Titans coach Jeff Fisher won’t divulge who his starting quarterback will be for Sunday’s game. Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio was similarly evasive when asked how his team’s preparation is affected by not knowing who will be playing quarterback for the Titans.
What does it all mean?
“Usually when we play these guys it comes down to who plays best in the trenches,” Del Rio said.
Translation: Sunday’s game could turn out to be an old-fashioned run-the-ball, stop-the-run battle.
“I’m going to start one of the two (quarterbacks) on the roster,” Fisher told Jacksonville reporters on Wednesday, referring to Kerry Collins, who has started every game since week two of last season, and Vince Young, the third pick of the 2006 draft and the man Collins deposed last season.
Fisher’s lack of frankness with the media has been overshadowed by reports that he has been ordered by owner Bud Adams, a diehard Texas fan, to re-install Young as the starter.
“I think a lot has been made the last couple of days about everything regarding Mr. Adams, but we talk about things and we do things collectively so this will be our decision,” Fisher said.
Translation: Adams said play Young.
Yeah, all systems would seem to be go for another Titans-Jaguars media spectacle. Even in a year in which the Titans are 0-6, they always seem to be in position to ruin the Jaguars’ season and they could certainly put a big dent in whatever hopes the Jaguars have of being a playoff contender this year by beating the visitors at LP Field this Sunday.
“We know both quarterbacks are being talked about. We both had ample opportunity to look at ourselves and the next opponent,” Del Rio said, referring to the fact that each team is coming off a bye week.
Should Young be the starter, the Jaguars certainly shouldn’t be caught off guard. Not only have they had time to prepare for a switch at quarterback, statistical evidence would suggest that a switch to Young would actually benefit the Jaguars. In five games against the Jaguars, Young has had passer ratings of 30.2, 70.1, 47.9, 64.8 and 45.6.
Del Rio would seem to be playing his own game of cat and mouse with Fisher. Del Rio said on Wednesday that cornerback Rashean Mathis wouldn’t practice until Friday but offered little in the way of a forecast for Mathis’ chance of playing in Sunday’s game.
“We’ll find out more on Friday. We’ll get a clearer picture on Friday,” Del Rio said of Mathis, who underwent surgery on his left hand last week and will wear a protective cast until Friday, according to Mathis.
Cornerback/kick-returner Brian Witherspoon is the only other Jaguars player who didn’t practice on Wednesday.
Maurice Jones-Drew rushed for 133 yards in the Jaguars’ most recent game, and the expectation is that Fisher will attempt to return his team to its dominant running ways of a year ago.
“The teams both like to run the ball and stop the run. You look at the core of who they are; we’ll have to match that this week,” Del Rio said.