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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tennessee Titans practice observations: Emotions run high ahead of first preseason game week
Brian Callahan was not pleased following the Tennessee Titans' training camp practice on Sunday, a session that also featured a shoving match between Mason Kinsey and Jarvis Brownlee Jr.
Yahoo
31-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tennessee Titans training camp observations Day 2: First skirmish, amazing Jeffery Simmons stat
Because there's always such an elevated intrigue in what kind of fights break out during training camp practices, let's begin this report by describing the first skirmish of Tennessee Titans training camp 2025. Receiver Mason Kinsey and rookie cornerback Marcus Harris went to the ground after a run play in a team period toward the end of practice. They scuffled for maybe two seconds. Two seconds at most. No one else got involved. Then both players popped up, jogged off and went their own ways. Oooh. Drama! "It was just hard practice," Harris told The Tennessean afterwards with a smile. Now let's get to some observations from Day 2 of Tennessee Titans training camp on July 24. ESTES: This Tennessee Titans season is about to be real bad, isn't it? The big takeaway: This wasn't the offense's day Rookie quarterback Cam Ward wasn't necessarily bad in this practice, but it's a lot easier to find moments that stand out in a negative way than a positive way. Credit for a lot of that belongs to the defense, which did a good job of pressuring Ward, especially on rollouts, and keeping receivers in front of them. Linebacker Cody Barton made two of the most impressive plays in 7-on-7 periods. He intercepted Ward on the first play of the session, and broke downhill to deflect a pass a few plays later, reading Ward's pre-snap adjustments and taking away a completion with quick instincts. Other pass breakups came from rookies Jermari Harris and Kevin Winston Jr, while edge defenders like Dre'Mont Jones and Femi Oladejo contested some passes in Ward's face on plays that likely would've ended with sacks in live action. On one of those would-be sack plays, Ward continued through and heaved downfield to receiver Calvin Ridley, and even that pass was batted away by safety Xavier Woods. Rookie of the day: Kevin Winston Jr. Winston is an interesting player to monitor. He missed the on-field portions of minicamp and OTAs as he continued to work back from an ACL injury sustained last fall. Now the third-round pick is playing, and he's showing some of the traits that made him a third-round pick despite missing most of his final college season. Case in point? Winston came up with an interception against quarterback Brandon Allen in 7-on-7s. Or, more accurately, Winston ripped a ball out of tight end Josh Whyle's hands even though Whyle had two hands on the ball and got to it while Winston was still three or four yards away. Winston's closing speed and his tenacious instincts helped him continue through the play and end up with the ball instead of Whyle for yet another defensive takeaway. "On that one I was really reading off the quarterback's shoulders," Winston said after practice. "I look to the receiver and saw him. He was right there. I was kind of hesitant on (colliding) with my guy with no pads on, but I'd seen the ball available and I decided to go take it. That's a natural instinct. If the ball is available, we want to go get it." Titans position battles and stray observations The logjam for reps at the bottom of the receiver depth chart isn't breaking up. Rookie Xavier Restrepo may have fallen a little bit further behind some of the older players as compared against OTAs and minicamp given his decreased production in 7-on-7s and team drills, but it's early enough in practice that it's hard to draw big conclusions. As such, one of the most active receivers down the depth chart in this practice was veteran James Proche II, who was targeted three times with two catches. Marcus Harris is playing an elevated role as compared to summer practices, something he credits to spending more time in his playbook and adjusting to the speed of the game. Something interesting: The Titans haven't practiced any live kicks or punts yet. Special teams periods have focused more on things like releases and downfield blocking. Something fascinating: Titans coach Brian Callahan said that defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons hit a top speed of 18.2 mph in the team's first training camp practice. For comparison: In 2024, NFL Next Gen Stats reported that star kick and punt returners KaVontae Turpin and Marvin Mims posted average top speeds around 16 mph on returns. Obviously average top speed isn't the same thing as peak speed, but, y'know, for Simmons to move that quickly at almost 300 pounds, pretty impressive. TENNESSEAN FAN SURVEY: Voice your opinion about the Tennessee Titans Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@ Follow Nick on X @nicksuss. Subscribe to the Talkin' Titans newsletter for updates sent directly to your inbox. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Titans training camp observations: Cam Ward, Cody Barton, first scuffle
