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What are the St. Louis Rams going to do at outside linebacker?

The team faces other questions coming off a 2-14 season, of course, but that position went largely unaddressed in the draft. St. Louis emerged from the draft with five linebackers on its roster, leaving roughly six or seven spots to fill for training camp.

The Rams used a seventh-round choice for Aaron Brown, a weakside linebacker from Hawaii, but linebackers selected that late would generally project only as special-teams contributors if they earned roster spots at all.

Veteran Jo-Lonn Dunbar, signed from New Orleans in free agency, projects as one starter. Josh Hull, a seventh-round choice in 2010, projects as the other starter until the Rams can further address the position.

James Laurinaitis is a solid starter in the middle. He should fare better in 2012 playing behind recently acquired tackles Kendall Langford (Miami Dolphins) and Michael Brockers (first-round draft choice). He cannot make every play from sideline to sideline, however. He needs help. The Rams desperately need speed on the outside.

After struggling through last season with aging stopgap options ranging from Ben Leber to Brady Poppinga, the Rams have gotten younger at the position. But they have not yet gotten appreciably better. Some of the players they cast aside in previous seasons -- Paris Lenon, Pisa Tinoisamoa and Will Witherspoon come to mind -- would have been better than the players St. Louis wound up relying upon.

At one point in the draft, the Rams traded down from the 45th spot, coming away with running back Isaiah Pead, plus the 150th choice. Philadelphia and Seattle took inside linebackers with the 46th and 47th overall picks. The Rams could have drafted Nebraska's Lavonte David, who went to Tampa Bay at No. 58. But they obviously thought Pead would bring greater value at another position of need.

Teams running 4-3 defenses selected only four projected outside linebackers from the third through fifth rounds, with Jacksonville selecting Nevada's Brandon Marshall at No. 142, eight spots before the Rams chose South Carolina guard Rokevious Watkins.

The bottom line was that St. Louis entered this draft with more needs than the Rams could address with the available picks. Outside linebacker moves nearer the top of their priority list as the roster rebuild enters its next phase.

I’m eager to hear the Titans talk about North Carolina linebacker Zach Brown, whom they just picked at No. 52.

The outside reviews are not very good. Over in our chat, Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc. said Brown is a track star with no football acumen.

The Titans have emphasized getting bigger and are trying to improve their pass rush. It would appear Brown does neither, as he’s just over 6-foot-1 and around 244 pounds and his speed seems to lend itself more to coverage work than pass rushing.

Even if the Titans envision him in that role going forward, they’ve long been a team that likes to talk about rushing linebackers but rarely follows through. Is he going to knock veteran Will Witherspoon from the weakside spot? Or succeed him next year?

Draft analyst Mike Detillier likes Brown -- rating him second at outside linebacker behind only Courtney Upshaw and putting him as a late first- or early second-round guy. Pro Football Weekly put Brown in the top 50. Mel Kiper said he was a second- or third-round player who would create split opinions and cited instinct concerns.

Detillier wrote that Brown's acceleration upfield is "unmatched my any other linebacker," that he has "rare closing speed to the ballcarrier" and that he has "first-rate flow skills laterally and eats up a lot of ground."

While Brown could be a tease, Detillier also said that with hard work, Brown can show he "has the skills to be a special player."

Still, like a lot of people, I'm thinking Tennessee could have done better in the spot.

The Titans need a pass-rusher and a center. In a year they could really need a free safety. The right kind of receiver would be intriguing.

One spot we’ve not talked much about is linebacker. They spent a second-rounder on strongside linebacker Akeem Ayers last year, when they also found a dynamic middle linebacker in fourth-rounder Colin McCarthy.

Veteran Will Witherspoon is on the weak side. He has some big games, and some where he seems kind of invisible. The team can find a bigger guy who’s more of a playmaker for the spot, be it now or in 2013.

The depth is poor. Gerald McRath was a starter in 2010 and didn’t take advantage of the chance. He was only occasionally situational last season. Patrick Bailey and Tim Shaw can fill in for a bit, but they are primarily special-teamers.

I don’t think Tennessee will go linebacker at No. 20, but Alabama’s Dont'a Hightower or Alabama’s Courtney Upshaw could be in play.

More likely the Titans will tab someone a bit later like Cal’s Mychal Kendricks or someone further down like Utah State’s Bobby Wagner.

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.

ATLANTA -- Thoughts on the Tennessee Titans' 23-17 loss to the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome:

What it means: The Titans fell to 5-5, continuing their up and down season. Some will call them inconsistent. But beyond their first two games -- a loss at Jacksonville, a win over Baltimore -- they’ve simply beaten bad teams and lost to good ones.

What I didn’t like: The Titans allowed the Falcons too many big plays. Matt Ryan found Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez too often and too easily. The Titans didn’t find enough big plays. Outside of Nate Washington's 40-yard touchdown catch, a forced fumble by Colin McCarthy that Will Witherspoon recovered and a couple big Jake Locker throws on a late drive, the Titans didn’t make a lot happen.

Will there be a quarterback controversy? Locker gave the Titans a nice, immediate jolt when he entered the game late in the third quarter, hitting Washington who stiff-armed a defender off of him and ran to the end zone for a 40-yard score that made it 23-10. Later the rookie made a couple big throws and then found Washington against for a 4-yard score. Locker entered the game after Matt Hasselbeck strained his throwing elbow. I feel certain that if Hasselbeck is OK, the Titans will stick with him. Locker can add something with his ability to move around, but is also likely to make more mistakes.

Disappearance: A week after Chris Johnson broke through with a big game, he was a non-factor. He carried 12 times for 13 yards.

What’s next: The Titans host Tampa Bay in the third of three games in a row against the NFC South.

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

FALLING

1. Marcedes Lewis, Jacksonville Jaguars tight end: This offseason MMA training was supposed to transform him and take his game to another level. That’s great if his hips are opening up better, but does it matter if he’s not catching the ball and if he hasn’t earned the confidence of the team’s rookie quarterback, Blaine Gabbert? If Tennessee’s Chris Johnson wasn’t getting all the attention, there would have been far more attention on Lewis’ poor production and we’d be asking the same question: Did he get happy and relax after landing a big contract at the start of training camp? Blocking well is not enough. This team expected and deserves more.

2. The Colts' decision to IR Kerry Collins: Look, the veteran quarterback wouldn’t automatically be fixing all that’s wrong with the Colts. But if his concussion has cleared up he’d sure provide a better alternative right now to Curtis Painter than Dan Orlovsky does. And if Collins were available and could put together one steady game with some big pass plays mixed in, the Colts would have their chance to win a game. Instead, they’re choosing between two bad options and are going to be hard-pressed to find a victory.

3. The Texans’ confidence, potentially: They’re coming off a fourth straight win and feeling great and, bam, bad news about their quarterback. Matt Schaub’s done with a foot injury. The Texans are saying all the right things and I believe they do believe in Matt Leinart. But take a team heading for the playoffs and maybe even a first-round bye and tell it the quarterback who got it there is out, and it’s got to have a psychological effect. We’ve questioned the mental makeup of this team in this space before. The Texans seem to be making big strides in that department, and they’ve overcome the loss of significant guys in Mario Williams, Andre Johnson and Danieal Manning. But Schaub is a different deal. The quarterback is the centerpiece and he’s been steering things very well. Doubt can creep in.

RISING

1. The importance of everyone surrounding the quarterback for Houston: Leinart could do just fine as he steps in for the injured Schaub the rest of the way. But when the Texans start out with him in the huddle on Nov. 27 in Jacksonville, everyone else needs to make him as comfortable as possible. That means a continued excellent run game, behind continued great blocking from a line that also needs to protect well. It means reliable routes and catches from everyone in the Texans’ big stable of pass targets. The more they can do to ease him in, the better.

2. Tennessee Titans linebackers: Akeem Ayers, Will Witherspoon and rookie fill-in Colin McCarthy were active and effective for the Titans in Carolina in a very good collective effort. There was better work going on in front of them as the pass rush had its best day of the season. The Titans dragged Cam Newton down five times. McCarthy was solid in the middle playing for the injured veteran Barrett Ruud. Mike Munchak said Ruud (groin) will be back in when he’s ready, but McCarthy could get additional work in some packages.

3. Jeremy Mincey, Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end: He continues to get better, and on a defense with some veterans who were brought in with big contracts, he’s providing valuable energy as an edge rusher. In Indianapolis, he made a great spin move to get inside on Anthony Castonzo for the first sack, he helped Daryl Smith put Painter down to share a sack and got around the corner and swiped a fumble free from Orlovsky in the fourth quarter.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- In plenty of situations I’d say a 20-0 halftime lead for the Houston Texans stopped short of assuring a victory.

But the Tennessee Titans have shown nothing so far at LP Field Sunday to indicate they’re capable of mounting any sort of comeback.

While the Texans have been pretty opportunistic, Tennessee has delivered dud play after dud. Receivers have failed to go get balls. Penalties abound. The Titans are missing tackles.

Houston’s got some swagger and confidence here, even as a key player like safety Danieal Manning has disappeared with a lower left leg injury. Tennessee’s showing absolutely none.

The Texans lead total yards 303-73 and first downs 15-5.

Yes, the Texans have a part it in and will get full credit if they finish. But much of the Titans’ sleepwalking first half appeared self-induced.

Chris Johnson looked timid. Damian Williams and Will Witherspoon looked confused. And Michael Griffin looked like a safety that provided no obstacle at all to Arian Foster once he got in the open field.

The Texans can’t take their foot off the gas. But even if they do, I can’t see the sort of turnaround the Titans need to get back in this.

Thoughts on the Titans' 17-14 win over the Broncos at LP Field:

What it means: The Titans share the lead in the AFC South with Houston at 2-1, though Tennessee's divisional loss gives the Texans an edge. Matt Hasselbeck had his second 300-yard passing game in a row and has shown he’s in control of an offense that can find ways to win even when its primary pieces are not working the way they might hope for.

What I liked: Hasselbeck found 11 different pass receivers as he completed 27 of 36 throws for 311 yards and two touchdowns. Tight end Daniel Graham’s hardly been a prominent guy to this point, but his 4-yard touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter provided the winning margin against his former team.

What I didn’t like: A wrenching of Kenny Britt’s right knee which could be a season-ending injury. The team’s most dynamic pass catcher fumbled his catch after twisting awkwardly. If he’s gone for an extended period of time, the offense will be without a guy who’s been as explosive a receiver as just about anyone in the league so far.

What I can’t figure out: Another zero game for Chris Johnson on the ground, with a 1.6-yards per carry average. Javon Ringer, the primary alternative, took six carries for negative-6 yards. The Titans are struggling to move it on the ground. But at least they’ve won consecutive games while enduring the struggle. Johnson did contribute as a pass-catcher.

Defensive forces: Will Witherspoon had the Titans’ lone sack and picked off a ball batted by Jason Jones to seal up the game. Jason McCourty also had an interception. And the defense made a strong goal-line stand.

What’s next: The Titans hit the road and head for Cleveland to see if they can stop the Browns on the ground and to try again to get Johnson going.

One game that doesn’t count in the standings doesn’t give us a lot. But out of the Titans’ Saturday night win against the Vikings, I saw one change that I think is highly representative of what’s going on at the start of the Mike Munchak era.

Two moves since 2010 have bumped Gerald McRath out of the starting lineup as an outside linebacker. Akeem Ayers was drafted to play the strongside, and the addition of Barrett Ruud to man the middle means Will Witherspoon in now on the weakside. That is probably the team’s best lineup at linebacker in its base defense.

I have been critical of the lack of plays from the linebackers last season, particularly from McRath and the departed Stephen Tulloch.

Jeff Fisher and his coordinator, Chuck Cecil, stubbornly took McRath, a good pass defender, out on third downs, and left Tulloch, a weak pass defender, on the field. It was experience-over-skill-set stubbornness.

Right now, Munchak and coordinator Jerry Gray are pulling both Witherspoon and Ayers off the field in nickel and sending McRath on to join Ruud.

Whether it’s what the defense is doing on opening day in Jacksonville remains to be seen.

But it’s a clear illustration of the basic principle most good coordinators try to key on: Putting players in situations that maximize their chances to do what they are best at and keeping them out of situations where they do not excel.

If this is McRath’s role, he’s got a lot better chance to make plays than he did last season, when things were backwards and he was in base but not in nickel.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Titans severed ties with their coach and their quarterback and set about for a fresh start.

They’ll suffer from time lost with the lockout, but in Mike Munchak, a largely new staff and a new combo of quarterbacks in Matt Hasselbeck and Jake Locker, the franchise hasn’t just turned a page.

It’s opened a new book.

The early chapters could well be choppy and rough.

Defensive coordinator Jerry Gray is looking for a bigger defense that will stop the run first, and offensive coordinator Chris Palmer is bringing a scholarly approach to a group used to being screamed at. They have new signal callers on offense and defense (middle linebacker Barrett Ruud was signed as a free agent from Tampa Bay), so there is a lot of new stuff to cover.

But external expectations are low. If the Titans can get their best player, Chris Johnson, on the field and make strides on defense, it’s not impossible to improve on last season's disastrous 6-10 record.

Munchak preaches the virtues of being a true professional -- know what to do and do it. The question is, does he have enough talented guys who, following that mantra, can win football games?

THREE HOT ISSUES

1) Will Johnson be around?

It’s hard to imagine his sitting out the season. The flamboyant running back loves the NFL stage. But he's one of the league’s most dynamic players and is certainly scheduled to be underpaid at $1.065 million. The Titans won’t negotiate if he’s not at camp. He won’t come to camp without a new deal. There are currently no signs of any real movement.

He’s not fired up about a compromise that would have him join the team but not practice until a deal is reached. Someone will bend. But in the meantime, we’re likely to see a much less threatening offense.

“It’s tough to tell how long it takes to become an issue,” left tackle Michael Roos said. “Once he’s here he’s here and we start working with him. We’ll be a different team without him. He's definitely one of the top two, if not the best running back in the league. A special player, very dynamic. It makes for a different kind of offense when he’s not in there.

“The plays wouldn’t change. Just without having his speed in there people would play us differently. I wouldn’t say it would necessarily be a worse offense. It would just be someone else running it, Javon Ringer or the rookie (Jamie Harper). It wouldn’t have CJ’s dynamic and people having to worry about his speed.”

If defenses aren't worrying about that speed, things will be far more difficult for Hasselbeck and the team’s other best weapons, receiver Kenny Britt and tight end Jared Cook.

2) How will Munchak’s style translate?

He’s a Hall of Fame player, and he’s been a top position coach for years. Odds are Munchak can coach a football team.

“He’s his own man,” linebacker Gerald McRath said. “Everybody is going to have to sit back and watch, but it’s definitely going to be different. He has that personality. He wants to establish something that’s his, something that he’s worked hard for. I feel like it’s a great opportunity. It’s a privilege just to be involved in that, to be able to put into some of that.”

The question really is about his CEO role. How does he deal with the late-night calls about DUIs or the overeating defensive lineman? How does he react to the city calling for the starting quarterback’s head or the player enduring stuff at home that’s hurting his play?

Munchak has talked about accountability and discipline and consequences, things that all had slipped at the end for Jeff Fisher. Can he enforce all that effectively?

One other thing: Fisher was great with rules and clock management. In Munchak’s first turn in the primary headset, it will be interesting to see how he fares in those departments.

3) Can the Titans stay healthy up front?

Part of the Titans’ push to be bigger up front on defense is about being better against the run. Part of it is about being more rugged deep into the season. Some of Tennessee’s speed rushers in recent years wore down late, and the Titans suffered for it.

Tracy Rocker has big shoes to fill as defensive line coach, where Jim Washburn had a great run of success. Can Gray and Rocker show the discipline to pace the linemen the way they are talking about doing now?

“I think we have to be real smart this year because our (defensive linemen), for some reason, get hurt quite a bit,” Munchak said. “We have to limit their plays not only in games but in practice so you don’t lose guys… We have to find a way to keep them healthy. You can’t control all that, but we have to be smart.”

BIGGEST SURPRISE

It’s early, of course. But the team’s talking up Cook again, and this time he seems prepared to live up to it. The tight end is running plenty of routes that take him deeper than most tight ends, and the quarterbacks are thrilled to have such a big target stretching the field. He seems to be responding better to the mellow approach of Palmer than he did to the high intensity of Mike Heimerdinger.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

Britt’s offseason was filled with off-the-field issues. The Titans gave him a clean slate coming in, but hamstring problems have kept him out of camp so far. He said that he thought yoga was going to help him solve such problems but that his instructor apparently took the money and ran with it. The Titans are already without their most dynamic player in Johnson. With Britt sidelined, they are also missing No. 2.

OBSERVATION DECK

• McRath is probably the odd man out in the linebacker shuffle, unless he makes a charge to overtake Will Witherspoon on the weakside. McRath knows he didn’t make enough plays last year, but he’s saying the right things and carrying himself the right way. Maybe he’s a special teams stud if he isn’t playing defense.
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Don McPeak/US PRESSWIRENew coach Mike Munchak, a Hall of Fame offensive lineman, will have high expectations for his interior line.
• The pressure is on the Titans' interior offensive line. Munchak and O-line coach Bruce Matthews, both Hall of Fame linemen, expect Leroy Harris, Eugene Amano and Jake Scott to play better in their second season all together. If they don’t, we’ll call it part missed assessment and part blown confidence. Keeping Hasselbeck upright and healthy is a huge deal.
• I’m not sure how the Titans will distribute their tight ends without tipping their intentions. Cook is the receiver and Craig Stevens is the blocker. Veteran addition Daniel Graham can do both but is more a blocker.
• Jordan Babineaux was lured to the Titans from Seattle largely because of his relationship with Gray when both were with the Seahawks. They shouldn’t do anything that entails Michael Griffin playing anything but centerfield. And Babineaux is more a free than a strong safety, But the Titans will blur the distinction. Can he challenge for Chris Hope’s job? If he does, will Hope take a pay cut to stay?
• The Titans actually have reasonable depth at cornerback. Cortland Finnegan needs to produce big in a contract year and Alterraun Verner and Jason McCourty are up-and-comers. Ryan Mouton was lost for the year with an Achilles injury. But veteran addition Frank Walker made a nice early impression.
• This team always has an undrafted receiver who creates buzz early. This time it looks to be Michael Preston out of Heidelberg. He’s got nice size and athleticism.
• There’s not enough evidence to know if seventh-rounder CB Tommie Campbell can play yet. But he certainly had physical attributes that makes receivers take notice. Receiver Yamon Figurs recently went against him and came away muttering that Campbell was the biggest corner he’s ever seen. Figurs said Campbell, who is 6-foot-3, was “like a giraffe.”
• Jake Locker has shown steady improvement and has been far better early on that I anticipated he would be.
• If the Titans are going to be a lot better on defense, second-year end Derrick Morgan and second-round pick Akeem Ayers, a strongside linebacker, are going to have a lot to do with it. Morgan is a very good player, and Ayers bring the Titans size they’ve not had at linebacker since the franchise relocated.
• Leadership was a giant issue last season. There was hardly any when things got tough. The Titans' additions could solve that. Hasselbeck, Graham, Ruud and Ayers are going to be big in that department.
• Even if Justin Gage has a huge preseason, the Titans should consider moving on if everyone else is healthy. He’s simply not been a steady enough playmaker, and if his presence is going to keep the team from exploring the upside of someone like Damian Williams, it’s not the right move.
• Where does recently added, versatile veteran offensive lineman Pat McQuistan fit in? The Titans have a lot of young linemen they like, but his case for edging somebody out will include his experience at every position but center. That could increase their flexibility on the bench.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Titans got what they were looking for at Matt Hasselbeck's first practice and said what you’d expect they’d say afterwards.

The tempo picked up, and while there were plenty of bumps, everyone was upbeat about what unfolded. At the same time, Jake Locker, working at the second quarterback, continued to show improvement and had a very nice night.

“I think I reverted back to some of my old stuff, but Geno [center Eugene Amano] and those guys up front did a great job of just hanging in there with me, snapping the ball,” Hasselbeck said. “I think I only went the wrong way once, that anybody noticed anyway.

“I have to learn it and I have to unlearn this stuff. What was once ‘green’ is now ‘red’ and what was ‘red’ is now ‘blue.’ In a competitive situation where everything is going real fast, everything just reverts.”

He said he’s getting way more from Locker, Rusty Smith and Brett Ratliff then they are getting from him so far and that quarterbacks coach Dowell Loggains has been a great resource for scouting reports on his new teammates.

Coach Mike Munchak said the increased tempo allowed him to add an extra red zone period at the end of practice.

Said receiver Justin Gage: “In a day or two Matt will be right there with the rest of us. You can tell just from today, he’s a fast learner, he learns from his mistakes.”

A few other notes out of the Titans’ evening session on Thursday:

• Munchak indicated second-round pick Akeem Ayers is in line to play the strongside and Barrett Ruud was the first team middle linebacker out of the gate as you’d expect. That leaves the Titans with a battle between Will Witherspoon and Gerald McRath for the starting weakside job.
• The Titans are blurring the line between free and string safety and Munchak declined to say Chris Hope is solidly in place as a starter before the new free agent acquisition, Jordan Babineaux, even walks in the door. He’ll get a chance to compete.
• Titans’ union rep Jake Scott said he believes because there is only one company claiming it can accurately test for HGH, that he is skeptical of the accuracy of the testing. He’s for it in principle. “But their motives are questionable. Their incentive is to catch people,” he said. “If they don’t catch anybody, nobody thinks their test works.”

Missed tackles can kill.

As I am a positive guy, my first thought after reading this fine piece from Aaron Schatz wasn’t about Michael Griffin's 17 missed tackles or Will Witherspoon's missed tackle rate of 19.5.

No, it was of just how impressive Antoine Bethea's numbers were by Football Outsider’s count in 2010. Holding together a secondary that literally crumbled around him, Bethea made 80 tackles and missed two. Two.

His 3.6 missed tackle percentage ranked fifth in the league, but only one other player on it had more tackles than Bethea did -- Buffalo’s Donte Whitner had 105 tackles and four missed, for 3.4 percent.

I think Bethea is excellent. He was our All AFC-South free safety, he should have been second-team All Pro considering a bunch of guys tied for the honor with one vote apiece. Here is further evidence for all that.

Jacksonville cornerback Rashean Mathis also rated quite well, with 48 tackles and just one missed tackle.

The Titans, meanwhile, had three of the top seven players on the missed tackles list in Griffin, Witherspoon (15) and Stephen Tulloch (13). Houston saw Bernard Pollard miss 13 and Glover Quin miss 11, while Eugene Wilson’s miss rate was 16.3 percent.

Bethea’s safety mate for the majority of the season, Aaron Francisco, was the second worst defensive back missing 17.6 percent of his chances.

Perhaps Bethea can put on a clinic for Tennessee and Houston?

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Titans wanted to get bigger at linebacker, and second-round pick Akeem Ayers gives them both size and play-making ability.

Tennessee’s starting linebackers produced one forced fumble last season. Ayers had seven in his career as a UCLA Bruin. At 255, he’s 15 pounds heavier than Will Witherspoon and Stephen Tulloch, the heaviest of the incumbent starters.

Tulloch could be a free agent, and Witherspoon could shift to the middle to make room for Ayers in the starting lineup.

Looks like an upgrade to me for sure.

UPDATE: Defensive coordinator Jerry Gray said Ayers give the Titans a linebacker unlike any they had in Jeff Fisher's schemes. Ayers will often play at the line of scrimmage on a tight end, setting the edge on one side. He can also be up there as a defensive end.

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A look at a player who gave his team a significant boost in Week 14.

Titans coach Jeff Fisher got blasted for not going for it on fourth-and-1. That’s a fair debate.

Fact is, when he punted it away to the Colts from the Titans’ 34-yard line Thursday night with 4:14 left in the game, his team still had a chance.

Indianapolis led 27-21 and the Titans had all three of their timeouts plus the 2-minute warning. But Fisher’s defense let him down as Pierre Garcon made a huge play, earning AFC South High Energy Player of the Week honors.

Peyton Manning threw a short, second-down pass to Garcon on the right. Jason McCourty, Chris Hope and Will Witherspoon all converged on Garcon about 3 yards short of the first down, but he bounced out of it and slipped a charging Michael Griffin. Garcon went 43 yards up the right sideline before McCourty caught him and tackled him.

The Colts wound up with a field goal, and the Titans wound up with too little time to overcome a two-score deficit. Indianapolis won 30-28.

The first-down reception and the yards after catch were a giant play by Garcon, who has had some very poor games for the Colts this season, with drops and communication issues with Manning.

But on Thursday, he caught two touchdown passes from Manning, helping the quarterback break out of a three-game funk and helping the Colts end a three-game skid.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Barring a scoreless overtime, the Colts' appearance at LP Field guarantees that one AFC South team will end a losing streak Thursday night.

As they brace for the first of two head-to-head matchups in the final month of the season, the Colts (6-6) and Titans (5-7) have combined to lose eight straight.

Somebody gets to leave the stadium tonight feeling a lot better. Here are five questions to consider before we see who that is.

1. Will Peyton Manning break out of his funk? He has 11 interceptions in his past three games. But the Titans have only three interceptions during their five consecutive losses. Look for corner Cortland Finnegan to draw the difficult Reggie Wayne assignment, but to have plenty of help as the Titans show themselves more willing to take chances with Pierre Garcon, Jacob Tamme and especially Blair White.

Rookie Alterraun Verner is the second starting corner and will face Manning for the first time, and second-year man Jason McCourty will work in the nickel. McCourty started last season in a loss to the Colts when the Titans gave up 309 passing yards and three passing touchdowns to Manning with only one pick.

Tennessee has been getting crushed in time of possession -- it hasn’t held the ball for 21 minutes in its past two losses. Manning will be content to take what’s given and string together long drives if he can.

2. Who’s playing in the Colts' secondary? The Colts' starting cornerbacks are out -- Jerraud Powers is finished for the season after surgery to repair a broken forearm and Kelvin Hayden is not recovered from a neck injury. That means Jacob Lacey and Justin Tryon are in line to work as the top two corners with rookie Cornelius Brown as the nickel.

The Titans have hardly been slinging it. They haven’t scored an offensive touchdown since Nov. 21. But Kerry Collins will have receiver Kenny Britt back after a four-game layoff with a hamstring injury and surely Tennessee will finally throw a jump ball to Randy Moss, right?

A drop-off at corner can mean extra strain on safeties Antoine Bethea and Aaron Francisco. Unless, of course, defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are regularly able to hurry Collins and shorten the clock for all the guys in coverage.

3. How many catches will Tamme have? While the tight end has been productive, he’s not Dallas Clark. But the Titans' defense has given up significant yardage to tight ends far less talented than Clark this season.

I don’t know that anything has changed for the Titans' linebackers, who are most responsible for those issues, and I look for the Colts to be primed to attack the soft underbelly of the Tennessee defense until Stephen Tulloch or Will Witherspoon or Gerald McRath prove things are any different.

Heck, watch the banged-up Brody Eldridge make a couple of key catches.

4. How much will Indy even try to run it? The Colts would like to show some semblance of balance and some effective runs would help keep the play-action believable -- though everyone seems to bite on it even when they can’t run. It will be interesting to see how coach Jim Caldwell and offensive coordinator Clyde Christensen deploy Donald Brown, Javarris James and Dominic Rhodes.

“They won’t run on us if we play Titans’ defense, to tell you the truth,” defensive tackle Jovan Haye said. “If we have somewhat of a repeat performance from Sunday, then they will. They utilize it in their offense, but they’re not a big run team. If we play like we did [surrendering 258 rushing yards in the loss to Jacksonville], they’ll run the ball.”

5. Can Chris Johnson get something going? He wants more carries and the Titans are desperate to get him going to help elongate drives, keep the defense off the field and alter the time of possession trend. But last year the Colts didn’t allow him a carry longer than 11 yards in two games while holding him to a 4.1-yard average.

Titans fullback Ahmard Hall said tackle Fili Moala, in his first year starting, and rookie linebacker Pat Angerer have been very effective run-stopping pieces on top of what the Colts had previously.

The Titans need to show a willingness to throw deep to Britt and Moss to keep the Colts honest and buy a bit of extra space and time for Johnson.

“He is an outstanding back with outstanding numbers,” Caldwell said. “I think what happens just like anything else, people get spoiled. He is a talented guy and I think he has been performing well. We have to get ready to handle him because he is a heck of a back.”