Derrick Henry. Photo by Justin Ford
The Train Daddy is back with sports news, life lessons and politically incorrect talk. All aboard!
Life is but a breeze, and if you get on the Murfreesboro Pulse website and go to the Z-Train sports archives you will be able to read all of my past work writing for this great publication. Fun fact: my oldest article, titled “Ready for Football,” dates back to August of 2008. It blows my mind how fast the time goes by.
It all started with a team that I fell in love with back in the late ’90s that had just moved to Tennessee and won my heart with a Super Bowl run—the greats like Steve McNair, Eddie, Wycheck, Mason, The Freak, BRUCE and Mr. Monday Night, Keith Bulluck! For many of you Titans fans over the age of 30, those were the guys who won you over to this team. If you are like me, you have been hooked ever since. Many of us stayed loyal through the tough times in 2009–16, but thankfully this franchise has been on the up. We have had some tough losses, but lately we as a fan base have had more to celebrate than moan about! And for that I say Titan up! I love this team, its fans, and the culture that continues to grow through fans like myself and so many of you.
In my old articles I had a thing I used to constantly write. I would break teams down by each quarter of the season, four games. Now we have a 17-game regular season, but close enough. If a team went 4–0 in a four-game stretch, they were contenders. If the team went 3–1, they were rocking. If they went 2–2, they were just average Joes and they needed to adjust. If a team went 1–3, it’s desperate times, and finally, if a team went 0–4 the ship is sinking and it’s time to wave the playoffs bye-bye!
Thus far in the 2021 season the Titans have gone 2–2. The season opened with an ugly home defeat to a phenomenal Cardinals team. The Titans won week 2 at Seattle for the Hawks’ home opener in a miraculous overtime thriller. Seattle has not lost a home opener in over a decade. The Titans followed that with a win at home versus the Colts and then an ugly overtime loss to the Jets. So that makes us a bunch of average Joes being led by a king, the best running back in the NFL—King Henry!
It’s ridiculous what the NFL’s back-to-back rushing yardage champ, a player who eclipsed over 2,000 yards last season, is doing right now. The fact is, most backs couldn’t handle the load Henry is carrying right now, but most backs aren’t King Henry standing at 6-feet 3-inches and nearly 250 pounds.
Through four games Henry has netted 113 carries for over 500 rushing yards (averaging 125.7 per game). That is a historic pace, on track for 2,167, enough to break Eric Dickerson’s record. Henry is also on pace to break a record some would say isn’t a record you necessarily want to have. Henry’s 113 carries, nearly 28 per game, has him projected to carry the ball 480 times. That is 64 more carries than the current record holder, Chiefs running back Larry Johnson. Fun fact: Eddie George is number five on that list with over 400 carries in 2000. King Henry was on a record pace to start 2020 as well regarding carries, but his numbers were slowed down in October and November as the Titans’ pass attack found its rhythm. Let’s hope that’s the case once again. The big man doesn’t need to be used and abused come January. But the crazy thing is, Henry more than likely could handle the workload all season. Dude is just built different. A king!
If we broke down the upcoming schedule in fours, next up is on the Jags’ turf, at home against the Bills and Chiefs and away at the Colts. Titans would be fortunate to get one win from either Bills or Chiefs, so I project that at 2–2 with 3–1 being the ceiling.
The next four-game stretch, at the Rams, at home against the Saints and the Texans and at the Patriots, I project another 2–2 with a higher chance for 3–1 here than the prior stretch.
The final four-game stretch entering December begins with the Jags at home, at the Steelers, home for the 49ers and at the Dolphins. I can really see the Titans getting hot and going 4–0 here. Don’t get me wrong, playing at Heinz field will always be tough and the 49ers could bring it, but I feel like all four of these opponents are teams that will not be playing in the playoffs.
The Titans are very fortunate to play in arguably the weakest division in the NFL in 2021, the AFC South. The Titans also end the season against the Texans with an extra game added. The Texans are trash and Henry owns them, averaging 200 yards per game or so as of late. The Jags are horrid as well. The Colts are the only team that can challenge the Titans and stop them from becoming back-to-back AFC South champions. And the Colts have given me no reason to believe they will do that, plus they have a brutal strength of schedule coming up.
As we near the end of this article I want to take a moment and thank you, the reader, my loyal folk and even the haters! Yeah, you know who you are, the ones sending me emails to titanman1984@gmail.com calling me a homer and telling me my Titans talk is trash! I’ve come to realize haters make the most loyal readers, and without you this entire thing wouldn’t be possible, so thank you!
I must end on a quick rant about this team and the direction I think it is headed. I can start with the defense. They were horrid last season. They were atrocious getting off the field, giving up an NFL record over 50 percent conversions on third down. The Titans have the record for worst third-down defense in NFL history to ever make the postseason in the 2020 run. The Titans had a league low in sacks in 2020 as well, with 19 through 16 games. The Titans currently have seven through four games. This 2021 defense, without doubt, is better than last year’s, but the bar was low. Such a frustrating unit, they started the season against prime competition in Kyler Murray and Russ. This defense is so much better up front than 2020, and is, I believe, primed to punish a few future quarterbacks. The problem with the Titans’ defense is the lack of ability to stop big plays downfield, as getting burned in the secondary here and there can often be the difference between a win and loss.
The offense is another topic altogether. This Titans’ offense has yet to get all of the kinks out the system, and it’s why we stand at 2–2. Last year the defense was horrid and the offense was a top unit in the league. This year the Titans’ defense is below average and the offense is struggling to find its identity. It doesn’t help when your top two wide receivers, A.J. and Julio, are both off-field dealing with injuries.
Let’s be honest, Tennessee fans, if it wasn’t for King Henry the Titans easily could be 1–3, probably 0–4. Injuries have been a problem, and I don’t want to talk about the offensive line. Henry may be leading the NFL in rushing yards, so you casuals may think surely the Titans have a solid line. That wouldn’t exactly be the case. The offensive line is struggling mightily with protecting Tannehill, who has been sacked an NFL-leading 17 times heading into week 5, with 13 of those coming in the two losses.
No matter what the Titans’ record is, my people and I will be cheering loudly and decked out in Titans’ gear every game day. It’s about tradition and sharing those moments with loved ones. That’s what football is for me. It’s a getaway from the struggles of life, a time to forget all those troubles and cheer loudly!
Alright, for anyone who doesn’t know my style, I study sports all week, I watch football, I talk football and I just go for it, no notes, no smartphone, no nothing! I write sports like a freestyle rapper spits bars! They call me the Z-Train, and it’s time I roll into the station! Live life following my motto, the 5 F’s: Faith, Family, Football, Food and Friends.
