RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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The preseason Tennessee Titans are 2-0. Yippee.
Finding meaning in the NFL preseason is a lot like looking for chewed gum on the underside of a bus bench : Sure, you'll find what you're looking for. But most of the time you'll end up questioning why you were looking for it in the first place.
As was the case in the preseason opener, the win will mostly be overshadowed by widespread defensive struggles centering around mistakes in the passing game and offensive inconsistency intensified by the low-quality defensive backups who are forcing these inconsistencies. And as was also the case in the preseason opener, these concerns can be explained away by claims that the play-calling was deliberately vanilla and insistences that performances in preseason matchups where teams don't gameplan for their opponents aren't comparable to how players will be prepared for regular season games.
It's enough to contort anyone's mind into a pretzel. So let's dispatch with the big picture trends. Here are six players who saw their stock rise or fall as a result of the Titans' preseason Week 2 matchup against Seattle.
Tennessee Titans stock report: Preseason Week 2 edition
WR Carnell Tate: Stock down
Is it time to be concerned about Tate? He's gone cold the last couple of weeks, and now he's been held without a catch in two preseason games. He also failed to catch a pass in joint practice on Aug. 21. Sure, he's lit up the Titans' secondary throughout OTAs and early training camp, but we've seen backup quarterbacks and receivers do that in the preseason too.
As Titans coach Robert Saleh puts it, OC Brian Daboll could easily scheme up plays specifically for Tate if he wanted to, and volume won't be a concern come regular season because of that. But that's hardly an endorsement of Tate's playmaking skill, which has largely gone cold in the two weeks since the Blue and White Scrimmage.
He still figures to be the Titans' go-to receiver in the intermediate and deep game, but right now Wan'Dale Robinson is functioning far more as Ward's most consistent perimeter option.
LB Anthony Hill Jr: Stock up
So now good news on a rookie. Hill logged his first pro interception and led the team with seven tackles in this one. After the game, he said he's feeling more comfortable day by day in Saleh's scheme and he's playing more freely. In a perfect world, Hill says, he would've had two interceptions in this one and he can point to the ball he wants back.
There's quite a barrier to entry for Hill in the starting lineup. Cody Barton, Cedric Gray and James Williams Sr., all started with the first team, and Mohamoud Diabate played well in reserve reps too. There are a lot of veteran bodies to overcome, but Hill's acclimating nicely.
DE Truman Jones: Stock up
A classic example of opportunity meeting the moment. Since Jaylen Harrell got hurt, Jones has been thrust into position to win the Titans' fifth defensive end position. How about 1.5 sacks and a TFL to show what he's got? Malik Herring, his most obvious competition for the job, finished with no tackle and one QB hit.
OG Jackson Slater: Stock down
While rookie Fernando Carmona Jr., took all the reps with the first team and got to rest with the big-name veterans in the second half, Slater's biggest moment was a holding penalty that took a touchdown off the board. This competition feels essentially wrapped.
QB Will Levis: Stock down
It's getting tougher to imagine someone trading for Levis at the end of camp. For context: When the Titans traded Malik Willis after training camp 2024, he'd put up a passer rating of 104.7 on 27 attempts and rushed for 101 yards on 11 carries. Levis thus far has a rating of 50.4 on 17 attempts and has 37 rushing yards on eight attempts. And the Titans only got a seventh rounder for Willis.
WR Chimere Dike: Stock up
Dike caught one pass for 17 yards and didn't man his regular post on special teams. So why's his stock up? When the Titans starters came out after halftime without pads on, Dike was among the group. Unlike fellow rotational Year 2 receiver Elic Ayomanor, Dike was being protected from the rigors of the preseason. Speaks highly of how valuable the Titans think his return skills are.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Titans stock report after Seahawks game: Where Carnell Tate, Will Levis stand
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