PLAYER NOTES
–RB David Fluellen finally returned to practice in a limited capacity after he suffered an injury against the New England Patriots. He has missed the past two games, which is actually good news, because it was initially feared that the knee injury was much more serious.
–QB Marcus Mariota was listed on the injury report, but was a full participant in Wednesday’s walk-through type practice. Mariota is coming off the best statistical game of his career, completing 22 of 23 passes for 303 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a loss to Houston.
–WR Taywan Taylor, who has missed three straight games with a foot injury, was a full participant in Wednesday’s work. Taylor was downgraded from questionable to out in each of the past two weeks.
–S Dane Cruikshank, who was added to the injury report last week and missed Monday night’s game with a knee injury, did not practice on Wednesday.
–CB Malcolm Butler left Monday night’s game with a stinger, and was placed in the concussion protocol. Butler said he was feeling better, and was limited in practice Wednesday.
–CB Adoree’ Jackson, who left Monday night’s game with a knee injury, was listed as limited after Wednesday’ walk-through practice.
–G Josh Kline, who has struggled in recent weeks, suffered a shoulder injury Monday night in a loss to the Texans, and was limited on Wednesday.
–T Taylor Lewan, who had his ankle rolled up on Monday night, but returned to finish the game, was limited on Wednesday.
–WR Tajae Sharpe, who has been bothered by an ankle injury, but has played through it in recent weeks, was limited in Wednesday’s work.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: G Josh Kline. Kline is part of a Titans offensive line that has struggled in recent weeks. Along with right tackle Jack Conklin and center Ben Jones, the right side of the line has not been overly consistent this season, and there has been talk and speculation from the outside that the Titans might be better off replacing Kline with Dennis Kelly at right tackle and moving Conklin to right guard. But the Titans have resisted the notion of making changes in-season, hoping that Kline, who signed a big contract to stay in the offseason, can round into form.
GAME PLAN: The Titans have to find a way to win more consistently at the line of scrimmage than they have the past two weeks. The offensive line was overrun by the Texans on Monday night, giving up six sacks. The run game has been spotty, and the Jets’ strength is their defense. The Titans must have balance on offense between run and pass. They also must show creativity and make sure to involve wide receiver Corey Davis, who has shown the ability on occasion to make big plays, including a 48-yard TD pass Monday night.
Defensively, the Titans catch a break, in that the Jets will start either Josh McCown or Sam Darnold at quarterback. Neither of those are Andrew Luck or Deshaun Watson, who both shredded the Titans the past two weeks. The Titans had issues stopping the run against the Texans, and must shore up the run defense against the offensively-challenged Jets, who figure to be one-dimensional given their struggles at quarterback.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
–Titans CBs Logan Ryan and Adoree’ Jackson vs. Jets WRs Robby Anderson and Quincy Enunwa. The Jets receivers are not bad if someone can get them the football consistently. Ryan usually covers the bigger receivers, and Jackson usually matches up on the faster wideouts.
–Titans QB Marcus Mariota vs. Jets S Jamal Adams. Adams is one of the key players in the Jets secondary, and Mariota will have to know where the former first-round pick is at all times when he drops back to pass on Sunday. Mariota is coming off a 22-of-23 performance, but he also was sacked six times. One issue is that he has been guilty of holding onto the ball too long at times, meaning that some of the sacks are likely coverage sacks.
