{"id":51891,"date":"2022-08-21T11:16:39","date_gmt":"2022-08-21T11:16:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/treylon-burks-stays-quiet-again-in-tennessee-titans-win-vs-tampa-bay\/"},"modified":"2022-08-21T11:16:39","modified_gmt":"2022-08-21T11:16:39","slug":"treylon-burks-stays-quiet-again-in-tennessee-titans-win-vs-tampa-bay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/treylon-burks-stays-quiet-again-in-tennessee-titans-win-vs-tampa-bay\/","title":{"rendered":"Treylon Burks stays quiet again in Tennessee Titans&#8217; win vs Tampa Bay"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><em>Five observations from the Tennessee Titans&#8217; 13-3 preseason victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday night at Nissan Stadium:<\/em><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">1. Malik Willis needs more time<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">It&#8217;s fun to watch Malik Willis play quarterback because he makes anything seem possible.  Trouble is, anything being possible isn&#8217;t ideal for a meticulously sculpted NFL offense.  Willis is continuing to lean too much on his own improvisational ability and not enough on the system he&#8217;s being asked to run.  And thus, after the Titans&#8217; first three possessions, you looked down and noticed that Willis had completed only one pass.  By halftime, he was 6-of-15.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Yes, the pass protection was shaky.  Not his fault.  Yes, Willis did make plays anyway.  He improved as the first half progressed.  He zipped a red-zone fastball to Chig Okonkwo for a touchdown.  He turned heads on a 24-yard scramble \u2013 it looked like he faked out a would-be tackler merely by changing pace \u2013 and with a few throws on the run.<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">But the Titans surely wanted to see more efficiency in the pocket, to see Willis make quicker decisions and cut throws loose more confidently.  In starting two preseason games, Willis just hasn&#8217;t done that enough for the Titans to be able to trust him in a regular-season game.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">That&#8217;s not a failure on anyone&#8217;s part, by the way.  Willis was drafted with the idea that he&#8217;d need time.  This preseason has confirmed that \u2013 along with Willis&#8217; upside.<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Meanwhile, backup Logan Woodside continued to get reduced reps Saturday against the Buccaneers.  And he threw an interception on an underthrown pass.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">2. Kyle Philips is ready to help<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">A constant of Titans&#8217; training camp has been rookie receiver Kyle Philips.  Most days, he has done something on the practice field to grab your attention.  So it wasn&#8217;t surprising to see him do that against the Buccaneers.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_anc\" id=\"gnt_atomsnc\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" data-gl-method=\"loadAnc\" aria-label=\"Newsletter signup form\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Philips looked dangerous as a punt returner, nearly breaking one return that went for 35 yards.  Earlier in the first half, he lost track of where he was and unwisely fielded a punt near the goal line \u2013 and even that he turned into a nice return.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">As a receiver, Philips was used a lot on third downs Saturday.  And he showed up, getting his feet down on the sideline to snag a third-down throw from Willis.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_fo__bet-best\" aria-label=\"Scores and odds from Tipico\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" data-gl-type=\"comment\"><!--@pre<iframe class=gnt_em_fo_if src=\"\/tangfrag\/sports\/gaming\/bet-best?prm-embedded&prm-teamid=1036&prm-gnteamid=10&prm-league=NFL#fhp-assetid=10302873002\" loading=lazy sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-forms\" title=\"Scores and odds from Tipico\"><\/iframe>--><\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">It&#8217;s clear that Philips is going to be an impactful player for the Titans in 2022, much like it&#8217;s becoming clear the Titans got a steal drafting him in the fifth round.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_img gnt_em_img__inset\"><img class=\"gnt_em_img_i\" style=\"height:450px\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/08\/21\/PNAS\/07b49f8e-7420-414a-a80f-aaed5725306b-titans_bucs_289.jpg?ssl=1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/08\/21\/PNAS\/07b49f8e-7420-414a-a80f-aaed5725306b-titans_bucs_289.jpg?width=600&amp;height=900&amp;fit=crop&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp 2x\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kyle Philips (18) during the third quarter of a preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Nissan Stadium Saturday, Aug.  20, 2022, in Nashville, Tenn.\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">3. Is Brett Kern&#8217;s job in jeopardy?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">For years, the Titans have had one of the NFL&#8217;s best punters in Kern \u2013 who started Saturday and killed two punts inside the 20-yard line, same as usual.  He&#8217;s 36 and makes good money for a punter.  You still would n&#8217;t expect he&#8217;d be in danger of losing his spot.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">But rookie Ryan Stonehouse from Colorado State is doing well.  He obliterated his first punt 68 yards on Saturday after hitting a 60-yarder in Baltimore last week.  Stonehouse has been holding field goals lately for Randy Bullock, and holder has been Kern&#8217;s job.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Even when Stonehouse mishandled a punt in the fourth quarter (yeah, that flub was a red flag), he managed to run to covert a fourth-and-5 and retain possession.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Stonehouse may not end up punting for the Titans this season, but there&#8217;s a good chance he&#8217;ll be punting for someone.<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">4. Good competition at linebacker<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">The Titans are taking a good, long look at some inside linebackers behind the starting tandem of David Long Jr., and Zach Cunningham in the hopes of building depth at a thin spot.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">With Monty Rice and Dylan Cole sidelined this preseason, rookies Chance Campbell and Jack Gibbens (an undrafted free agent) are each getting a lot of snaps in the middle of the defense.  Gibbens, in particular, had a nice early tackle in which he stood up Leonard Fournette.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">And not to be forgotten, six-year NFL veteran Joe Jones intercepted a pass and returned it 38 yards Saturday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">It&#8217;ll be interesting to see how the Titans handle an important position, especially if Rice and Cole aren&#8217;t healthy and practicing again soon.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"gnt_ar_b_h2\">5. Quiet again for Treylon Burks<\/h2>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Similar to the Titans&#8217; first preseason game, it&#8217;s hard to knock first-rounder Burks too much for only catching one pass.  Because there weren&#8217;t a ton of passes being caught, period.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">But in both preseason games, the Titans were obviously trying to get him work.  In the end, Burks played a lot more than he produced.  At very least, you&#8217;d have liked to see him touch the football a few more times, if only to gain confidence.  That was a bit more alarming when considering that Burks hasn&#8217;t touched it often in practices, either.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Burks, by the way, finished the night with a wrap on his left leg.  He missed some practice time this past week with what was believed to be a minor injury.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><em>Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at gestes@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Gentry_Estes. <\/em><\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em__lp gnt_em_cp\" aria-label=\"In-depth, informed, insightful\" data-c-cta=\"MORE GENTRY\">\n<div class=\"gnt_em_cp_cw\"><img class=\"gnt_em_cp_cw_i\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/04\/06\/PNAS\/22862b98-04e6-4a68-a522-cf28fc55536b-headshot1.jpg?ssl=1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/04\/06\/PNAS\/22862b98-04e6-4a68-a522-cf28fc55536b-headshot1.jpg?crop=2957,2218,x0,y659&amp;width=516&amp;height=386&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp 2x\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Five observations from the Tennessee Titans&#8217; 13-3 preseason victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday night at Nissan Stadium: 1. Malik Willis needs more time It&#8217;s fun to watch Malik Willis play quarterback because he makes anything seem possible. Trouble is, anything being possible isn&#8217;t ideal for a meticulously sculpted NFL offense. Willis is &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/treylon-burks-stays-quiet-again-in-tennessee-titans-win-vs-tampa-bay\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Treylon Burks stays quiet again in Tennessee Titans&#8217; win vs Tampa Bay<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":49518,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/derrick-henry-on-julio-jones-after-titans-buccaneers-practice\/","url_meta":{"origin":51891,"position":0},"title":"Derrick Henry on Julio Jones after Titans-Buccaneers practice","date":"August 18, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Tennessee Titans star running back Derrick Henry was complimentary of his teammates in the backfield after the second and final day of joint practices Thursday at Saint Thomas Sports Park with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.Henry, whose work was limited to individual drills the last two days, praised fourth-round rookie Hassan\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":51954,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/malik-willis-focuses-on-staying-in-the-pocket-in-second-preseason-game\/","url_meta":{"origin":51891,"position":1},"title":"Malik Willis focuses on staying in the pocket in second preseason game","date":"August 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Getty Images In the Titans' first preseason game, coach Mike Vrabel benched rookie quarterback Malik Willis for taking off and running when Vrabel wanted him to stay in the pocket and pass. Willis says he learned his lesson.In the Titans' second preseason game on Saturday night, Willis's passing numbers weren't\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Tampa Bay Buccaneers v Tennessee Titans","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/profootballtalk.nbcsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/25\/2022\/08\/GettyImages-1416093324-e1661079673703.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":51577,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/nfl-preseason-week-2-scores-highlights-updates-rookie-qb-malik-willis-flashes-dual-threat-ability-vs-bucs\/","url_meta":{"origin":51891,"position":2},"title":"NFL preseason Week 2 scores, highlights, updates: Rookie QB Malik Willis flashes dual-threat ability vs.  bucs","date":"August 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The NFL preseason has reached the midway point with Week 2, which serves as the de facto \"dress rehearsal\" for starters to prepare for the beginning of the regular season -- which is just three weeks away. For teams that don't have joint practices this week, Week 2 of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":51767,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/josh-allen-patrick-mahomes-dazzle-in-midseason-form\/","url_meta":{"origin":51891,"position":3},"title":"Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes dazzle in midseason form","date":"August 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The last time we saw Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes on the same field, they left us with arguably the greatest playoff game ever played.On Saturday, they both gave us a tease of what's to come in 2022. While it's ill-advised to make too much of what happens on an\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":46271,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/what-you-need-to-know-about-injuries-position-battles-rookie-debuts\/","url_meta":{"origin":51891,"position":4},"title":"What you need to know about injuries, position battles, rookie debuts","date":"August 15, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"31) This is what Mark Kaboly of The Athletic wrote about George Pickens before the wideout did this (and this) in his preseason debut:Honestly, I've never seen a rookie this good this early.Now consider the rookie receivers who have come through Pittsburgh during the last two decades covered in which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":43252,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/mike-vrabel-malik-willis-needs-to-be-more-decisive\/","url_meta":{"origin":51891,"position":5},"title":"Mike Vrabel: Malik Willis needs to be more decisive","date":"August 12, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"\r \r \r Getty Images Titans rookie quarterback Malik Willis played his first game for the team on Thursday night and head coach Mike Vrabel's review of the third-round pick's performance could be boiled down to three words.After the Titans lost to the Ravens, Vrabel said in a press conference\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"NFL: AUG 11 Preseason - Titans at Ravens","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/profootballtalk.nbcsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/25\/2022\/08\/GettyImages-1242446766-e1660301522533.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/08\/21\/PNAS\/714f35ba-d71c-4da3-afc4-84ac68b79bea-titans_bucs_336.jpg?crop=3599,2025,x0,y183&width=660&height=372&format=pjpg&auto=webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51891"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51891"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51891\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51891"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51891"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51891"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}