Offense Gets Creative – With Mixed Results

NASHVILLE – Ryan Tannehill said unusual plays are included in the playbook for every game. Some weeks they don’t get called. Sometimes an entire season will pass without any of them being dialed up.

In their 17-10 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sunday at Nissan Stadium, the Tennessee Titans went to that part of the playbook twice. There they found something that had been missing all season. They also found some trouble.

A flea-flicker with 5:25 to play in the second quarter produced one of the biggest plays of the game for either side. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine’s 63-yard reception went for a touchdown that made it 14-10 and put the Titans ahead to stay.

“[Offensive coordinator] Todd [Downing] dialed it up right at the perfect time,” Tannehill said. “And guys executed. I had plenty of time to make the throw, and Nick did a good job, obviously, on the outside.”

Westbrook-Ikhine, a third-year wide receiver, faked a shorter route and then broke free down the right sideline when the defender bit on the fake and fell. No one was near Westbrook-Ikhine when the ball arrived, and it stayed that way as he ran untouched to the end zone.

It was the longest reception of Westbrook-Ikhine’s career, his second touchdown catch of the day (a career-high) and made him the first Titans wide receiver to top 100 receiving yards in a game this season. He finished with 119 yards on five receptions.

Coming into the day, the longest scoring play by Tennessee’s offense was a 29-yard run by Derrick Henry two weeks earlier at Houston. The longest pass that put points on the board was a 23-yard catch-and-run by running back Dontrell Hilliard in Week 1 against the New York Giants.

Downing once again decided the time was right to do something different when there was 7:39 to play in the fourth quarter. With the offense facing a third-and-2 from the Denver 34, he rookie quarterback Malik Willis for Tannehill and called a play designed to keep the chains and the clock moving.

Things did not go nearly as well this time. In fact, the result could have been catastrophic.

On a read-option Willis stuck the ball in Henry’s belly, pulled it out – and neither ended up with it. The ball fell to the ground where the Broncos defense recovered and set up its offense with an opportunity for a go-ahead touchdown.

"We fumbled," coach Mike Vrabel said. "It's obviously critical that we take care of the football. That's what went wrong – we just have to take care of the football."

Just don't expect them to stop looking for opportunities to do something different.

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