First & Tenn

In a game that left Titans players, coaches, and fans angry and frustrated, the team fell 23-13 to Minnesota on Sunday. The Titans, as they have during most of the season, continued to pile up penalties – flagged 13 times for 91 yards. But some of the most crucial calls were also the most debatable — the unnecessary roughness call on Mike Brown, the two penalties against Jarvis Brownlee, and the three illegal formation calls against Isaiah Prince. We offer our evaluations of the zebra performance in Nissan Stadium.

Quarterback Will Levis continued to show some encouraging signs, throwing for 295 yards and a touchdown. He also had a 51-yard TD pass called back for a penalty. Are we sold on Levis for next season or are there still issues — such as pocket management and consistency — that he must overcome?

Why are the sack percentage numbers so different for Levis and Mason Rudolph this season? We discuss.

Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, a pending free agent, is setting himself up for a pay raise. How impressive is that he has five TD catches after not getting a single target for the first four weeks?

What challenges will the Titans face in Houston, dealing with C.J. Stroud, Nico Collins and Joe Mixon? The Houston defense had five sacks on Monday, which could mean trouble for the Titans on Sunday.

Predictions and more.

The Titans fell 27-17 to the Los Angeles Chargers, but welcomed quarterback Will Levis back to the lineup after he’d missed the previous three games. Levis did some good things, throwing a couple of touchdown passes to Calvin Ridley and keeping the ball out of the Chargers’ hands. But he was also sacked seven times and threw for 175 yards. What were our evaluations of his game overall? … Would it kill NFL Officiating to give the Titans (2-7) a break every now and then? They appeared to have created a momentum-turning play near the end of the first half, but what looked like a Jeffery Simmons strip sack – and Roger McCreary fumble return for a touchdown – was overruled. Fair or not? … What do we make of the Titans’ defense, which is No 1 in total yards allowed and No. 1 in passing yards allowed, but is giving up almost 27 points per contest? … Coming up this Sunday, the Titans face a Vikings team with plenty of offensive playmakers – Justin Jefferson, Aaron Jones and T.J. Hockenson – as well as a defense that’s totaled 30 sacks and allowed about 17 points per game. Can the Titans pull the upset? … We answer your questions, and we make our predictions for the Titans-Vikings contest.

The Titans finally got back in the win column by beating the Patriots 20-17 in OT, and showed some resiliency in the process. Tennessee could easily have fallen apart after Drake Maye’s last-second TD pass tied it up on the last play of regulation. But both the Titans’ offense and defense made big plays in overtime.

Brian Callahan was emotional after the win. What made it so special?

The victory came at a cost, as the Titans lost center Lloyd Cushenberry and safety Quandre Diggs, likely for the season. Who needs to step up?

Tony Pollard, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Amani Hooker all had big games against the Patriots. What led to each?

One lowlight from the game: As has been the case too often, the Titans’ special teams performance was abysmal

The Titans hit the road this Sunday, trying to win a road game against the Chargers for the first time since 1992. Tennessee has lost nine straight in San Diego/LA since then.

What should the Titans expect from Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers, who have received big defensive contributions from several former Titans like Elijah Molden and Kristian Fulton?

We answer your questions, and we make our predictions for the Titans-Chargers contest.

We look back at Sunday's 52-14 loss to the Detroit Lions and wonder how much of a future special teams coach Colt Anderson has with this franchise after another disastrous performance by his units. Sub-par special teams play has been all too common this season. ... The performance came days after the Titans became part of the past for wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and linebacker Ernest Jones IV, both of whom were traded away. ... For the second straight week, quarterback Mason Rudolph played in place of the injured Will Levis. In some ways, he delivered the best game by a Tennessee quarterback this season, but there were some downsides as well. ... Also for the second week in a row, coach Brian Callahan is being second-guessed for his play-calling, this time a sequence that started with first-and-goal from the 1 in the final minute of the first half. ... If anyone was happy about the Hopkins trade, it might have been Calvin Ridley, who looked like a changed man and put up some big numbers against the Lions. ... Even at 1-6 and after two straight blowout losses, the Titans are favored at home against the New England Patriots on Sunday. Between them, they have three wins and some truly pedestrian offensive stats, which means this has the potential to be one of the least interesting games in the NFL this season. Even so, for the Titans, it is probably a must-win.

What did we see from backup quarterback Mason Rudolph in the loss to Buffalo, and did he give us any reason to think he should start over Will Levis?

What's the disconnect between Calvin Ridley and Titans quarterbacks? Is he starting to look like a very pricey bust?

DeAndre Hopkins appeared to be on the sideline for most if not all of the fourth quarter. Is that a trade waiting to happen?

The Titans went downhill after a failed fourth-down attempt in the third quarter. Right call or wrong call to go for it at that point?

What kind of challenge do the Titans face in Detroit this week, and do they stand any chance of pulling the upset?

Answering questions from listeners/followers ... Predictions.

The Tennessee Titans lost a game they needed to win, and probably should have won. The 20-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Nashville was, once again, because of quarterback Will Levis making some poor throws and bad decisions that cost the team. Are we nearing the end of him as the Titans quarterback? John Glennon of the Nashville Post and David Boclair of the Nashville Banner discuss that and how the loss to the Colts puts the Titans in a difficult situation for the rest of the season. The guys look ahead to the matchup against the Buffalo Bills and make their predictions on who will win.

On this week's episode of First & Tenn, David Boclair of the Nashville Banner and John Glennon of the Nashville Post discuss the Tennessee Titans coming off their bye week with the possibility of getting some injured players back on the field. How does that affect the upcoming game against AFC South rivals Indianapolis Colts? This is a big game for the Titans if they are to have any hopes of staying alive for a postseason run. The guys break down the matchup, players to watch in the game, then make their predictions on who will win.

Nashville Banner's David Boclair and Nashville Post's John Glennon discuss the Tennessee Titans' first win of the Brian Callahan era. The Titans continue to play strong defense and finally, in the 31-12 win against the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football, got some offense to go with it. The guys talk about the injury to Titans starting quarterback Will Levis, the play of backup Mason Rudolph and what to expect at that position moving forward. They examine what went right and wrong in the game against Miami and they discuss what might be going on during the upcoming bye week. Then, they take your questions.

In this episode, John Glennon of the Nashville Post and David Boclair of the Nashville Banner discuss how the Tennessee Titans became the first team in the NFL this season to start 0-3. They lost to the Green Bay Packers, who are quarterbacked by Malik Willis, a player the Titans traded to them during training camp. The guys break down yet another sub-par performance from Titans QB Will Levis. They take reader questions and they make their predictions on who will win the Titans Monday Night Football matchup against the Miami Dolphins.

John Glennon and David Boclair look back at the Tennessee Titans' 24-17 loss to the New York Jets and preview the upcoming game against the Green Bay Packers. The guys discuss how this loss to the Jets was very similar to the opening week loss to the Chicago Bears and how it seems like quarterback Will Levis is making the same mistakes over and over. Now, can the team bounce back against a Packers team without their starting quarterback? Or better yet, with a former Titans backup quarterback? The guys take listener questions.and then make their predictions on who wins between the Titans and Packers.