Tannehill Feels Surrounded, Protected by Toughness
Ryan Tannehill heads into Sunday’s matchup against Cleveland talking tough. Actually, the Tennessee Titans quarterback is focused on the toughness of his offensive line.
“I think all starts up front honestly, and it goes from there,” Tannehill said Wednesday. “It's not something you can say that you want to do. You have to have the guys who are willing to go do it. It starts up front.”
Coming into Sunday’s game, Tannehill has only been sacked 15 times in 11 games. Twenty NFL quarterbacks have gone down more often thus far in 2020.
At that pace, he will finish the season having been sacked 22 times, the fewest in his career. His current low is 29, which was the number of times opposing teams got to him in 2016, his fifth season with the Miami Dolphins. He played just 13 games that season.
In 2019, Tannehill played 12 games for the Titans and was sacked 31 times.
That physicality is not limited to pass protection. It also is a factor in the run game, where it extends beyond just the offensive line.
“Our receivers are huge in the blocking game for us,” Tannehill said. “A lot of teams don't ask the receivers to go be physical and dig out safeties and finish longer than the guy that has the ball. But that's a pillar of our program, and our guys have bought into it and it's paying off for us.”
Tennessee has the league’s top rushing attack, statistically speaking, and Derrick Henry is the NFL’s leading rusher by a comfortable margin.
That commitment to physical play will be critical in Sunday’s matchup with the Browns, who have 27 sacks (tied for 11th). Their pass rush will get a boost this week from the return of Myles Garrett, who missed two games because he was on the COVID-19 reserve list.
Garrett will be active Sunday, and likely will line up often against David Quessenberry, the Titans’ third starting left tackle of the season. Taylor Lewan and Ty Sambrailo each started five games there before they sustained season-ending injuries.
“It’s a physical, tough sport and unfortunately guys are going to go down,” Tannehill said. “You hate to see it. You don't want it to happen. … (But) you can't dwell on guys that go down. Someone has to step in there, that’s why they're here, is to step in and do their job.
“(Garrett) is one of the top edge rushers that we have in the game right now. He's a generational-type talent with his size and speed and athleticism. Definitely a ton of respect for him, but at the end of day I just have to go play my game and trust the guys around me to protect me.”
No matter how tough a job it is.
