ESPN NFL

INDIANAPOLIS -- In Kendall Wright, the Titans add an explosive receiver who can go deep and should be a help to quarterbacks Matt Hasselbeck and Jake Locker.

Kenny Britt is still recovering from a torn ACL. But even before he’s healthy, I don’t hesitate to call Britt, Nate Washington, Wright, Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins the best group of receivers the Titans have had since relocating to Tennessee in 1997.

I’ve written tonight about how the Colts have an obligation after adding Andrew Luck to give him weapons to work with.

This pick by Tennessee suggests the Titans feel a similar obligation to Locker, the quarterback they picked eighth overall a year ago.

In 2011, Washington blossomed in a way I figured was not possible for a seventh-year man. Some of that came from his willingness to embrace an opportunity to work out of the slot when the Titans went three-wide.

Going forward they will have some options as to where to line people up when three receivers are on the field. And it should be more often than ever since the run-and-shoot days of the Oilers.

Wright should be a home run hitter.

And a Britt-Wright pairing should give the Titans a duo that can pull them further in line with the mindset of today’s winning NFL formula, where things center a lot more on throwing it than running it.

We don’t know where Kenny Britt's recovery from a blown-out knee will be come the Titans' season-opener.

Odds are he’s not all the way back at the start. Many skill position players aren’t back to themselves until the second year back from a torn ACL.

The Titans have been receiver needy in some way, shape or form since they relocated to Nashville. But I get a strong sense from the team that it’s not regarded as a primary need.

Britt can be elite when healthy. Nate Washington blossomed last season and showed he can be a quality No. 2. Damian Williams is an up-and-comer as the third who showed real signs.

Lavelle Hawkins can run after the catch and got a new deal despite still qualifying as somewhat flighty.

That’s not a bad three or four at the top.

But how much can the Titans count on Britt from the start, and how sure are they that they will get a full season out of him?

If they aren’t healthy, then they need more.

I don’t expect more will come in the form of a first-round pick. But they do need to get someone in the pipeline who can contribute early, particularly if or when Britt is unavailable.

Early thoughts on the Titans' players scheduled to become unrestricted free agents come March 13, with thanks to Mac’s Football Blog, where you can find complete team-by-team lists that include exclusive rights and restricted free agents.

The Titans have already re-signed three players who were heading for free agency: tight end Craig Stevens, tackle Mike Otto and receiver Lavelle Hawkins.

Fullback Ahmard Hall -- He’s a great locker room guy, but did not have a great season and the Titans have Quinn Johnson in house.

Wide receiver Donnie Avery -- Couldn’t push his way into action and presuming the team drafts at least one receiver, it should have no interest.

Guard Jake Scott -- Team will say thanks for solid service and look to get younger and better on the interior.

Defensive end Dave Ball -- He’s not the solution, but he’s a quality complementary part who can get into the backfield.

Defensive end William Hayes -- Just hasn’t panned out. The team needs at least one new end and there won’t be room for him any longer.

Defensive lineman Jason Jones -- Was not as good at end in the new defense as he was at tackle in the old one. He can still be a very good player.

Linebacker Barrett Ruud -- Didn’t play well before he was hurt, then got displaced by rookie Colin McCarthy.

Cornerback Cortland Finnegan -- I don’t think the Titans want him at anything near what he’ll be able to command.

Safety Jordan Babineaux -- Played well enough that safety-starved Tennessee should want him back.

Safety Michael Griffin -- Does the best when everything around him is going well. But the price he’ll want gets paid to a leader, not a follower.

Safety Chris Hope -- Made a difference on the field and in the locker room for a long time, but his time is now past.

Other UFAs:

• LB Patrick Bailey
• LB Tim Shaw
• S Anthony Smith
• LS Ken Amato

Please hold off on the calls for Jake Locker.

Our propensity to demand the backup quarterback play can border on the ridiculous.

Locker looked good in relief work in Atlanta, but he was a changeup for the Falcons to defend at a point where the game was already just about out of reach. Sure, I’m interested in the quarterback’s progress and I know he’s the future.

But Matt Hasselbeck’s been the Titans' MVP through 10 games in the eyes of Mike Munchak and in my view too. He’s got a sore forearm and elbow and is unlikely to practice Wednesday, Munchak said Monday. The team will likely not have a real accurate sense of whether he will be able to play Sunday against Tampa Bay until Friday.

In the loss to the Falcons at the Georgia Dome, Hasselbeck didn’t break the wrong way on a play that turned into an interception, Lavelle Hawkins did. He didn’t turn 12 carries into 13 yards, Chris Johnson did. He didn’t allow Matt Ryan to find targets with no one pressuring him, the defensive line did. He didn’t allow Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez to find open spots in the second level of the Titans’ defense, the linebackers and secondary did.

Bigger picture, to, Hasselbeck’s has little to do with the Titans’ major issues.

He came to Tennessee in part to work with a home-run threat of a running back in Johnson, and he has yet to have the pleasure of handing off to that version of that back. He figured to benefit from a revamped defense, but its generated minimal pass rush and doesn’t regularly slow good offenses.

And though his top receiver, Kenny Britt, was lost early to injury, Hasselbeck’s got the Titans passing offense ranking 14th in the NFL. That’s higher than the 32nd-ranked rush offense, the 23rd-ranked rush defense and the 16th-ranked pass defense.

Maybe Locker would provide some sort of spark. But at 5-5 the Titans are still very much alive in the AFC playoff picture. They’re one win off the pace for a wild card berth.

It’s not time to change the quarterback, it’s time to applaud him for getting the Titans here.

ATLANTA -- The Titans are getting mislabeled.

They are not an inconsistent team. If anything, their 23-17 loss to the Falcons at the Georgia Dome made them even more predictable.

Over their past eight games, the formula’s been simple: They have beaten bad teams and lost to good ones.

It’s easy to see they are better than Denver, Cleveland, Indianapolis and Carolina. It’s just as clear they are not in a class with Pittsburgh, Houston, Cincinnati and Atlanta.

The Titans are too sloppy, don’t find enough big plays and don’t match up well enough with quality teams. Ten games into the season, they’re 5-5 and it’s exactly what they deserve.

Sunday they played good enough red zone defense to stay in the game, but could never get back to even from 13-0 and 23-3 deficits.

A look at three key issues for Tennessee coming out of the game:

The quarterback situation: Matt Hasselbeck banged his elbow as he threw late in the third quarter. He couldn’t generate any power on the ball after that, so doctors had him yield to rookie Jake Locker.

“He did exactly what a second-team quarterback should do when he gets an opportunity,” coach Mike Munchak said.

Locker moved right and hit Nate Washington, who stiff-armed a defender and ran to the end zone on a 40-yard touchdown play. In the fourth quarter, working in hurry-up mode out of the shotgun, he ran for 11 yards on a third-and-10, he hit tight end Jared Cook for 22 yards on a fourth-and-17 and he found Washington for another touchdown with 3:09 left in the game.

The defense, however, couldn’t get provide him a chance to engineer a game-winning drive.

Locker finished with a 107.3 passer rating, but the Titans diffused any possibility of a quarterback controversy.

Hasselbeck is sore and he had ice wrapped around the inside of his left elbow and forearm as he spoke to the press. He said he’ll have an MRI Monday. Munchak said he wasn’t about to make a change based on the small sampling of Locker. If Hasselbeck is fine, “he’s the quarterback, there is no doubt about that.”

While Hasselbeck hardly has his best game -- 13-of-25 passing for 124 yards, an interception and a 49.4 passer rating -- the Titans aren’t going to forget how large a role he’s played in many of their good moments this season.

“Jake kind of puts a defense on its heels a little bit, because you’ve got a younger guy who can run,” receiver Lavelle Hawkins said. “That’s taking nothing away from Matt, because Matt is a great mind who knows how to read a lot of stuff and sees a lot of things before they happen. I think either, or is great.”

Making mistakes: Munchak’s Titans were supposed to be a disciplined team that executed precisely. But there was a major lack of precision in key moments against the Falcons.

The Falcons went for it on fourth-and-1 twice in the second half.

They motioned and reset, then motioned and reset again, making it seem like they were merely waiting for the defense to jump. On the first instance, Matt Ryan had the ball snapped and snuck at an unexpected time in the long sequence of shuffling.

And on the second, defensive end William Hayes was flagged for jumping offsides.

“There is no excuse for me doing that, it’s fourth-and-1, I’ve got to be patient,” Hayes said. “They got me.”

He actually got bailed out as Colin McCarthy forced a Michael Turner fumble on the next play and Will Witherspoon recovered it.

That’s when Locker took the Titans on the 14-play, 84-yard touchdown drive that cut the lead to six with 3:06 left.

With three timeouts and the two-minute warning, Tennessee then needed to force a punt to get Locker the ball back.

And on the very first play from scrimmage, safety Jordan Babineaux slipped off Turner, allowing him to spring free for a 27-yard gain. Two Jason Snelling carries and a 6-yard Harry Douglas catch later and Ryan was ready to take a knee three times and shake some hands.

The Titans failed to slow Atlanta’s stars. Ryan passed for 316 yards, Turner ran for 100 and receiver Roddy White pulled in seven catches for 147 yards.

On top of that, the Titans were flagged for 10 penalties. They accounted for 86 yards and five of the Falcons’ 25 first downs.

“We didn’t play smart for 60 minutes,” Munchak said.

Mixed up routes: It seems every game the receivers have at least one mixed-up moment that costs Tennessee a chance or causes a problem.

The Titans were behind only 7-0 when the biggie in this game arrived.

Hasselbeck threw up the left side and Hawkins appeared to be out of position as cornerback Dunta Robinson intercepted the pass.

The receiver stopped running, looking around puzzled instead of pouncing to touch Robinson while he was down. Robinson got up and ran for 14 yards.

Guard Jake Scott yelled at Hawkins over the failure to stop a return. Hasselbeck pointed and screamed as he left the field, clearly annoyed by the way the play unfolded.

Damian Williams, who ran a post on the same side of the field, said the underneath receiver is supposed to cut in if the Titans are running it or cut out if they are throwing it. He said he was partially to blame for not getting the check communicated.

Said Hasselbeck: “I believe what happened is when I checked, Hawk wasn’t looking at me. I think when I checked they were adjusting who was on the ball, who was off the ball. I was trying to throw it to Hawk, yes. I’m not sure if he knew it was a pass or not.”

Mistakes will happen, I understand.

If the Titans are getting 1.1 yards a carry from Chris Johnson, they need to be an exact passing offense, however. Under the previous regime, Hawkins didn’t get on the field much because he was regarded as undependable.

On that and the Titans being average or worse, things don’t appear to have changed much.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Halfway through the first season of what they’ve sold as a new era, the Titans are a wishy-washy team. They are capable of good, but often likely to mix in enough bad to offset it.

Sunday they played a solid first half, then basically disappeared. The half-and-half performance matched their halfway record of 4-4 and showed them to be a marginal team.

The 24-17 loss to the Bengals was built out of a 17-7 halftime lead. Cincinnati wore the Titans down and beat them up, showed them what it was like to have a productive premier young weapon, got better instead of worse as the game moved toward crunch time and established themselves as much more of a realistic AFC playoff contender.

The Titans talked a lot about their lack of plays while defending their alleged playmakers.

The lockout cost every team with a new coaching staff and every team with a new quarterback. This team has both and might still be suffering ill effects. But it’s long past the point where it can use that as an excuse.

“The record is what it is, so that’s what we are,” general manager Mike Reinfeldt said. “It’s frustrating because we’ve played really well at times. But we’ve played equally as poorly at times. I’m not quite sure what we are. When you see the glimpses in the first half of what we’re capable of, it makes the second half very frustrating.

“Maybe in a regular year, you would know, but I’m not sure what we are. We need to know in the next two or three weeks, we’ll know if we’re contending or pretending. I think we have a chance to get better.”

If you're still dealing with an identity crisis halfway through the season, you've got issues.

Among them...

Weapons: I understand why the Titans drafted a quarterback eighth overall, and I endorsed them taking one if they thought they were getting a long-term solution. But right now Jake Locker is about the future, not the present.

And, boy, could the present quarterback, Matt Hasselbeck, use a deeper pool of receivers -- not that one was sitting there for them at No. 8 as the Bengals had already taken A.J. Green and Julio Jones was already wearing a Falcons hat. Without Kenny Britt, gone since suffering a torn ACL in Week 3, the Titans are unthreatening.

The Titans came into the season touting a trio of playmakers in Britt, running back Chris Johnson and tight end Jared Cook.

Johnson's miserable season's been well-documented. He had a good first half with 55 yards on nine carries, then took five carries 9 yards in the second. And although the team pushed the ball to Cook more against the Bengals, his lost fumble with 3:49 left in the game and the Titans down 21-17 meant the offense would be in complete desperation mode once it got the ball back.

“Of course we have enough weapons,” Cook said afterward. But what else could be said by a guy defending himself and his teammates who knows Calvin Johnson won’t be walking into the locker room?

Said offensive coordinator Chris Palmer: “We have the team that we have and it’s our jobs as coaches to try to get them to play as well as they can play. I think some guys are playing very, very well. I think there are some guys that are playing up to their ability and we just have to do it for 60 minutes. They show spurts.”

Very, very well? Really?

Out of sync: I think there are still too many plays on offense where Hasselbeck and his targets look out of sync. I tend to lean toward giving the veteran quarterback the benefit of the doubt in such situations, and coach Mike Munchak said last week that in such situations Hasselbeck is right more often than not.

But Palmer said sometimes against the Bengals, balls came out rushed. That can throw things off when the quarterback and intended receiver have to read things the same way.

Hasselbeck is clearly unhappy that such issues continue to linger and that he’s been unable to get them solved.

“It’s just us, it’s a partnership,” he said. “It’s frustrating. If we could just fix that part, we probably win this game. … We’ve got to be more crisp.”

The solution comes with doing things better in practice, then carrying them over, he said. The failures in this game mean the issue will be magnified as the team prepares for a trip to Carolina, and that emphasis could help get it fixed.

Or guys like Cook and receivers Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins might just not equipped to be the sort of crisp options the Titans need. I lean more and more in that direction.

Defensive shortcomings: Rookies roasted the Titans' defense. Andy Dalton threw three touchdowns for the Bengals while only taking one sack and Green caught all seven balls thrown his direction for a game-high 83 yards.

On a third-and-18 early in the fourth quarter when Dalton hit Green for 20 yards up the right side, the receiver was bracketed by corner Jason McCourty and safety Michael Griffin. While the ball was in the air, it looked as likely to be a pick as a catch.

But the two Titans smashed into each other as Green went up and made the catch, extending the touchdown drive that put Cincinnati up for good. Griffin and McCourty were down hurt for some time, though they returned to action later.

“It doesn’t matter about rookies,” Tennessee defensive coordinator Jerry Gray said. “He threw the ball up, we had two guys around him, he made the play. What else are you going to say? They made plays and we didn’t.”

He repeated that several times, as did many Titans players.

It’s a bit of a simplistic, one-note theme from a ticked-off coach and upset players. Gray is likely to offer deeper theories about why the Bengals made plays and the Titans didn't in the meeting room after he’s watched film.

But defensive tackle Shaun Smith knows this much already: “When you’re up by 10, there is no reason why you should lose a game. … The coach put us in position to make plays and we didn’t make plays.”

The Titans better flip the playmaking formula quickly.

Otherwise, they’ll be downgraded right out of the category of fringe playoff contenders, already a grouping far below the one they thought they’d qualify for back when they were 3-1.

» NFC Final Word: East | West | North | South » AFC: East | West | North | South

Five nuggets of knowledge about Week 9:

Over in the first? The Texans have scored 57 points in the first quarter, third most in the league. The Browns have scored three, the fewest in the league. If the patterns hold, could we have a snoozer by the time the teams switch ends? ESPN Stats & Information says no quarterback has been less threatening downfield this season than Cleveland’s Colt McCoy. He has three 30-yard pass plays in 163 completions. That’s 1.8 percent, the lowest percentage of 30-yard plays of anyone this season. I don’t expect the Texans to have receiver Andre Johnson (hamstring), but Houston should still be more threatening downfield than the Browns.

Bad timing: The Colts seem to be catching the Falcons at the wrong time. If Julio Jones returns from a hamstring injury that cost him the last two games, he will have wide eyes looking at the Indianapolis secondary. In his last full game, Jones was targeted 15 times, the fourth most for any player this season. He wound up with a franchise-rookie record 11 catches for 127 yards. On defense, the Falcons have broken out of a sack slump with eight in their last three games, not good news for Curtis Painter, though he should be behind a better line as some guys are healing up.

Watch the deep stuff: Cincinnati rookie receiver A.J. Green is giving the Bengals something the Titans lack without the injured Kenny Britt -- a serious deep threat. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Green has six receptions on throws more than 20 air yards downfield this season, tied for fourth most in the NFL. Only four rookies have had more than six such receptions since the start of 2008. The Titans have covered reasonably well this season. Odds are we’ll see both Cortland Finnegan and Alterraun Verner working against Green. They’ll need a pass rush to help make it work.

Never ahead: The Colts have run 77 plays when leading this season, the fourth fewest in the NFL behind the Broncos, Seahawks and Rams. Just 16.6 percent of the Colts’ offensive plays have come when leading this season compared to 41.9 percent the three seasons before with Peyton Manning. Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis have been quiet in recent weeks, and they obviously thrive when a quarterback has to throw. Indianapolis is best playing from ahead, and the Colts have rarely been in that situation this season.

Bengals in nickel: Cincinnati’s pass defense has been stronger when it has had at least five defensive backs on the field, allowing just one touchdown. The Titans are hardly a great three-wide team, considering their third receiver is Lavelle Hawkins. They would be wise to go with two tight ends more often and feature Jared Cook, a player who has been underused. The Bengals have not covered tight ends well this season. Why let Cincinnati get into its nickel package when Matt Hasselbeck has thrown five of six picks against defensive sets with at least one extra defensive back?

Reading the coverage ...

Houston Texans

With Blaine Gabbert coming to town, it’s time to note Gary Kubiak’s Texans have lost five of seven games they’ve played against rookie quarterbacks. Dale Robertson of the Houston Chronicle takes a look.

Andre Johnson isn’t pleased with his slow progress as he recovers from a hamstring injury, says Jeffrey Martin of the Chronicle. They’re calling it a game-time decision, but I do not expect him to play. Fullback James Casey looks like he will be back.

Indianapolis Colts

Bob Kravitz’s proposals for the Colts: Draft Andrew Luck if you can and tank the last two weeks if you need to since you tanked them when you could have gone 16-0; dive into free agency to supplement the draft; prioritize retaining defensive end Robert Mathis; give receiver Anthony Gonzalez a shot; find out if Peyton Manning believes he can win a Super Bowl with Jim Caldwell as coach.

The Colts have a big presence on Don Banks’ team of underachievers.

Among the things to watch from Sunday: The running back who’s avoiding contact (Chris Johnson) against Colts defenders who’ve also been avoiding contact. Nate Dunlevy’s weekly piece at 18to88.com.

I spent some time with Dan Dakich on the radio Thursday.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Jaguars-Texans will feature a battle of determined running backs with Maurice Jones-Drew and Arian Foster, says Tania Ganguli of the Times-Union.

After some steady progress, Blaine Gabbert regressed in the win over Baltimore according to offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter. The Jaguars are looking for him for him to be more fundamentally sound, says Ganguli.

It’s too easy, and not accurate, to conclude the Jaguars played more man coverage against the Ravens. Ganguli investigated and says it was more about how they played than what they played.

Tennessee Titans

Analyst Brian Baldinger thinks the Titans' run-game problems are mostly on Johnson, who’s not doing what made him great and is showing a lack of confidence, writes John Glennon of The Tennessean.

Lavelle Hawkins knows he needs to do more, say Glennon and Jim Wyatt. The Titans have been incredibly patient with Hawkins and he’s due to stop looking confused on the field.

Defensive coordinator Jerry Gray is seeking consistency, says Wyatt.

The first mistake may have been Javon Ringer's. After getting the ball three times in four plays, he may have tapped his helmet to ask for a rest.

I don’t want my second-string running back asking to be taken out so quickly. He should be able to handle more.

Whether it was him asking out or a coach pulling him out, it was the wrong move and it got the anemic Chris Johnson back in the game just before the Titans got their long touchdown of the day.

If you want a snapshot of Johnson and his questionable effort, it comes shortly after that at 7:07 of the third quarter.

Johnson lined up to the left of Matt Hasselbeck, who was in a shotgun formation. The Titans had a tight end and two receivers to the right and one receiver to the left.

Texans outside linebacker Connor Barwin timed up the snap nicely and got the corner on Titans left tackle Michael Roos. Johnson was in the area, hesitated and didn’t appear certain about whether he was supposed to help on Barwin or slip into the flat to be a quick option for his quarterback.

The snap from center Eugene Amano surprised Hasselbeck and seemed too early, and maybe that threw Johnson off as well. But his effort after the snap was insufficient. He stuck his hand right hand out and touched Barwin to no effect, stepping back a yard and then backpedalling a bit toward the flat. It amounted to standing around.

Even if he was completely surprised by a premature snap, instincts should tell him to either invest in blocking Barwin or quickly get into space.

He did neither, as Hasselbeck threw quickly to Lavelle Hawkins on the other side for no gain.

Maybe that amounts to a tough review of Johnson on one snap. But based on how unproductive he’s been, he’s got to know we’re watching every move at this point. And he didn’t make an effective move there at all.

Reading the coverage …

Houston Texans

Writes John McClain of the Houston Chronicle: “A victory over the Ravens, who lead the AFC North with a 3-1 record, would convince many in the Texans' loyal legion of fans that Sunday's stinker against Oakland was a mirage. It would show the NFL they were capable of flexing their muscles and finishing the toughest part of the schedule 4-2 and owning first place in the AFC South.”

My take: It’s always dangerous to think success in one setting can serve to erase a failure in another. A win in Baltimore would be gigantic, but it wouldn’t absolve the Texans for what happened against Oakland.

Jeffrey Martin of the Chronicle writes that Brooks Reed is trying to be smart about replacing Mario Williams. "I'm not saying I have to produce the same as Mario or I fail."

My take: Sounds like a smart approach. He’s a good player and I expect him to be productive. It’s just that he is unlikely to be Mario Williams-productive and I am not sure the Texans can withstand the drop-off.

Indianapolis Colts

Ben Stockwell of Pro Football Focus liked the offensive line's effort against the Chiefs.

My take: The question is, can it be duplicated? A banged up group that’s constantly being shuffled is going to have troubles with consistency.

Cathy Kightlinger of the Indianapolis Star says Gary Brackett is out for the season with a shoulder injury, but still heavily involved in community work.

My take: I’d expect nothing different from him.

Anthony Schoettle of the Indiana Business Journal says if the Colts can’t win at least three or four games this year, the heat might be too much for Jim Caldwell to handle.

My take: Certainly Caldwell’s status will be reviewed like everything else. And Chris Polian taking more power could be a factor in Caldwell’s future.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Mark Woods of the Times-Union liked the way the Jaguars responded to a big gaffe at the end of the loss to Cincinnati.

My take: People said the right things and that’s nice. But they need to do the right things so they don’t have to say the right things.

Tania Ganguli of the T-U looks at defensive end Jeremy Mincey. “Although the Jaguars have struggled to a 1-4 record, the defense clearly has improved. Mincey has been a bright spot and had one of his best games Sunday against the Bengals.”

My take: The guy can be electric. But the next step is a big one, and it’s to be consistently productive.

Ganguli writes that Matt Turk is out and Nick Harris is in as the Jaguars' punter.

My take: Turk was not the right guy when the team lost Adam Podlesh in free agency. Here’s hoping Harris is an upgrade.

Tennessee Titans

Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean says Matt Hasselbeck will spend the time off for the bye week relaxing and spending time with his family. It’s his first real down time since he signed.

My take: He needs it at this point and has a long haul in line after the Titans get back to work.

David Boclair of The City Paper says Titans coaches will self-scout during the bye and focus in more on what identity their new systems give them.

My take: They need to hope there are some revelations that help them going forward, particularly with regard to the running game.

Tom Gower of Total Titans looks at Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins as they get increased opportunities in the receiver mix.

My take: Mike Munchak has said Williams needs to stop playing like a young guy. A lot of the Titans' potential for success rests with Williams and Hawkins being able to contribute.

Let’s stop this before the volume gets too high.

Many Titans fans are pouting this morning, suggesting that their team should have traded for receiver Derrick Mason, who was acquired by the Texans last night in a trade with the Jets that could send a seventh-round draft pick to New York.

The Titans signed Donnie Avery after Kenny Britt went down and have used him very little so far.

Look, these are different teams with different needs who sought different things.

The Titans lost Britt for the year. Their intention was to move their young players up, so they can finally get a verdict on Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins. They were looking for a fourth guy who might challenge for time after he got comfortable, and a guy with speed.

That’s Avery.

The Texans lost Andre Johnson, probably for three games, and decided they could use an additional veteran presence.

While the Titans have young guys they like and want to give a chance, the Texans started off thin at receiver. They don't have guys who've been waiting who they think have promise.

They know exactly what they do have in Kevin Walter (a reliable guy who can’t always separate), Jacoby Jones (an unreliable guy who can separate), Bryant Johnson (a late addition who's not a big answer) and David Anderson (a guy they were willing to part with at cut time.)

Adding Mason makes a lot more sense for the Texans than for the Titans.

Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc. says Mason and Avery “couldn’t be any more extreme” in the possession versus speed regard.

“Mason is very reliable, but only a short-to-intermediate player,” he said. “Avery is extremely hit or miss, but when he hits, he hits big with blazing speed.”

The Titans want to be younger and faster. Mason wouldn’t have helped in either regard. They are riding with their kids and hoping they ultimately get more hit than miss with Avery.

The Texans need depth, and they got a reliable veteran.

» NFC Stock Watch: East | West | North | South » AFC: East | West | North | South

FALLING

1. The secondary, Indianapolis Colts: Safety David Caldwell dropped an end-zone interception that really could have influenced the game early on. The three cornerbacks who were on the field a lot struggled to locate pass-catchers and get them to the ground. Are Terrence Johnson, Jacob Lacey and Chris Rucker good enough to hold up against superior passing teams like New Orleans, Atlanta, Houston and New England coming up later on the schedule? It’s a rhetorical question, and the answer right now is no.

2. Danieal Manning, Houston Texans special-teamer: We’re not knocking Manning the safety here. We’re knocking the guy who blocked a Pittsburgh field goal attempt on the last play before halftime. He circled around and was one of a convoy of Texans following Johnathan Joseph as he scooped up the kick to run it back for a score, and Manning inexplicably shoved kicker Daniel Sepulveda in the back. There was no way the kicker was going to threaten the play, and Houston was very fortunate to survive the lost touchdown. So props to Manning on the block, but he’s got to be smarter from there.

3. Linebackers, Jacksonville Jaguars: The team poured money into the position in the offseason, and Paul Posluszny and Clint Session are good players. But Posluszny dropped a pick and Daryl Smith let Drew Brees guide him out of bounds on an interception return. The backers were repeatedly victimized by running back Darren Sproles, who averaged 10.9 yards a touch, and tight end Jimmy Graham, who caught 10 balls for 132 yards. The Jaguars need more from these guys against players like that.

RISING

1. Pierre Garcon, Indianapolis receiver: He can be maddening with his drops -- he had one early against the Bucs. But the reason he’s around is that he can change games with one play. He had two of them for the Colts Monday night, grabbing Curtis Painter passes and doing excellent work after the catch. They were the sort of explosive offensive plays Indianapolis has to have if it’s going to be competitive.

2. Tight ends, Tennessee Titans: Among the people the team has talked of needing to help fill the void without Kenny Britt, Jared Cook was a top name. If teams choose to cover him and attempt to tackle him the way the Browns did, look for him to put up monster numbers. Craig Stevens is regarded as more of a blocker, but he did well to catch a touchdown. If Cook, Stevens and Daniel Graham can continue to be counted as good targets for the accurate Matt Hasselbeck, there is a lot of cause for hope. Those guys complementing receivers Nate Washington, Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins are looking like a strong group.

3. Antonio Smith, Houston Texans defensive end: He’ll represent the entire defensive front here, which has been very good and which just overwhelmed the Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive line in Sunday’s win. Ben Roethlisberger can be exceptionally tough to drag down, but Smith and the Texans ganged up on him for five sacks and really hit him with great regularity. The secondary is vastly improved, but life is a lot better back when a quarterback like Roethlisberger has little time to work.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- No offense to Sarah Hasselbeck, but in many ways when her husband decided to join the Tennessee Titans, he signed on for a second marriage.

Matt Hasselbeck and Mike Munchak are an NFL couple.

A new starting quarterback and a new NFL head coach can make for a new vibe, a new message, a new offense and a new direction.

The two are still relative newlyweds because of the lockout, but the early days have brought plenty of bliss, to the pair as well as those rooting for it.

It’s just three games. But the small sampling of their work together suggests the Titans can contend for the AFC South title.

Munchak is effectively conveying simple messages to his team and Hasselbeck is buying into them and passing them on.

“I just feel that my job as quarterback is, I don’t really care what we do, I just need to know what the coaching staff wants to do and then I can be the flag bearer on that stuff,” Hasselbeck said. “Whatever the message is for the week, let me know, coach, and I’ll be spreading the message. Whatever you want emphasized, I’ll make sure that gets emphasized.”

Munchak and offensive coordinator Chris Palmer have done well with the clarity and scope of those messages, Hasselbeck said. They aren’t vague or general or generic. They are game specific, opponent specific or specific to something the team needs to do better. As a Hall of Fame player, Munchak wanted those straightforward messages, not convoluted riddles that needed figuring out.

The Munchak-Hasselbeck relationship so far appears to be the sort most coaches and quarterbacks would like to have. That he’s not calling plays helps, Munchak said, as he’s sort of a buffer in the heat of the moment.

He’s seen his share of volatile coach-quarterback dealings. Warren Moon and Jack Pardee weren’t necessarily at odds, but Munchak did say their relationship wasn’t the one he wants with Hasselbeck.

“I want to have with him what I had with my linemen as an offensive line coach,” Munchak said. “A guy I can trust the way I could trust so many guys -- Kevin Mawae, Bruce Matthews, Jason Mathews -- I had so many guys I had relationships with who could spread the message on how to do things. ...

“Matt’s been around 13 years. He doesn’t need all the fluff. He needs the facts and he wants to know, ‘What exactly can I do to help? Let’s get to the point of this thing.’”

Heading into the Week 3 game against Denver, the theme was winning first down.

“I think Munch is a pretty straightforward guy and he does a good job of being to the point,” Hasselbeck said. “There is not a whole lot of gray area. As a player, that makes it easy; you go out and you know what your coach is looking for. He keeps it pretty simple. ‘Hey, I want you to win first down.’ Gotcha.”

In his first experience as a head coach, Munchak teamed up with general manager Mike Reinfeldt to plan a quarterback strategy after the team decided it was done with Vince Young. The Titans drafted Jake Locker eighth overall, but set themselves up with Hasselbeck, too, a veteran they believed could excel with top-flight pass protection, something the Titans' offensive line has offered.

If Hasselbeck tops 300 passing yards Sunday in Cleveland, it will be the first time in his career he’s done so three games in a row.

He, Palmer and quarterbacks coach Dowell Loggains talk of how there is no defense for the perfect throw.

Another way I’ve heard people talking about it is that Hasselbeck “throws people open.” I like that phrase. It’s something Titans quarterbacks haven’t done in recent years. It’s something he’ll have to do with players like Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins now that Kenny Britt is gone.

Hasselbeck’s consciously factored his experience with change while he was in Seattle into his approach in Tennessee, where the talk is already of a late-career renaissance.

“In the last three years, I think, I’ve had a new head coach, a new offensive coordinator and I handled all three years a little differently,” he said. “One year I handled it where I was real assertive and wanted to get my way. Another year I said, ‘Hey, I’m just going to sit back.’ I’m probably handling this one differently, learning from some of my past mistakes.

“I’m not trying to impart anything from my past. I’m not trying to ask for anything I’ve done. I’m just trying to learn what they’ve done here and what they want to do here. I’ve kind of tried to come in here like I have no experience and no football knowledge at all. Because I’ve done that, my focus has been 100 percent on trying to run the stuff.”

The stuff has worked well enough so far. The new coach and the new quarterback are in lockstep. Smart messages are being well received. For now, it amounts to fresh air in Nashville.

Justin Gage confuses me.

Seriously, I am baffled by John Glennon's report that “Gage’s agent said Tuesday the Titans had interest in re-signing Gage but that the two sides couldn’t agree to terms on a deal.”

Wow.

Here’s how the conversation should go for a veteran receiver who’s drawn minimal interest from around the league after being cut at the conclusion of the preseason.

Titans: “Here’s a one-year offer for the veteran minimum. We’d like you back to provide depth.”

Gage: “OK. Where do I sign? I really appreciate another opportunity and more money for being a good blocker and an unreliable pass-catcher.”

That he said "no" is crazy. What sort of leverage did he think he had?

Wyatt says the Titans worked out David Clowney, Mardy Gilyard, Johnnie Lee Higgins, Tiquan Underwood and Buster Davis. And that at least two more are scheduled for workouts Wednesday -- Donnie Avery and Juaquin Iglesias.

The report indicates Clowney leads the pack right now.

Again, I urge calm over any addition.

The new guy will rank fourth or fifth at the start. He’s not stepping into the lineup to replace Kenny Britt. He’s brought in to bolster depth, immerse himself in the system and be ready for more if Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins cannot give the Titans what they now need.

Titans fans are panicked as they consider the team’s options in the wake of the news that wide receiver Kenny Britt tore up his knee against Denver and is lost for the season.

Should the team contact Terrell Owens? Turn back to Randy Moss? Bring back Justin Gage?

Jim Wyatt reports the Titans do have plans to work out Buster Davis and, if he doesn’t sign with a team he promised to visit first, Donnie Avery. Titans beat writers tweeted from Mike Munchak's news conference that the coach said that Moss and Owens are not likely to get a look but that Gage is a possibility.

Davis, Avery or Gage wouldn't jump into the team’s rotation. The Titans expect Nate Washington, Damian Williams, Lavelle Hawkins and tight end Jared Cook to take on more.

Washington has been excellent the past two weeks.

It’s a bit ironic.

In Pittsburgh, he excelled as a scramble option for Ben Roethlisberger. The Titans saw him as a great fit for Vince Young, presuming they’d work the same sort of magic on freelance plays. But it never really panned out and Washington was wildly inconsistent in his first two seasons in Tennessee, dropping far too many passes.

Now, playing with a more conventional pocket passer in Matt Hasselbeck, Washington has found something different. He’s had at least six catches in all three of the Titans’ games so far, with a total of 21 receptions for 258 yards and a touchdown. He’s earning the trust of receivers coach Dave Ragone, offensive coordinator Chris Palmer and Hasselbeck.

It’s one thing being the No. 2 receiver when a top-level threat such as Britt is drawing attention. Now the Titans need Washington to show he can continue to produce while ranking as the top guy.

It’s not an ideal scenario. But it looks a lot better than it did before the Munchak regime got started.