Titans-Rams Open Thread
August 23rd, 2015
Marcus Mariota gives the NFL his second try tonight.
A couple of teams on the Buccaneers’ schedule square off tonight on FOX at 8 p.m.
It’s a preseason clash between hated Marcus Mariota and the Titans, the Bucs’ opening-day opponent, and the nasty defensive line of the Rams and quarterback Nick Foles.
Bang it right here in the comments on all things Mariota and the Titans. Perhaps Bucs officials reading this will give weight to your opinions.
August 23rd, 2015 at 6:27 pm
Unlike many here I am able to separate my support from Fameis from any loathing of another player. Again Mariota’s success has nothing to do with Fameis career other than in that first game. And that will be ONLY ONE GAME.
But I am interested in Mariota to see if his skill set will work in the NFL. I only root against Mariota when the Titans play the Bucs…otherwise I”ll be neutral tonight.
I’m looking at three coaches this year to see where their careers head. Andy Reid, Lovie and Jeff Fisher. All three have enjoyed successful career and all three are still active and so have a chance to turn good careers into great careers. The next year or two will determine how they’re judged.
Fisher has assembled a beastly defensive line and so it should be interesting to see how the Titan’s OL and Mariota respond.
August 23rd, 2015 at 6:59 pm
It’s hard to hate Mariota, but I do not wish him success. It’s a combination of my unwavering support for Jameis and my cousin being a Titains fan. The best thing I can say is I hope he doesn’t get hurt. I want him to fail in his first 2 games harder than Manzel, I want him to be the worst ever.
August 23rd, 2015 at 7:10 pm
I hate any QB who’s not a Buc, including the ones who leave here, like Josh McCown and Josh Freeman and Josh Johnson. One exception is I hate Mike Glennon who is a Buc right now. Now, if he plays, I wish him success, but much of it is in hopefully getting back part of the 3rd round pick the Bucs wasted on him so we can trade him and hate him more. I especially hate Tom Brady for being such a wimp and making us read stupid stories about his cheating so late in the preseason. And I hate Tony Romo because he dated Carrie Underwood, who was destined for me, although she didn’t know that. Finally, I hate Drew Brees, Cam Newton, and Matt Ryan because they are in the NFC South. So my hatred runs wild, and runs deep. And of course, I’m joking; I don’t hate anyone. Well, except for Tom Brady.
August 23rd, 2015 at 7:13 pm
I have to admit that I’m very interested in keeping track of Mariota’s career and not because I hate the guy but because I spent a lot of time watching game film of him prior to the draft and read lots of articles while trying to decide if based on my football knowledge if I felt he would be successful in the nfl or not. So for me it’s more of a personal challenge to see if my pre-draft assessment was correct or not.
August 23rd, 2015 at 7:25 pm
As bucs fans and supporters of jameis and wanting the team to be at a championship level we will always compare these 2 just like peyton and leaf… i think the bucs got the “peytonesque” of the 2, time will tell
August 23rd, 2015 at 7:47 pm
I just dont think Mariota has the grit…the swager…the determination. Thats what I liked with Jamies. I hope the Bucs got the right man. One thing that I know for sure…if he is….than Dirk Koetter is more than capable of helping to make him succesful
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:03 pm
Personel decisions make or break franchises. See the bucs for 85% of their existence. We passed on greatness
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:04 pm
I do think the rams d will crush marcus tonight
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:08 pm
Being preseason and only his second game, I don’t think much matters in this game.
I also don’t expect the Bucs to beat the Titans. Bucs aren’t great on first games, not even their SB year.
Better be careful with the Manning vs Leaf comparisons. Leaf had behavior issues, and that ain’t Mariota.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:13 pm
Watch that release – quick tight and accurate
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:18 pm
Mariota looks sharp. Team around him doesn’t.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:20 pm
Way late on the 3rd down pass
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:23 pm
Late because it had no zip. His only completion was a play action one read slant
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:24 pm
1-2 and handing the ball off is sharp?
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:29 pm
Baby steps 😜
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:30 pm
As much as I don’t like Mariota in the first place the Mariota lovers on this site make it so much easier to root against him. I don’t like his attitude towards the game, the way he holds the ball, the way he throws the ball, the way he talks, his lack of visible passion and most of all that he is not a Buc. That being said he might make a good backup one day for Jameis.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:30 pm
Yes. Those two handoffs where SHARP!
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:37 pm
How’s he looking?
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:37 pm
Accuracy boys – then the guy runs a 4.4
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:37 pm
Tennessee looks better as a team than the bucs do…
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:39 pm
Leaf also had a lack of desire to even play football.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:40 pm
Johnny have you bought your Mariota jersey yet?
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:41 pm
So Joe this thread is obviosuly for Mariota Clingers? Judging by the peeps that have posted so far…
Okay I’m out. Have fun…I guess.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:43 pm
Titans OL is 100 times better than the crap here in tampa and that will make a huge difference in the comparisons of the 2 this year
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:44 pm
Touchdown dropped. Mariotta throws a tight accurate ball. Gonna be good I think. Unfortunately always linked to jameis. Asking as Winston is good mariota doesn’t matter.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:45 pm
WOW Mariota is on point tonight. Making so really good throws, dropped touchdown, hit him right in the numbers. Winston BETTER show us something tomorrow night or im gonna puke.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:45 pm
We drafted the wrong QB. Again.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:48 pm
Im not sure we can beat the Titans week one, defense looks solid, O-line looks 100 times better than ours, they found a running game against a very good rams front four, Mariota looks fierce and lets face it, the kid PROTECTS THE BALL!! TAKE SOME NOTES WINSTON!! Im not so sure we win week one.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:48 pm
Titans OL is blowing off the ball. Going to be an interesting opening day. Nick Foles blows, btw.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:48 pm
Titians ol starting two rookies. Mm looks good
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:49 pm
Sweet pass, but he dropped it. Nice pocket presence and going through progressions. On the other hand Rams offense is awful. Titans oline looks better than week 1. May not be as easy. Also, liked the hit he took and still threw it. Sept. Cant get here quick enough.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:50 pm
No huge bucs fan who hates when we make horrible personel decisions.
We had a chance at greatness. Winston will be okay but nothing like this guy.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:50 pm
Lovie knows it to, hes in full blown panic mode on defense, taking over the play calling, Mariota will shred our defense. Watch and see.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:51 pm
Foles does look awful
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:52 pm
Mariotta looks poised & comfortable – teammates like him – he can run and has good release. Not the arm of Jameis but has been on the money with everything so far. Nick Foles looks terrible so far but has been under pressure. TN def looks good under Dick Labeau.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:53 pm
How in the world did we take Winston over Mariota!?!? I just don’t get it, Mariota looks 100 times better, hes got great feet and great pocket presence. Reminds me of Aaron Rodgers…..Oh wait Dungy already tried to tell the WHOLE ENTIRE BUCCANEERS ORGINIZATION TO DRAFT HIM!!!
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:54 pm
Only a matter of time before it becomes painfully obvious that the Bucs picked the wrong QB… even though Winston still will be good I hope.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:55 pm
Rams have top 3 d line
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:55 pm
Its going to be a really crappy feeling if Winston vomes out and cant do anything tomorrow night. I hate to be negative but Im pretty sure most Bucs fans have that bad feeling in theyre gut sitting here watching Mariota look sharp. Our Oline better step it up….one advantage Mariota has for sure
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:55 pm
Give the kid and the Titans credit….looks poised and confident and he’s only a rookie. Yes I do hope the entire Buccaneer Team is watching. Betchya Lovie Smith wished he didn’t take over the defense at this time.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:56 pm
That defender got some UPS…damn
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:57 pm
1 TD and 1 INT if those passes are caught.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:57 pm
He protects the ball so well! I guess somebody else threw that ball right to stone hands Mark Barron. You people are idiots.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:57 pm
Would’ve been another interception had it been anyone but Barron. Even Sabby would have had that butterball throw. No where near an NFL caliber throw.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:58 pm
Let’s hope Bucs D see something to take advantage of.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:59 pm
Man. Jameis better show some progress tommorow. Mariota looks sharp. All of his throws are spot on between the numbers. If he had some decent receivers, this game could be all Tennessee. Mind you the Rams defense is nothing to take lightly.
Jameis has to show some poise in the pocket. He cant be off target like he was last week. I dont wana hear about how he has a short memory. I dont wana hear about pre game butterflies. I want to see some on target throws. Good decisions. I want to see why you deserved to be taken first overall.
And this defense! They are just making Foles look bad! They have speed in space. They control the LOS.
And the o line. Tennessee had a pretty bad o line last year. Apparently Mariota is making them look better than they WHIXH IS WHAT GOOD QUARTERBACKS DO! Im not going to use it as an excuse for Jameis. I didn’t for Mccown or Glennon, so why would I for Jameis?
Right now, there are no excuses. The Titans as a whole look better with their talented rookie quarterback. We need to see the same thing from our rookie quarterback.
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:59 pm
Alteraun Verner on twitter said the Titans are looking good :/
August 23rd, 2015 at 8:59 pm
Titans’ swarming the ball
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:00 pm
He protects the ball? he has more turnovers this preseason than winston and should had had another pick right there. He was lucky that was barron. Anyone else including myself would have picked off that pass
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:01 pm
Side note, Redskins look like the worst team this year.
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:01 pm
throws are on spot between the numbers? looked closer to between mark barron’s numbers imo
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:02 pm
I know it’s early preseason so maybe to soon to tell, but titans were 2-14 but they look like a professional team on both units. Against Vikings we look like keystone cops or goofy on both sides of ball. Hope looks different against bengals. Last year it took us like 8-9 weeks til we looked like professional team. Is that coaching?
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:10 pm
I guess we should’ve drafted mettenberger too huh??
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:10 pm
Mettenberger should be first team, MM almost threw interception.
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:11 pm
Oh yea. Looks like Mariota going to get the Drew Brees, Tom Brady calls from the refs too.
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:17 pm
We might have the first pick again…
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:23 pm
I thought the Rams looked really flat and John Lynch just confirming my suspicions. He said they are completely exhausted from their hard week with the Cowboys, I had forgotten. Perfect sense now
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:38 pm
Then Glennon should be first team because Winston threw an interception. Some people shouldn’t comment.
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:38 pm
its preseason guys, remember when the Lions went 4-0 in preseason and 0-16 in the reg season? Preseason don’t mean nothing
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:53 pm
destinjohnny, im sorry but you may be right on the bucs look on par with the redskins as the worst team in football the titans look organized and cohesive with an agressive attacking defense… solid OL and run game…. Titans were one of bucs wins i had penciled in…
August 23rd, 2015 at 9:55 pm
Titans Oline looks good!
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:02 pm
Mariota looked decent and the Titans looked tough.
That being said, Winston has a significantly higher upside as far as I’m concerned. He may not be able to put it together by tomorrow, especially with this Oline. But he will.
Fans like Largo, who are demanding better results instantly really need to chill the F out.
It’s like a lot of you have forgotten how football works, and development seems like a completely foreign concept to you.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:11 pm
Barron dropped a pass to his hands, got toasted by Hicks
and ran into another defender and got knocked down on the
Titans TD play.
I’ll bet that the Rams want that bag of potato chips they
traded back. Rock Star!
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:12 pm
I’m a Winston guy, but not gonna lie, Mariota looked really good (minus one horrible throw). I am very surprised how comfortable he looks both under center and in the huddle. You would never know he’s never done either his whole career. He’s going to be a handful on Sept. 13.
That being said, some of you people are fools. It’s the second game of the freaking preseason people! Have some common sense! You obviously don’t realize it, but you make yourself look so stupid by saying things like “we picked the wrong QB”. To make that determination now is beyond silly, and you should really be embarrassed. I guess it’s hard to be embarrassed when you are anonymous. I don’t care if Winston throws for 400 yards in a half, you still won’t know who is the better QB. ITS THE FREAKING PRESEASON!!! RG3 looked like a Hall of Famer in his first season. How is he doing now? Settle down people.
You know, it’s entirely possible they could both be good QB’s. That has happened before. They are both going to have some “Wow” moments, and they are both going to have some “WTF” moments. Bank on it. The only thing I care about with Mariota is on September 13. I hope he plays terrible that day. I suspect he’ll play well, but I expect Winston to also play well. I just wish everyone would stop jumping the gun and being so dramatic in freaking August.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:13 pm
Unfortunately for us the Titans D looks flawless.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:14 pm
@Supersam
Ur gonna puke over Winston huh? Thought u were already puking from deepthroating Mariota’s !@#$.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:19 pm
I think that Winston really wanted to be Buccaneer
and that counts for a lot in my opinion.
Mariota was luke-warm at best about coming here.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:19 pm
I would’ve preferred to draft Mariota over Winston… I just think he’s gonna be a better QB. Time will tell. Winston was a bit of a homer pick IMO…. He’s our guy tho, I’m on his side, wish him well. Go Bucs! Hoping for some success this year.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:23 pm
If you guys really think you can judge how good a team is going to be by their preseason, I highly suggest you do just a teeny tiny bit of research and look at the preseasons of some of the best and worst teams over the years. Preseason success has little to no correlation to regular season success. These coaches are not trying to win these games. These games are glorified practices. The better teams are not going to give much away, while the bad teams typically are trying to create a winning culture by winning these meaningless games.
Does anyone here think Philly is 23 points better than the Ravens? Anyone think SF is going to beat Dallas 23-0 when the games count? The Redskins are undefeated. You think they’re winning the Super Bowl? The Seahawks are 0-2. Should they go ahead and throw away the season? Colts haven’t won yet either. I guess you think they aren’t winning this year, huh? The Vikings are 3-0. Are they anyone’s Super Bowl pick?
Bottom line is we don’t know any more today than we knew 2 months ago. The preseason is the ultimate scam as far as predicting how good a team will be. But you guys go ahead and keep on crying yourself to sleep every night.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:28 pm
So Mariota and Mark Barron almost looked good for the bucs, hehe
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:33 pm
Hawaiian Buc…they’re called Mariota Clingers.
Thanks for the laughs…
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:34 pm
I love everyone’s insightful evaluation after one and a half preason games. Please support our guy or go somewhere else.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:43 pm
Buc4lyfe…welp Joe put the thread up. So he invited the likes of SuperSam, DestinJohnny and the rest of the Mariota Cliingers club in for a brief chat.
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:45 pm
Go Bucs!!Go Winston#3
August 23rd, 2015 at 10:51 pm
Well the bucs are an exception I guess. The last few years they’ve looked like clowns in the preseason and regular season. The only thing I’d like to see from the bucs tomorrow is some good execution on offense and win the line of scrimmage on defense. Also get off to a good start.
August 23rd, 2015 at 11:29 pm
Go see winston at practice his throwing motion is so elongated and slow. He dosent have a Fluid motion and he throws it all over the place. He reminds me of Rudy stein from the bad news bears. He had so much talent at fsu that his weaknesses were covered up. He won’t be a bust but he won’t be a star
August 24th, 2015 at 12:16 am
So, after 1/2 of football some folks consider Mariota to be the 2nd coming of Joe Montana? Don’t get me wrong. Unlike the Bucs, the Titans seem to be spoon feeding Mariota a very simple game plan. As expected, connecting on a pass early opens up the running game which in turn opens up play action, etc, etc, etc.
To be honest I thought Zach was a better QB tonight. His arm strength and accuracy were on display and clearly superior to Mariota. But, making the “show pony” look good with football 101 is going to help their patchwork OL build confidence with small successes. Bravo….Titans coaching staff.
I’m starting to feel that a lot of comments are from jealous Titans fans suffering from buyers remorse.
August 24th, 2015 at 12:21 am
I’m not in the Mariota Clingers club, or animosity amigos whatever nickname y’all come up with. I’m an NFL fan. No need to start dishing out insults. Its quite immature. Just saying.
August 24th, 2015 at 12:24 am
Yes everyone stop being insulting whoever you are.
August 24th, 2015 at 12:27 am
the Titans have to know they picked another alex smith, looks great doesn’t get much done. Mettenberger could be the real deal, i would start him over mariota in a second.
August 24th, 2015 at 12:31 am
Wish Winston the best. As #1 overall pick he better be damn good. Not just average. Damn good. You can get an average free agent.
The draft is done and over with. I’m not losing sleep over which guy we should’ve drafted. I’m a Bucs fan. Support.
I still would’ve drafted Mariota tho. He’s such a good athlete, class act. A1 awesome. Excited to see how the Titans utilize him during his rookie campaign.
Either way, go bucs
August 24th, 2015 at 12:32 am
The Rams defense was 26th is yards per pass last year….so it’s not like he was going against an elite pass defense. The rams run defense is very-very good, however.
August 24th, 2015 at 12:38 am
I actually expected a better performance from Mariota. He took a horrible sack that he never sensed coming, he had a couple bad passes, with 1 that was a relatively easy pick but dropped. He also found he’s not going to simply outrun NFL defenders like he did Pac-12 defenders. He really only had two great plays in 3 series in today’s game.
That said, he is better at Winston with his foot quickness and his ability to spot open receivers when the play breaks down. It does appear that his upside is higher than Winston’s, but hopefully Winston can give us a quick remedy to our winning woes and withstand more hits behind a bad OL.
August 24th, 2015 at 12:48 am
@feelthepewterpower
Reminds me of a certain Bucs defense couple years ago… #1 against the run, #32 against the pass…. I’m not certain that was the finish result… So what does that say??? Tough against the run? Or might as well pass cuz its too easy???
That’s like a 7am hooker. Did she just wakeup or she’s working extra?
August 24th, 2015 at 1:17 am
Randy Moss to the bucs! Get it done!
August 24th, 2015 at 6:42 am
..got a call a few weeks ago from a friend,he got a call to go to winstons house for a plumbing issue.got there ,met Winston who complained of no water pressure..looked around,found no issues so he asks Winston did he call city to have water turned on…?crickets chirping…no he didn’t.. he had no clue.. smart guy you got there bucs fans …good luck with that,lovie and Winston should provide many more years of embarrassing moments on and off the field..bucs fan no more
August 24th, 2015 at 7:52 am
Jbravo, we didn’t draft winston because he is full of real life common sense. People like us who work for a living will never understand what it is like to get payed to play a game. Just like millionaires will never understand what it’s like to spend 60+ hours a week grinding at a trade to support a family. Trying to compare the two is impossible.
August 24th, 2015 at 8:06 am
Out of all the crap Winston has done, you pull that out as evidence he’s not smart, jbravo? Epic fail. He’s a kid who has always lived at home, or in a dorm/college apartment it was probably the first time he’s ever had to had the water turned on.
Anyways call me a mariota clinger (that’s some elementary school level stuff btw), but he looked good last night. Even the most rabid Mariota critic has to admit that his transition to the pro game has been faster than expected. And hey, admitting that doesn’t make me any less a bucs fan. I’m hoping Jameis shows similar improvement from preseason game 1 to 2. You can say they have been dumbing down the gameplan for mariota, but if it makes him look good and gives him some confidence, I hope they dumb down the gameplan for Jameis too.
August 24th, 2015 at 8:14 am
I disagree ,whats impossible to me is to have such blind faith in an athlete to the point of denial of his character or morals..just because l.smith drafted him now he must be the teams savior.lovie smith and jamarcus Winston are / will be just another sad, losing chapter for the tampa bay buccaneers…let the excuses begin.
August 24th, 2015 at 9:15 am
Secretly…..people in the Bucs organization are wondering……..”Did we pick the wrong kid”
……and they sure as hell did
August 24th, 2015 at 9:21 am
Look. Ii dont care if we win or lose tonight. I just need to see our team play like, well, a team. Especially from Jameis. If he dosent show any poise and he misses often, its only pre season, right? It wont carry into the season right? Jameis’ poise and accuracy will appear September 13. C’mon. The past two years our team has played like spit in August, and sure enough it carried into the season, despite it being “just” pre season.
So a win or a loss dose not matter. Our team playing like a co hesive unit, does matter.
August 24th, 2015 at 9:36 am
@DestinJohnny is by far the most idiotic user on this site. Straight troll from hell. GET LOST!
August 24th, 2015 at 9:36 am
There’s a reason why Jameis threw so many picks in college……and it was due to bad decision making
He threw so many picks and he had one if the best offensive lines in CFB….he had offensive weapons like Calvin Benjamin…..Nicholas O’Leary…..he also played against far less superior talent too
You can be as smart as you want….have all the tools in the world…..but if you cannot put it all together and make GOOD DECISIONS with the ball….you will fail as a QB in the NFL
I already knew Mariota would perform better than Jameis due to his great decision making
All of those stupid people saying Mariota isn’t PRO are idiots….he is not a system QB
Bottomline——-Mariota will have a better career in the long run
All us BUCS fans just pray our Byron Leftwich clone performs better on gamedays
August 24th, 2015 at 9:39 am
LOL ^^^^^ These kind of people crack me up. Stay at home then. Don’t turn on the TV then during game day. Watch ESPN like the rest of the SHEEP. Don’t even wear a Bucs shirt. You are not a fan. You’ve already given up on the Bucs, so just stop now. I know there will be a LOT of people pulling their jerseys out, scouring stub hub for tickets around week 8.
August 24th, 2015 at 9:57 am
@ Joe Cool
You can be fan and also be critical as well
Don’t be part of the “Bucs Sheep” and wear “Bucs rosy colored glasses”
I’m tired of the Losing culture around here and so are many other Bucs Fans
Being critical doesn’t mean you’re given up
August 24th, 2015 at 10:55 am
Joe Cool Said:
August 24th, 2015 at 9:36 am
“@DestinJohnny is by far the most idiotic user on this site. Straight troll from hell. GET LOST!”
you have not been here long, have you?
August 24th, 2015 at 2:53 pm
CLINGERS!
August 24th, 2015 at 3:41 pm
I’m not really into drama on TV, these comments are clearly more dramatic. Can’t wait to read tonight’s in game and post game comments, win or lose or good or bad.