NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It was a long wait from the end of last season until the first practice in pads of training camp for Titans players. They wasted little time working out some of that aggression in a high energy practice at Ascension St. Thomas Sports Park Tuesday.
The intensity boiled over in the very first team period that they hold as post-whistle pushing and shoving turned into fights on back-to-back plays. Star defensive tackle and team captain Jeffery Simmons found himself in the middle of both scrums. He lost his helmet on the first play. Then found himself at the bottom of a pile with Peter Skoronski and Lloyd Cushenberry following the second play with Arden Key and Leroy Watson coming in to exchange blows.
With so many key players involved in the escalating tensions, Brian Callahan stopped practice and called the whole team together to deliver a stern message.
“It is what it is,” Callahan said after practice. “It’s football. I don’t mind guys setting the tone with the intensity ramped up. We’ve just got to understand that we can play to the edge and we can still play within the rules. Fighting is a penalty. It’s usually an ejection. It hurts our team and we can’t have that.”
The head coach wanted his team to play smarter, but he didn’t mind seeing that fire. His coaching staff has preached physicality and got a chance to see what guys were made of with Tuesday’s padded practice.
New center Lloyd Cushenberry says the back and forth between the offense and defense in the trenches can be great preparation for the season, as long as they are mindful to take care of one another.
"This is football," Cushenberry said. “You expect chippyness, especially that O-Line, D-Line. We need that fiery personality on the field. I don’t think it’s a bad sign at all. We just have to know not to cross the line.”
Cooler heads eventually prevailed and the Titans settled in for the rest of the nearly two hour practice. The defense got the upper hand much of the day, getting consistent pressure in the backfield. And second-year safety Matthew Jackson intercepted Will Levis twice.
Veteran Amani Hooker says it was a good start to having pads on and the Titans really being able to see what they have this season.
“You find out who loves ball,” Hooker said. “You find out who’s not going to shy away from contact, who’s going to put their nose on the ball, who’s going to put their body on the line for the team. You know, a lot of guy are fast in just the underwear Olympics, we like to call it. But when the pads come on you see who slows down. Things intensify.”
The Titans will now also need to identify who can step up at outside linebacker opposite Harold Landry because they could be without Arden Key into October.
NFL reporter Paul Kuharsky reported Tuesday that Key is facing a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug policy. The official punishment has not been announced yet.
“It’s not something you want to hear,” Callahan said. “But we don’t really have a choice. We have to go play football with who we have and if we can find someone else to add, we will. And if we can’t, then we’ve got to play with what we have.”
