Stephen Gostkowski nailed 10 field goals in his first three games as a Titan
The Train Daddy is back with sports news, life lessons and politically incorrect talk. All aboard! Let me start this article off by saying, Life is Good!
I know I have used this platform in the last few issues to voice concerns about some controversial issues in the world today, one of those issues being my disgust with the implosion of politics and race in sports.
But I have realized I can, for the most part, shut that nonsense out. With that said, I know numerous people who have given up on the football season. They refuse to watch players kneel and they refuse to listen to multi-million-dollar athletes tell them how racist everything supposedly is. While this saddens me greatly, I understand.
I do not blame anyone who has made that decision to turn away. I love the game of football with a passion that I know is far beyond normal. I study stats and the history of the game, and I study players. It is my thing. Not to mention the love I have for Tennessee football—my Titans and the Vols.
My convictions have absolutely been tested but I love this game. I do not love this game more than I love my country, but until something happens that pushes me completely over the edge, I will be cheering for my Tennessee teams every weekend.
Does the kneeling upset me? Let’s just say I have similar feelings as the recently departed Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had, and I quote, “I think it’s a terrible thing to do, but I wouldn’t lock a person up for doing it. I would point out how ridiculous it seems to me to do such an act.” Go watch the 2016 interview for yourself. It may be hard to find. Wonder why?
Aside from the kneeling, a constant stream of social issues and racial discrimination talk comes from analysts and commercials during live games. ESPN itself is a cesspit. If you want real sports talk, podcasts are the only way to go these days.
I support equality with all my heart. My black brother is just as perfect as my white brother, and I couldn’t be more sincere in saying that. But I do not support BLM—the opposite, indeed. It is a cancer. I refuse to be forced to support a political group committing atrocities that just keep adding up. YouTube can hardly keep up with the videos of violence in the name of BLM. I support equality and condemn BLM. Simple as that.
We already have numbers on the NBA, and the repercussions of this woke culture stuff is a 27–45-percent playoff ratings drop! How woke will the NBA continue to be when they realize the audience is leaving? We all know that in the end money wins the day. When will the players, the owners and the league really start to see what this utter disrespect to police officers and the country cost them? Projecting the future is simple here. The NBA will slowly shut up and focus on basketball and attempt to gain what they have quickly lost with its fan base. People like Mark Cuban can lie all they want, but he knows why fans are leaving.
Alright, enough of that. As of publication release the Titans are 3–0 with victories over the Broncos, the Jaguars and the Vikings. Let us be honest: this team could easily be 0–3.
But I will not hold those close-game-winning drives against the Titans. This team has a lot to clean up, but I am fine with being known as the team that embraces the mentality a win is a win. A win is a win! I call it heart attack football and it gets my anxiety through the roof.
The Titans are tops in the AFC South as of week 3. My thoughts on the rest of the AFC South as of now: Colts (2–1)—maybe a playoff contender? Rivers is washed, an interception machine who sometimes plays like the vet he is. The Jaguars (1–2)—Minshew Magic is not a magical as some want it to be. And the Texans (0–3)—that team has a superstar in Watson, who recently signed his giant extension to stay with the team. I believe the Texans are run by a complete moron in Coach Bill O’Brien, who has done nothing to help his star quarterback. But, let us be honest, if your first three opponents to open the season were the Ravens, Chiefs and Steelers, most teams in this league would be 0–3 after that brutal start. So maybe the Texans make a 2020 comeback?
Quick Hits Around the NFL
Can you imagine being a fan of the Atlanta Falcons right now? Choke artists! The best way to beat the Falcons seems to be to give them a 20-point lead.
I will admit this: so far, Cam Newton has played 1,000 times better than I projected. The Patriots look good with him. I still do not believe he can finish a season, though. I believe he is beat and washed. Does he prove me wrong?
The Titans have the Steelers to open October. I honestly feel the same way about Big Ben right now. He too is beat and washed. Unfortunately for the Titans he is healthy to start the season and that Steel Curtain defense is the real deal. That should be an extremely fun and tough week-4 match-up. Titan up!
Tom Brady has looked average with his new team. We will see how that plays out. I have been impressed with the Packers and Aaron Rodgers to start the season. After all the hate that organization got for the 2020 draft picks, the Packers look like a serious Super Bowl contender, while Saints quarterback Drew Brees looks lost without star receiver Michael Thomas on the field.
Injuries have been bad to start 2020, affecting superstar players like CMC, Saquon, Courtland Sutton, Von Miller and everyone on the 49ers. Players have been going down hard. The Titans’ Taylor Lewan is a crucial part of that offensive line and is dealing with what may or may not be a serious shoulder injury. No Lewan versus that Steelers pass rush would be bad news indeed. Get well, homie!
Ryan Tannehill has been playing like the quarterback he was paid to be, and Derrick Henry has done what his detractors said he couldn’t do, starting the season off in style with over 300 yards rushing in three games, the best start to his five-year NFL career. I daresay if Henry is healthy and nearing the 1,000-yard mark come mid-season, we may see a huge season. King Henry runs downhill and begins to explode in November and December. He has a real shot at possibly making a run at 2,000 rush yards this season!
One of my favorite stories to date is kicker Stephen Gostkowski, a gem! Stephen has made 10 field goals and, believe it or not, that is one more than four total Tennessee kickers managed to make for the Titans in all of 2019. Four of those kicks were over 50-yard bangers! Gostkowski has been amazing and his detractors have quickly shut their mouths. He has kicked three straight game-winners for this team, so it’s fair to say that without Gostkowski the Titans easily could be 0–3.
I think it is fair to say as well that Adoree Jackson means more to this Titans defense than fans gave him credit for. Adoree started 2019 off rough and fans let him hear about it before he picked his play up for the better as the Titans made a run to the AFC Championship. Now, to start 2020, Adoree has been dealing with injury and was put on IR. The Titans desperately need Jackson back in the lineup and it’s reported we may have him back soon. Being 3–0 feels good when you know your playmakers are not all on the field.
As a fan I was overly excited about the prospect of this Titans’ new pass rush. The team does not have a lot of sacks, yet the blitz package remains a problem for opposing offenses. The Titans have shown they have numerous men who can get there and I expect the sacks to go up. Look for the pass rush to grow and begin to dominate as the season progresses.
Since 1980, 187 teams have started 3–0, and 141 of those (75.4 percent) made the playoffs. Since the start of the Titans era (1999) this is just the third time Tennessee has won three in a row to start a season. Last time was 2008, when the Titans finished with the NFL’s best record (13-3). I remember that awful ending! Me and my bros were at that Ravens divisional game in Nashville. I think I cried.
As a Titans fan I am super-excited about the reemergence of wideout Corey Davis and my breakout player-of-the-year candidate, tight end Jonnu Smith. But every Titans fan and football fan in the world wants to see A.J. Brown back on the field. He is a stud muffin. Brown has been dealing with a serious knee bruise that he received in Week 1 and he has been inactive ever since. From what we have been told, his knee is not responding well to treatment. They have said slow healing, so my regards to 2019’s best rookie receiver! Get well bro, we need you.
Alright, the Train Daddy is rolling into the station. I love my Tennessee Titans, I love America and I love you, the reader! Finally, let me say congratulations to the editor-in chief of this great publication. He and his amazing wife recently had another beautiful Mayo added to the family, a healthy baby boy!
Choo-choo!
