Titans’ good start bodes well

Kerry Collins and the Titans are happy about being 4-0. Frederick Breedon IV for The City Paper

The Tennessee Titans admit they are a long way from securing a playoff spot after one good month.

But at 4-0, the Titans have made a nice down payment on one.

According to Elias Sports Bureau, which tracks statistics for the NFL, 53 teams since 1990 have started a season 4-0, and of those, 45 have gone on to make the postseason, a rate of 84.9 percent.

That type of start is something the Titans are certainly unaccustomed to, having accomplished the feat for the first time in the franchise’s 49-year history with Sunday’s 30-17 victory over Minnesota.

But while the Titans might not be familiar with fast starts, one current player who knows how to handle those situations is former Indianapolis linebacker David Thornton, who was a part of Colts teams that started 5-0 in 2003 and 13-0 in 2005.

“It’s a good feeling,” Thornton said. “Hopefully, that can continue in the second quarter [of the season]. It’s just not looking too far ahead. It’s taking it one game at a time, one week at a time, because I’ve been in locker rooms and situations where you’ve been on that run, and you can look too far ahead and not be taking care of the task at hand.”

Titans coach Jeff Fisher said Monday his team has become one that stays focused on the task before it, and expects to win, something Fisher said developed after an 0-5 team in 2006 finished 8-8 that year.

“It started during that 0-5 stretch. They stayed focused,” Fisher said. “They knew they were doing the best they could. They knew they could try to do a little bit better, and the wins would come, and that’s when this team came together.

“It came together, and as we’ve kind of added some new players to it, they’ve kind of fallen right in.”

At the very least, the Titans are in the driver’s seat early in the AFC South, a division ruled by the Colts the past five seasons.

“It’s good to be on this end of the bargain, to be up and knowing that teams have to hope that you lose,” Thornton said. “That catch-us-if-you-can mentality is a good situation to be in. You just want to continue doing the things that we’ve been doing and hope that we can stay in a situation where they have to continue to chase.”

Thornton said it is important not to let distractions enter into the equation as the Titans prepare for each game.

“It is a different approach,” Thornton said. “It’s imperative as a team to continue to listen to coach Fisher’s voice. There will be a lot of potential distractions, more media coverage. I think The City Paper today said, ‘When will the Titans lose?’ There was a poll saying, ‘who was going to beat the Titans?’ So there are a lot of things that can distract you, but you just want to focus on what our coaches are doing and take it one game at a time.”

The Titans travel to the Baltimore Ravens this week, something that has in years past been a house of horrors for them.

Fisher said that not many remember the epic battles the teams from 1999 through 2003 when the rivalry was at its hottest.

“There’s not a lot of players left on either team that were involved when the games were really going in ’99 and 2000,” Fisher said. “There’s just a few players left. They’ve got our players that were on our side now, so this is just our next opponent.”

IN THE RIGHT PLACE: Fisher said Monday he is fine with quarterback Vince Young’s demeanor on the sidelines as he watches the game in street clothes. Young spent a good portion of the game perched atop an equipment trunk at the back of the bench area. In practice, he has spent time to himself rather than with offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger or quarterbacks coach Craig Johnson.

“Let’s just say I’m happy with where he is,” Fisher said. “Yeah, you [media] do over-analyze it at times. He’s sitting on a 6 x 6 x 3 red chest with white tape and letters that say this, and he sat on the front edge for the first play, and then he moved back a little bit. C’mon, please. He got the play. He knew what was going on. He was into the game. He was rooting for his teammates.”

Fisher said there is a possibility that Young could practice this week and a chance he could eventually be the No. 2 quarterback.

“We’re hoping to get him involved in practice this week, and we’ll see where it goes,” Fisher said. “I’m pleased with where he is, mentally, emotionally and physically, because he’s making strides.”

Fisher said Young’s ability to move around will be a determining factor.

“It’ll be his ability to move around, the physical things,” Fisher said. “If I list him as a two, and Kerry were to come down for a series, and he has to go in and play, he needs to be able to run around and make throws and those kinds of things.”

CLEAN HIT: Both Fisher and Thornton said the Kyle Vanden Bosch hit that Vikings quarterback Gus Frerotte said nailed him in the midsection was a clean tackle. Vanden Bosch was penalized for roughing the passer on the play.

“It definitely wasn’t a dirty play. I’ve seen it on film,” Thornton said. “It definitely wasn’t a late hit, and it wasn’t below the knees. Kyle hit him right in the midsection, right in his thighs. Clean hit.

“Unfortunately, the referee made the call to what he did, but it was not a dirty play, and Kyle is not a dirty player. He plays relentless and aggressive.”

Added Fisher, “When it relates to player safety, they are expected to err on the side of caution. There’s going to be plays like that and calls like that that we’ll disagree with. It was a legal hit. It was not an illegal hit.”

REVISITING?: After elevating Stephen Tulloch to the starting lineup at middle linebacker, Fisher said Monday he was evaluate the situation this week between Tulloch and demoted Ryan Fowler.

“We’re going to visit this week and make a decision,” Fisher said, while acknowledging that Tulloch played well Sunday. “As I said, the decision was made because I felt it was the best matchup as far as the opponent was concerned. We’ll just all discuss it with the staff and both linebackers this week.”