Tempers Flare in Titans Practice With 49ers as Tennessee's QBs Seriously Struggle

The Tennessee Titans prepared for their preseason debut against the San Francisco 49ers this week by taking part in a joint practice out west. If today's unofficial meeting between the two teams is any indication, we could be in for a real mess on Thursday, and for more reasons than one.

Not only did tempers flare to an extreme degree in the practice, with both Austin Deculus and Dan Moore being outright ejected, but the Titans quarterbacks reportedly struggling to find their footing overall. Per Turron Davenport, Will Levis threw an interception to Jakob Robinson. Tennessee's long-time depth piece under center has had a rough offseason thus far.

Elsewhere, Cam Ward gave up a pick six to San Francisco's Upton Stout, missing a wide open Carnell Tate, according to Cesar Bass. The cherry on top was Mitch Trubisky being swarmed by the 49ers defense as, in Davenport's words, "No one stopped the pass rush."

To say that it sounds like a long day for Tennessee would be an understatement. It's not quite fair to forge any real worries out of reported practice struggles, but you couldn't be blamed for suspecting that Thursday's game could pan out poorly for the Titans as a result.

Robert Saleh's Return to San Francisco May be Soured

Of course, Robert Saleh is fresh off of his latest stint serving as the 49ers' defensive coordinator. That means this practice, and more importantly Thursday's game, each serve as a bit of a homecoming for the head coach.

Having one of his offensive lineman be thrown out of a practice for throwing a punch probably wasn't Saleh's ideal start, but he and Tennessee have time to turn things around before their actual matchup with San Francisco.

Besides, on their home (practice) field facing off against a coach that just ditched their unit, it isn't a huge surprise that the 49ers defense came out and bared their teeth. After all, that bunch has been consistently known as one of the best in the entire NFL. Try not to take this news to heart, Titans fans.

Sep 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh walks off of the field after the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Looking for Composure in the Titans' First Preseason Game

However, everyone will be looking for a little more composure when Tennessee actually takes the field... to say the least. Preseason or not, throwing punches and picks won't cut it for a team expected to take a major leap this season.

Regardless of the eventual outcome, improvement from the personnel under center would go a long way to quiet the hearts of folks reading the practice reports from today. Levis, if he ends up with playing time, could use a leap following his shortcomings at Tennessee's blue and white scrimmage last week.

None of this is worth panicking over. At the same time, however, the optics probably couldn't have been worse coming out of this practice. All eyes are on Thursday's game.

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