Titans Face Challenges as They Get Back to Work

NASHVILLE – No one among the Tennessee Titans tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday, the results of which were returned Saturday morning.

That means the team can get back to in-person activities for the first time in nearly two weeks. Players are scheduled to conduct a practice session and begin, in earnest, preparations for Tuesday’s game against the Buffalo Bills.

That does not mean everything is back to normal. There will be plenty of challenges as the Titans look to back to playing games after an unexpected Week 4 bye due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Here is a look at some of the challenges for the coming days:

• Short Work Week: Typically, an NFL team practices and conducts meetings Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Saturday is a day to walk through certain game situations and to hold additional meetings. That is four full days of preparation.

With the game against Buffalo scheduled for Tuesday, the Titans have just three days before the game. Some of that time will be spent reacclimating to the physical demands of football. After all, there have been no official practices since Minnesota game on Sept. 27.

Coaches and players will have to make the most of what time they have available.

• Additional Restrictions: Because of recent events, the Titans will work under the NFL’s ‘Post Exposure’ protocols until the league’s medical staff decides it is OK to get back to business as usual. For the foreseeable future the Titans must: Conduct all meetings virtually; limit the number of players in the weight room to a maximum to 10 at any one time; all players must wear facemasks and gloves on the practice field (quarterbacks may go without a glove on their throwing hands); no player gatherings away from the facility.

There is a rhythm to the NFL season that makes navigating a typical work week second nature. As a result of the protocols, Tennessee will be out of step even as it gets back to work.

• Roster Issues: There are 14 players on the COVID-19 reserve list, including 12 who have been added since the outbreak began on Sept. 29. Rookie tackle Isaiah Wilson has a chance to be activated this week (he has been on that list since the start of the regular season) but it is unlikely any of the others will be available to play against the Bills.

That means general manager Jon Robinson, coach Mike Vrabel and the rest of the football staff will have to put the practice squad to good use and maybe even get creative in its construction of a 48-man gameday roster. Among those the Titans will need to replace are wide receivers Corey Davis and Adam Humphries, who are tied for the team lead in receptions, and two-thirds of the starting defensive line, Jeffery Simmons and DaQuan Jones.

• Coaching Roles: In addition to all of the players sidelined by COVID, another 11 staff members have tested positive in the last two weeks. Franchise officials have declined to release the names of those individuals but there is no doubt that their ranks include members of the coaching staff. The outbreak started with outside linebackers coach Shane Bowen, who was unable to travel to the game with Minnesota.

Vrabel has said that there is carryover between the position groups that the Titans are “set up very good to be able to handle some of these things at each position.

• More Testing: Daily testing will continue and now will include gamedays. Earlier this week, the team had back-to-back days with no positive tests but then came two more days during which the virus was found in three players.

Any more positive tests are likely to shut down everything immediately once again and force the league to postpone the game. If that happens, NFL officials will have to get creative with the schedule in order to make sure the Titans ultimately play all 16 contests.

• A Really Good Opponent: There are six NFL teams that are still undefeated. Buffalo (4-0) is one. Tennessee (3-0) is another. That makes this a significant matchup for mid-October.

In fact, this is the third straight year Tennessee and Buffalo meet in Week 5. Buffalo won the first two, both of which were low-scoring affairs (13-12 in 2018 and 14-7 in 2019).

This year, the Bills are one of seven teams averaging better than 30 points per game (30.8) and have scored at least 27 in each of their four games. They lead the AFC with an average of 316.3 passing yards per game. Led by quarterback Josh Allen, they have as many touchdown passes as Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs and Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Playing Buffalo, which has had a full week of practice plus a couple extra days to rest, is enough of a challenge in its own right. Under these circumstances, the challenge will be even greater.

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