The Titans were not able to replicate Week 1’s preseason success against the Philadelphia Eagles as they welcomed the New England Patriots into Nissan Stadium on Saturday night.
The Titans held on to the lead until the final minutes of the game, but couldn’t reclaim it and fell 22-17 in a hard-fought matchup.
Here are some studs and duds from Tennessee’s Week 2 preseason loss.
Stud: K Brett Kern
Field position is a critical thing, and the Titans couldn’t ask for a better man to help handle it than punter Brett Kern.
Kern pinned all but one of his four punts inside the 20 for a total of 184 yards for an average 46 yards per punt.
Expect the veteran to make yet another Pro Bowl this season.
Dud: WR Cody Hollister
Hollister is a roster bubble player who needs to consistently put on solid performances to avoid being cut.
While he has grabbed attention throughout camp and during his preseason debut, Hollister hardly made a peep on Saturday.
He came up with a goose egg on the stats sheet — not the best for a wideout who already faces long odds.
Stud: TE Delanie Walker
The Titans need to draft a tight end? That’s a “no sir” from veteran pass-catcher Delanie Walker.
Walker helped get the chains moving for the Titans early on in the first quarter, and also caught the team’s first touchdown of the day. Walker appears to have returned to full capacity like he insisted he would, and received a well-deserved standing ovation from the crowd.
He wasn’t in action for long, but recorded two receptions for 26 yards and one touchdown on the night.
Dud: OT Tyler Marz
Titans quarterback Logan Woodside couldn’t put together a scoring drive all night, and Marz was a major culprit of allow it. Patriots defensive end Chase Winovich brought the pressure, and Tennessee struggled to answer to him.
The offensive line as a whole is going to have to do better moving forward to consistently put points on the board and win games this season.
Stud: QB Ryan Tannehill
Make no mistake, there’s still no quarterback controversy in Nashville. But Tannehill continued to look like the overqualified insurance policy he is, putting on yet another impressive showing at backup.
Tannehill was 7-of-11 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown before being replaced by fellow signal-caller Logan Woodside.
Dud: K Austin Barnard
Barnard had an underwhelming 2019 preseason debut against the Eagles last week, and just missed his first and only field goal attempt as the team sent him out in the third quarter.
The Titans are going to need to see some consistency and reliability from him in the very near future if he is to find a place on the roster — which looks doubtful.
