nick suss, nashville tennessean
·4 min read
The Tennessee Titans started the Brian Callahan era, or at least the preseason of the era, with a win over one of the NFL's best and deepest teams.
The Titans held off a late comeback Saturday to beat the San Francisco 49ers 17-13 at Nissan Stadium. Quarterback Will Levis and the first-team offense were on the field for two drives, scoring a pair of short-distance touchdowns off runs from Levis and running back Tyjae Spears.
Levis finished his day 4-for-5 passing with 35 yards, including a 22-yard connection with No. 1 receiver Calvin Ridley on a crucial third down where Ridley reversed field after catching a crossing route and hustled downfield to extend a drive.
Many of the Titans' top defenders, including defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons and cornerback L'Jarius Sneed, didn't dress for Saturday's game. The first-team defenders who did dress were on the field for one or two drives, depending on position group. The 49ers, who didn't play many of their starters on either side of the ball, charged forward for a scoring drive to open the game but their offense did little else against the Titans' first- or second-teamers in the first half.
Here are The Tennessean's observations from the Titans' win.
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First-team offense keeps things clean
Levis and the Titans' first-teamers weren't challenged much. That's obviously a good thing, because the 49ers trotted out mostly second-teamers on defense. Knowing competition level is what it is in the preseason, the encouraging note is the way Levis and his crew handled the operation. No penalties. No communication issues. Comfort in the red zone. Comfort on third downs. A big play from Ridley when the team needed it most.
Things clearly could've gone better in some areas. Nothing's perfect. But the right side of the offensive line looked strong after a month of uncertainty to start camp, the running backs rotation worked well, and Levis looked confident and in control. Two drives, two touchdowns. Hard to quibble against that.
How about the return game?
Winning the punt returner job should be a quick cheat code for getting that 53rd roster spot. Rookie Jha'Quan Jackson seized the opportunity, scampering upfield for 26 yards the first time he got his hands on the ball and doing a good job of instinctively getting away from the ball in bad situations. That's a good sign for Jackson, who hasn't gotten all that many first- or second-team receiver reps in practice and probably makes the team only as a special teams guy to start the year.
But not so fast, because fellow receiver Kearis Jackson started the game opposite Jha'Quan Jackson as kick returner and had an even more electric play, returning the first ball he touched 63 yards thanks to two nifty spin moves and an open-field juke. It seems unlikely that both Jacksons can stick on the 53-man roster, so this competition may be heating up, especially if the Titans have bigger plans for kick return duties, including starters like Treylon Burks or Spears.
Will Levis, still physical
The transition from the Mike Vrabel era into the Callahan era hasn't done anything to dissuade Levis from taking hits, apparently. Levis barreled his way toward the goal line trying to run for a touchdown on his first drive and withstood a nasty lick from 49ers linebacker Dee Winters and safety George Odum. Levis tried lowering his shoulder, but the 49ers' defenders won the power battle.
Undeterred, Levis sneaked up the middle for a touchdown one play later. Still, after a long offseason of not taking hits and playing non-contact throughout training camp, it's probably not great that he rung his own wake-up call hit this early.
Defense spotlight
It's tough to glean too much of the first-team defense from this one. Turns out, having Jeffery Simmons, Harold Landry III, L'Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie is pretty important. But it's fair to come away from this one impressed by the inside linebackers. Kenneth Murray II opened the game with a nice blitz and Chance Campbell was everywhere in the first half. It would've been encouraging to see the defensive line get a little more push or the secondary make some more plays on the ball. But it was an altogether fine performance.
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What's next?
The Titans host the Seattle Seahawks for joint practices on Wednesday and Thursday, followed by a preseason game against Seattle on Saturday (6 p.m. CT, WKRN-2).
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Will Levis touchdown drives lead Titans to NFL preseason win vs 49ers
