By John Glennon
One of the last things any of us would have imagined at the end of the Titans' season was Mike Vrabel kicking himself for not showing enough aggression.
Words like cautious, conservative and safe aren't ones normally used to describe the man.
And to be honest, Vrabel wasn't really second-guessing himself regarding one of Sunday's biggest moments, his decision to punt on fourth-and-two from the Baltimore 40-yard line, trailing 17-13 with just over 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter.
But he should have been.
The Ravens took possession at their own 15 following the punt, chewed nearly six minutes of clock up on a nine-play, 52-yard drive that resulted in a field goal, and left the Titans needing to drive nearly 80 yards in the closing moments – against a defense that had troubled them all game – just to tie the contest.
Six plays into that final Titans' drive, Ryan Tannehill was intercepted, effectively bringing an end to Tennessee's season in a 20-13 wildcard-round playoff loss.
So let's re-visit the critical decision not to go for it:
- Derrick Henry had gained eight yards on first down, leaving the Titans with three chances to gain two yards and keep a potential go-ahead touchdown drive alive. Surprisingly, the Titans chose not to run Henry on . . .
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Author: John GlennonMulti-media journalist with extensive expertise covering the NFL, NHL, professional soccer and more, including the Tennessee Titans and Nashville Predators for The Tennessean with articles, videos and podcasts. Strengths include the ability to write quick, concise and thorough analysis, as well as the ability to uncover unique human-interest stories. In working as a reporter, John developed skills that extend beyond the sports journalism world. An efficient and effective communicator, John is confident, calm and productive under deadline pressure and knows the power of the written word. John brings to Broadway Sports a work ethic second to none, an intellectual hunger, and an ability to inform and entertain readers, viewers and listeners. Reach out directly to John at:
