Titans-Buccaneers Day 2: Observations on Defense

One cornerback, Caleb Farley, looked much better than he did a day earlier while another, Roger McCreary, showed much of the same things he has throughout training camp.

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Titans conducted a second straight day of joint workouts with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday.

The session included a lot of work – 1-on-1 and team (11-on-11) – in red zone situations with long-time backup Blaine Gabbert once again serving as the Buccaneers’ number-one quarterback in Tom Brady’s absence.

“Defensively, we got our hands on a lot of footballs,” coach Mike Vrabel said. “We needed to disrupt the football more.”

Here is a rundown of how the Titans defense fared on the day:

• Cornerback Caleb Farley capped his day with an interception in the final period, a two-minute drill. It was a fitting end to a practice during which he was much better than he was on Wednesday.

The 2021 first-round pick nearly had an interception but still broke up a pass on his first rep of 1-on-1 drills. He also broke up a throw to wide receiver Jaelon Darden to cap the first team’s first round of work in 7-on-7 in the red zone.

“I think I had a better day,” Farley said. “I absolutely came into (Thursday) with a mindset to be better than the day before. … I just wanted to keep working hard and get better. And I was able to make a play [at the end].”

Farley did get beat for a touchdown during the final team period when Deven Thompkins, an undrafted rookie out of Texas Tech, got him on an out-and-up. Thompkins, though, was a consistent problem for Titans defensive backs over the two days.

• Defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons was not as obviously dominant as he was the day before, but he still was a presence – although not always in a good way. The session ended with a brief tussle between Simmons and running back Leonard Fournette – started by Simmons – that caused all the of the players from both teams to come together.

The incident set a competitive tone for Saturday’s preseason game, even though guys like Simmons and Fournette are not likely to play. It also nearly set off Vrabel.

“I think we should be able to not do dumb (stuff) that hurts the team,” the Titans coach said. “I would say that’s an example of that.”

• Rookie cornerback Roger McCreary missed time last week and did not play in the preseason opener against Baltimore, but the second-round pick out of Auburn showed that whatever injury he had, it did not set him back.

As was the case throughout the offseason and the early days of training camp, McCreary showed good coverage skills throughout the workout.

He matched up with Julio Jones on the first rep on 1-on-1 and lost when Jones, who is 6-foot-3, went up over the 5-foot-11 McCreary for the catch. Before the period was finished, though, McCreary broke up two passes, both of which were thrown to wide receivers shorter than 6-foot.

“Roger is competitive,” Vrabel said. “He loves to be coached. They may catch a couple on him, but he’s going to keep competing, and he challenges, and he comes up with a lot of ball production.”

• The first team period focused on first-down plays. What happened was the last thing Vrabel expected to see.

“The first eight plays weren’t very good,” Vrabel said. “They ran it eight straight times. I don’t think it was the run defense that we expect. But I think they settled down and did better in the red zone stuff. I thought we were much more competitive down there.”

• The final team period was a good one for the nose tackles. First, Teair Tart drove his blocker straight back into Gabbert, who wasn’t even able to get the ball out of his hands. Several plays later, Naquan Jones was in the right spot and blew up an inside screen to running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn for no gain or a loss.

• The defense looked lost on of the final reps of the 7-on-7 red zone period. Tight end Bug Howard got free for a touchdown, and as soon as the play ended safety Josh Kalu went to secondary coach Anthony Midget in search of an explanation. Two others soon followed.

• Safety Tyree Gillespie, acquired in a trade with the Las Vegas Raiders on Wednesday, arrived as damaged goods. The second-year player was a full participant in the day’s workout, but he had his left hand in a cast and wrap combo that is commonly referred to as a club.