who thinks Vrabel should be fired needs to reassess their beliefs. Give one of the best coaches in the NFL another chance to get this thing right.
Titans' defense did its job
Granted, it wasn’t all pretty or dominant for the defense, but it was effective.
The defense has been the stabilizing force all season long, and without it the Titans don’t even win seven games, let alone compete for the division. To make the showing even more impressive, the unit did it despite being absolutely plagued by injuries.
Shane Bowen and the Titans’ defense is one of the biggest reasons for optimism for the team going forward, but the group does have some big questions of its own to answer in the offseason.
Titans should hang on to Josh Dobbs
While Dobbs wasn’t able to pull off the improbable win, it’s safe to say he has shown enough to warrant a roster spot on some team in 2023.
No, Dobbs isn’t a starting-caliber quarterback, but he did prove he can be a solid backup. At the very least, he can provide backup competition to Malik Willis, who the Titans should NOT be counting on to be the starter in 2023.
A silver lining
While the loss was heartbreaking considering the Titans had a legit shot to win, there is a silver lining here: Tennessee now gets a better pick than it would have had the result gone the other way.
Instead of picking 19th or later, the Titans are currently slated to pick around the top 10. Per Tankathon, Tennessee is exactly 10th, but that could change a spot or two after the results of Sunday.
Whatever the case may be, a Titans team that needs some serious revamping now has picks that gives it a better chance to land premium talent. As least there’s something to show for this mess of a season.
