NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Titans are trying to get back to what they do on offense after a stumbling performance to begin the season, and quarterback Ryan Tannehill said that means playing up to their own standards.
Starting better and handling adversity will help as well.
“We kind of got hit in the mouth early, right?” Tannehill said Wednesday, three days after the visiting Arizona Cardinals beat Tennessee 38-13 in the opener for both teams. “And we go out and didn’t get the start that we wanted, and we didn’t respond well. It took us whatever, four drives before we moved the ball.
“So that’s unacceptable. We have to be able to respond quickly.”
The Titans gave up the first 17 points and didn’t stay on the field as an offense with more than one first down until their fifth possession. Then they managed to score a touchdown after driving 75 yards, but Arizona answered right back with its own drive and led 24-6 at halftime. When the Cardinals’ Kyler Murray threw an interception on the first series of the third quarter, the Titans made use of a short field to score a touchdown and pulled within 11, but that was as close as they got as Arizona answered again with a quick drive into the end zone.