Titans legend Nate Washington calls out Tennessee’s biggest problem ahead of Eagles matchup

Former Titans wide receiver Nate Washington immediately recognized a major issue after reviewing the film from the disastrous Week 1 loss to the Jets.

The Tennessee Titans face the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday with almost no external expectation of winning. One glaring issue from Week 1 demands correction regardless of the final score.

It goes beyond Cam Ward’s play, beyond the defensive line’s ineffectiveness, beyond the X’s and O’s entirely.

Former Titans wide receiver Nate Washington, a two-time Super Bowl champion, watched the film from Tennessee’s loss to the New York Jets and identified the same problem several former players noticed in person: a complete lack of energy, effort, and fight. The Titans lead the NFL in three-and-outs after Week 1. Ironically, Philadelphia ranks second, a trend that carried over from last season for both franchises.

The Eagles, of course, are far more talented.

They made the playoffs last year, losing at home to a wounded San Francisco team. Philadelphia can beat you in a number of different ways, and the one place Tennessee cannot allow itself to be beaten is in effort.

Washington appeared on 104.5 The Zone earlier this week and delivered his assessment of the Jets loss.

“It was completely unacceptable,” said Washington. “And before I even get into the X’s and O’s, you look at this team and of all things that you were hoping to see was energy. You were hoping to see a team come out in their home stadium, Game 1, and be excited to get this season underway. And that’s just not what I’ve seen on a down-in, down-out basis. I’ve seen a very lethargic, a lack of enthusiasm. And those things are definitely concerning being an ex-player because it’s going to take some time to get scheme.”

That’s the biggest indictment of this team from Week 1, more than any schematic critique. The Titans came out with no juice and got punked.

Right tackle JC Latham made headlines in the week leading up to the Jets game, saying the Titans “can’t be anybody’s b****.”

I thought Latham played a fine game individually, and he gets lumped in here only by the result of playing for the losing team. But when those are the words being tossed around in the locker room and the team produces the result it produced, it’s difficult to view it any other way. The Jets proceeded to shove those words right down Tennessee’s throat.

This week is about responding.

This week is about accountability. And that is what we are still waiting to learn about a Robert Saleh-coached team: Do you have the player leadership in that locker room to pull yourself out of this rut?

Ward, Jeffrey Simmons, and other veterans are scattered throughout the roster. There are young players, yes, but there are plenty of experienced guys who can be leaned upon in good times and bad.

The thing players respect most is production. Ward talks with confidence, and I have no problem with confidence. But how long can you continue to prop yourself up as something if the play on the field indicates you might not be the player you think you are? One game into the second season, the results would indicate he very well might not be that player. I have an issue with claiming to be something you’re not or talking without the ability to back it up. The Titans talk a lot, but they do not have the talent, the wherewithal, or clearly the effort to support those claims.

Philadelphia is going to win this game. The Eagles are the better team. If Philadelphia loses, it will be because something catastrophic happened to the Eagles, not because the Titans outplayed them. But it can’t be 23-10 again. It can’t look like the Jets game.

You have to go out there and fight. I’m not in the business of moral victories. The goal is to win. But in the absence of the ability to win, and I think Tennessee lacks that ability right now, I need to see fight more than anything. Not after-the-whistle nonsense. Between the whistles, between the lines. Can you physically back up your talk?

To date, the Titans aren’t capable of doing that.