Buffalo Bills Battles: Tennessee Titans
As the 2012 NFL Draft is now behind us, its time to take an in depth look at the Buffalo Bills 2012 opponents. In this series I will examine each of our 13 opponents off season moves as well as take a look at what their team looks like heading into the 2012 season.
Week 7: Tennessee Titans
Off Season Free Agent Signings and Losses
Signed:
G Steve Hutchinson
DE Kamerion Wimbley
OLB Zac Diles
DT Leger Douzable
Re-signed:
DE Dave Ball
ILB Tim Shaw
SS Jordan Babineaux
WR Lavelle Hawkins
OT Mike Otto
S Michael Griffin
Lost:
Seahawks sign ILB Barrett Ruud
Seahawks sign DT Jason Jones
Rams sign CB Cortland Finnegan
Rams sign DE William Hayes
Colts sign WR Donnie Avery
Cut TE Daniel Graham
Cut G Duke Robinson
Remaining UFA’s:
OLB Patrick Bailey
S Anthony Smith
DT Tony Brown
FB Ahmard Hall
S Chris Hope
Franchise Tag: S Michael Griffin, signed 5 year deal on 6/19/12
2012 Draft Selections
20. Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor
52. Zach Brown, OLB, North Carolina
82. Mike Martin, DT, Michigan
115. Coty Sensabaugh, CB, Clemson
145. Taylor Thompson, TE/DE, SMU
190. Markelle Martin, S, Oklahoma State
211. Scott Solomon, DE, Rice
Summary
Back from a two game west coast road trip our Bills return home to face the Tennessee Titans. I’m going to be honest here; I want to win this game really bad! The Titans have won the last four meetings against Buffalo and five out of the last six (which not only includes a win in Buffalo last year, but also includes Buffalo’s last playoff birth). Now you understand why I want this game so bad.
Last year saw these Titans finish the 2011 season with a 9-7 record while going 3-3 in their division. While having veteran QB Tim Hasselbeck and QB of the future in Jake Locker on the roster, the Titans were one of the finalists in the Peyton Manning sweepstakes. Owner Bud Adams made no effort to hide the fact that he wanted Manning on his team no matter the cost. We all know how that turned out. The QB camp battle should be an interesting one this off season as Jake Locker looked good in limited relief of the injured Hasselbeck last season. I would not be surprised to see Locker win the starting job over the 37 year old Hasselbeck by the time the Titans come to Orchard Park.
While adding speed and athleticism in the 2012 draft I just don’t see a lot of difference makers in their draft class. The Titans had the 31st ranked rushing attack last year and didn’t address their offensive line besides the signing of veteran Hutchinson. Most think they reached for the 5’10” Wright instead of drafting the contentious best Guard in the draft, David DeCastro. With Kenny Britt coming back from a torn ACL it could prove to be the correct choice if Wright does in fact pan out.
I don’t see where Tennessee really did a lot to improve their team this year. They lost their best cover corner and only drafted a one year starter in the forth round to address that loss. Who knows which Chris Johnson will show up this season, but I tend to think that he wants to prove that he can do better than the 1047 yards he rushed for last season.
None the less, the Tennessee Titans have had the Bills number over the past 12 years. This is yet another team that Buffalo must defeat if they are truly going to turn the corner and make a strong push for the playoffs.