NASHVILLE. Tenn. – As statements from teams and commentary from athletes flew around in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the unrest that’s followed, the Titans were quiet.

Then they put out something small and understated on Tuesday.

I don't know what they needed to say, but I can't imagine being a black player on the team and feeling like that was sufficient.

Then before scheduled Zoom calls for three assistant coaches with media, Mike Vrabel jumped on to deliver a message without taking any questions.

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NASHVILLE. Tenn. – The Titans were already going to have a hard time holding a conventional training camp for fans at their MetroCenter headquarters this summer given the construction project that is well underway.

Add to that some degree of restrictions on large public gatherings due to the coronavirus pandemic that seem likely to extend throughout the summer and open camp practices at St. Thomas Sports Park will be an even more difficult operation.

Simply put, the franchise will have less room for people who need to be more spread out.

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NASHVILLE. Tenn. – Logan Ryan has manned the slot for the Titans' defense for the better part of three years.

It seemed clear early in the offseason the Titans wouldn’t be working to re-sign Ryan, as significant a player as he’d been for the franchise. And Mike Vrabel pretty much sealed it on April 20th when he spoke of how offensive deployment and the route being called for inside receivers have redefined the demands of the slot corner position.

“Now we’re seeing a lot more vertical routes that are coming out of the slot," Vrabel said, "so I think that is something that is always a challenge when you are looking for players that do all those things and do them very well.”

Ryan was a better horizontal defender and now the Titans want to have more speed to withstand a threat like Tyreek Hill lined up inside, ready to take off. [Unlocked.}

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The first time Taylor Lewan had a big position of leadership with the Titans, it didn’t go well and I was puzzled by how things were so complicated.

A year removed from being the 11th pick in the draft, a well-regarded, highly athletic left tackle, he had maturing to do. But naming his a captain didn’t seem like a huge stretch for Ken Whisenhunt.

“I think for a while, captain, there was a piece of me I lost trying to be that All-American guy,” he said in a Zoom chat with media Thursday. “Then I come in here, and Ken makes me a captain my second year, and I’m trying to be what I think people need me to be. (Mike) Mularkey came, stripped the ‘C’ away and all that. Whether that was right or wrong doesn’t really matter. I think I was just trying to be something that I wasn’t.”

Ryan Tannehill will almost assuredly take over Marcus Mariota’s captaincy this season, and Ben Jones is an incumbent. So there may not be room for Lewan to be a captain. But he wants to take on more of a leadership role for a team that will be without three players who’ve been big leaders Delanie Walker, Jurrell Casey and Wesley Woodyard. [Unlocked.]

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lamar Jackson’s improvement in 2019 was remarkable and it lined him up for a unanimous MVP award.

Expectations remain high for him, and they should. He's talented, plays for a team with a very smart coaching philosophy and is surrounded by very good talent.

But I’ve seen much written about him that completely disregards the Titans' playoff win in Baltimore. Sure, it was one game and he still put up big numbers in it. Tennessee, however, affected him in a big way, prompting two interceptions, a lost fumble and failed attempts on a couple fourth-and-1 rush attempts.

The Titans forced Jackson to move laterally. They were super-sound as they rallied to tackle him. They stopped the Ravens on a total of four fourth downs and went and scored touchdowns following the first two, those fourth-and-1 stops of Jackson runs.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Based on what the Titans did in 2019, it’s fair to say some expectations need to be reset.

That’s certainly what @TitansElite2018 believes.

But this tweet from that account lends itself to a different interpretation as well.

2019 Regular Season

-Completion Percentage ABOVE EXPECTATION-@ryantannehill1 +8
Rank 1

-Average YAC ABOVE EXPECTATION-@Brown1arthur +4.9
Rank 1@Easymoney_81 +2.9
Rank 2

-Rushing Yards-@KingHenry_2 1540 yards
Rank 1

EXPECTATIONS for the Titans need to change!#TitanUp pic.twitter.com/7gm6QlGGV5

— TitansAllDay101 (@TitansElite2018) May 26, 2020

Regression to the mean may be coming for Tennessee, and that’s one big cause for concern as the Titans work through Zoom meetings right now, doing the best they can to prepare for what they expect to be a complete follow-up season to their march to the AFC Championship game.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Happy Memorial Day Weekend. Here's hoping as things start to open up, some fun opens up for you.

ICYMI, here's the big Periscope from Thursday.

Restless #Titans discussion. https://t.co/5nCtb24H8F

— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) May 22, 2020

 Onto my best answers to your best questions from the week. I hope you ave a terrific weekend. 

Eric North Has AJ Brown earned the game plan of “we have to get AJ the ball X amount of times per game” that many top WR’s get? If not, what does he have to do to get that?

I don’t think it will work like that with the Titans. They will work to get him the ball and they will go into games knowing that against this look they should have the opportunity to get it to him. And they will certainly call those plays and look for other situations as a game unfolds that present calls that will maximize his chances.

I doubt, however, they will ever have a quota like you are talking about.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The NFL salary cap grew to $198.2 million this year with projections for sizable growth in a year with the players’ share of all revenue growing from 47 to 48 percent in the new CBA.

But with the potential for empty stadiums or venues with significantly reduced attendance and with sponsors that may be ailing and unwilling or unable to spend as they have in the past, predictions for the 2021 salary cap are now dire.

Adam Schefter reported that insiders are telling him it could plummet by $30 to $80 million.

Let’s go halfway and say it took a $55 million tumble to just under $143.2 million.

Per spotrac, the Titans currently have 48 players under contract for 2021 worth $136.4 million.

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