The Tennessee Titans have made numerous coaching changes over the past month after firing previous head coach Mike Vrabel.
Heading into the 2024 season, the Titans will have a new head coach, defensive coordinator, and offensive coordinator.
Reports also suggest the Titans will land a new special teams coordinator and an assistant offensive lineman coach.
The new special teams coordinator will likely be Colt Anderson, who previously worked alongside new Titans head coach Brian Callahan.
Anderson and Callahan worked with the Cincinnati Bengals for the past four seasons, with Anderson working as an assistant special teams coach.
Since there are various moving parts for the Titans this offseason, 2024 could unfold in many different ways.
However, the coaching changes transpired early enough in the offseason time to adjust and be ready to perform in 2024.
Tennessee Titans Planning to Hire Colt Anderson as Special Teams Coordinator Anderson and the Titans Punt Return Team The Titans did not find success on punt returns in 2023, as only one of their 42 returns gained more than 20 yards.
Additionally, their punt return team had three fumbles, putting their team in too many precarious situations.
The Titans also had one of the worst average yards per return, as they could not even reach eight yards.
Comparatively, the Bengals had over 10 yards per return in 2023 and returned five punts for more than 20 yards.
The Bengals punt return team also had more total punt return yards than the Titans while having eighteight fewer tries.
Therefore, Anderson’s Bengals special teams experience could help the Titans punt return unit set up their offense for 2024 success.
Anderson Can Coach With Excellent Specialists
Nick Folk plays kicker for the Titans. He had a fantastic season in 2023, demonstrating his versatility from a variety of distances by missing just one field goal in thirty attempts.
The lone field goal that Folk missed was stopped at the line of scrimmage. He only failed to miss two additional points, one of which was likewise blocked.
Even at almost forty years old, Folk’s playing is still excellent. In three of his last four seasons, he has made more than 92% of his field goal attempts.
In light of this, Anderson is inheriting a special teams unit that plays its kicker consistently, which is essential for the team to succeed.
Ryan Stonehouse, one of the NFL’s top punters, is another player on the Titans. Despite only being 24 years old, more than half of his 53 punt returns were downed inside the 20-yard line of the opposition.
This figure demonstrates a punter’s accuracy and aids the team in winning the game’s battle for field position.
Stonehouse’s injury from 2023, which ended the season, raises questions for the upcoming campaign.
He still has plenty of time to recover from the injury before he has to resume performing at a high level, though.
Anderson Needs to Assist in Blocking Special TeamsThe Titans had a field goal and an extra point blocked in 2023, as was previously noted.
In one game against the Colts, the club also had many punts blocked, which resulted in Stonehouse’s injury.
The Titans’ inability to properly block will make the specialists’ skill level irrelevant, regardless of how good they are.
The Titans should have won their game against the Colts, but a blocked punt was returned for a score, which contributed to sending the contest into overtime.
Anderson will therefore need to enhance his special teams blocking if the Titans are to have success in the upcoming year.
To be fair, their offensive line needs to get better at blocking, since they were unable to keep any quarterback safe during the previous