Titans receivers revisited

damn i wish we still had mason, i still think that he is in the top 3 receivers in the game just because his hands are so sure, and hes quick after he gets the ball

 

Troupe and Kinney make fine replacements for Frank. I dont know if they have the leadership skills to replace him but they are just as good as far as production goes. So i dont think Wychek would do anything for this team, except be a leader and as much as they need leaders they need producers and the pass catchers need to step up this year. Drew should have a better year with out all the attention placed on him and Troupe should either step up and play like the fast downfield TE stretching the field and Kinney could catch everything. Bo Scaife is no slouch either and he's a big guy. The run blocking from these guys needs to be strong but the team should improve at least on paper this year.

 

You know, after Rolltide's rant the other day, I agree more and more that, considering the excuses, there was nothing wrong with our passing game last year. The rookies all produced when they were playing, bennett did fine, but didn't tear it up, but hey, I'm not expecting him to be a top 5 receiver. He was also our biggest threat. We know he can do better when there's another strong receiver alongside him. Givens has had a solid career, and should do good things to take pressure off of the others. Another weapon is helpful even if it isn't huge. The rookies should be a little better, but honestly, as 3rd, 4th, and 5th WR on our team, if they match last year, I'm fine with it. If Calico shows up because of contract desperation, then hey, we might have a really good, balanced receiving corps.

So anyway, after thinking about it, I checked the stats. Last year, that HORRIBLE year, the Titans were still 9th in the NFL in passing. 12th in completion percentage, so it's not just that we threw all the time and happened to catch some. That's not bad. True, we threw to TE's all over the place, but I think that will be remedied by bringing in Givens and the rookies having an extra year.

Anyway, I'd say I'm excited about our receiving corps because it's young and balanced. A lot of people talk about not having a true #1 receiver, but I'd rather have 5 solid guys we can count on, so a team can't shut us down very easily.

 

Dont see these guys in the Hback slot that Tennessee used Wycheck at.

A little unfair to Wycheck to campare these guys in their prime to him at the end, but remember the squeeler home playoff game, Wycheck with 10 catches in that one, most of them for FDs

Will the image of Troupe dressed as the Ice Queen, or whatever it was, ever be unburned from my mind -:barf:

 

I'm glad we didn't leave the TE spot out of the discussion of recievers for this year's team. It's my opinion that Kinney is our most proven pass catcher, after Drew. I think this group of recievers will be just fine this year.
As bad as I hate to say it, it looks like we should expect to see Billy Volek at Qb this year, so it's safe to imagine a career year out of Bennett. Why not? Isn't this a contract year for Bennett? Hasn't he already proven that with another solid reciever on the field (Givens this year, Mason or Jmac in years past) and a good TE (Kinney, or Wychek for that matter) he can produce big plays? Hasn't he had good chemistry with Volek? And everyone's job is on the line this year, Coaches and Players.
Personally I am way more concerned with the running game, but that's for another thread.
I'm an optimist, and I assume we will have a good, not great, but middle of the road offense this season, and that Drew Bennett will be the offensive MVP. I could see Drew scoring 10+ Td's, with about 6-7 td's each by Troupe and Givens. I would like to see about 5 TD's from Kinney and 3 each from Williams, Roby, and Scaife. Anything from B Jones would be great. Just seeing him on the field again at full speed is my hope for him this season. And who knows if P Jones can catch a few Td's or not? At least this year #32 will have his @$$ in training camp!!!
So where does that leave us with passing TD's this year? 35-40? Not from Billy V, but from say three different QB's? I can see that.
Billy throws say 20-25 Td's, draft pick throws about 6. That leaves maybe only 4 Td's, but maybe 9-15 for mystery veteran qb #3. I see this working out for the team if we have a good running game, and Billy Volek can start at least 10 games.
That's a lot of holes to think about for sure. But I stand by the idea that we have the talent at WR and TE right now to succeed. Now, what would be considered a success this year? Aye-YI-Yi, who knows?
But I definitely think this group of pass catchers has all of the ability to produce this year. I hope Givens can provide some Leadership as well.
I sure miss Mason, Dyson, and Wychek though.

 

Our Receivers:

Givens is our new "Mason" type Receiver I would think.
Brandon Jones can be number 2.
Bennett should be our third receiver
Roby, Calico, Williams, and the rest are decent and young, so we will
have to give them time to mature

I think we are in better shape than last year!

 

Brandon Jones won't be anything this season, he might get some time at the VERY end of the season, but really he won't be back until 2007.

I think it's more of two tiers with Givens/Bennett as 1-2, and Roby, Calico, and williams all in the 3-4 positions.

 

After this year, Calico will have ad enough time to mature. If he doesn't produce this year he is gone.