Munchak: Team’s Receiving Weapons, Hutchinson Should Help CJ Get off to Better Start
Posted by on May 5, 2012 – 4:11 pm
Mike Munchak believes the continued progression of Tennessee’s offensive weapons from 2011, plus the addition of top draft pick Kendall Wright will prevent defenses from stacking the box and help Chris Johnson get off to a better start this year.
Munchak said the addition of Wright, along with the development of Titans receivers Nate Washington, Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins, the emergence of dynamic tight end Jared Cook and the return of Kenny Britt will create matchup problems for defenses in 2012.
“We’re hoping that mixture of pass game loosens up the front and we have fewer guys in the box to run the football,” Munchak said in between Titans Caravan stops on Friday. “That should help Chris Johnson get off to a better start.”
Munchak said Titans receivers playing well last year was a plus.
“And we added Kendall Wright in the first round so he’s another weapon defenses will have to worry about,” Munchak said.
Munchak said the addition of Wright will afford Britt the chance to ease his way back into his regular number of snaps following knee surgery last season.
“We expect Kenny back in great condition when the season starts,” Munchak said. “Kendall is just another weapon that can play outside receiver, inside receiver and can return kicks. He does a little bit of everything. He’ll add a lot of excitement to the game right away. He’s a guy that can probably contribute right off the bat in the season opener against New England.”
Munchak said he expects Johnson to improve on last year’s numbers with the addition of All-Pro guard Steve Hutchinson and a full off-season under his belt with the team’s second-year coaching staff.
“Last year we didn’t have any players here in the off-season. Our off-season program started last week and we had 65 to 70 guys in town,” Munchak said. “Our new coaching staff didn’t really know the players last year. We were all getting to know each other in training camp. Plus, Chris held out last year and didn’t come to training camp until the first game started. There were a lot of things working against us, so hopefully getting back into a normal routine will help.”
Posted in titansonline.com Blog | 12 Comments »
By sdaguilard on May 5, 2012 | Reply
I can’t wait to see how good we are gonna be when the season starts.GO TITANS!
By EBTITAN on May 5, 2012 | Reply
I AGREE COACH . THATS GONNA BE A NASTY O-LINE.FULL OFF SEASON FOR EVERYONE & NOT TO MENTION A PISSED OFF CJ WITH SOMETHING TO PROVE THAT HE IS STILL TOP DOG! WELCOME ROOKIES & FREE AGENTS!!! TITANTUDE MEN, MAN UP!
By Denzel on May 7, 2012 | Reply
Cant put 8 guys in the box with Britt , CJ2K , and hopefully Kendall Wright in the slot. No one in the NFL thinks the Titans will be a elite team this year , I have a great feeling they will.
GO Titans!
By Frank on May 7, 2012 | Reply
I think this team is going to show improvement in all areas starting with the O line the addition of Hutchinson is a big plus, CJ should get back on track, Britt comes back strong for a full season, Washington continues his reliability, Wright contributes from the start, Williams & Hawkins continue to be productive, Cook has a break out year, with Locker starting game 1, it’s time to give him the keys!!! Can you say hard to stop?? If Morgan finally stays healthy a plays like a #1 we should be able to bring the heat with the addition of CW. Klug/McCourty/Ayers continue to play like they did last year, our rookies make name for their self by being ball hawking/tackling machines our D will be better. We will know from the start, with New England in town. I hope we start strong and end strong In the Big Easy!!!!!
By Larry on May 7, 2012 | Reply
I think we will have one of the most explosive offenses in the league this year that will win us alot of games along with a defense that can win a few games for us as well i say we win atleast 11 games this year we will probably finish 11-5 i could see us possibly winning 12 but it is so hard to tell until the season starts and you see how the new additions play
By Kory on May 10, 2012 | Reply
I hope everyone underestimates us this year! I think we will make the playoffs and I hope that all the players come in with a chip on their shoulder to be the new dominant force in the AFC South like we used to be!! GO TITANS!
By EBTITAN on May 10, 2012 | Reply
THEY DO
By addicted2football on May 11, 2012 | Reply
I’ll be interested in seeing who our new starting C will be, because it should NOT be Eugene Amano. Amano played great at LG, but he certainly isn’t that great at C. The Titans are always underestimated, and that generally seems to work in our favor so yeah, I hope everybody overlooks us.
By muchskillzz on May 13, 2012 | Reply
its like the movie remenber the titans world watch out for the titan nation there backkkkkkkkkk and hungry as hell go titans!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By WG on May 20, 2012 | Reply
I too, would like to be optimistic about the offseason additions, draft class, full offseason workouts & training camp, & returning Kenny Britt. Having a brand new coaching staff, the lockout, & CJ’s holdout were big disadvantages last year, but every other team in the league also had a chance to improve over last year, and I’m sure many did. I still feel like we should have taken more steps to strengthen our secondary which I feel will suffer with the loss of Finegan, and our O-Line has not been the same stronghold since Kevin Mawae left. Not going after an all pro center was a big mistake in my opinion. I like Coach Munchak & respect his decisions regarding player preparation, game plan, & play calling. I just wonder if he has been given enough to work with. Like I said, I AM Optimistic and am hoping for a team we can all brag about.
By tiittan a nick on May 26, 2012 | Reply
Let’ s win the first game THEN the next one and so on.Patriots get blown away.
By Tyler Rees on Jun 9, 2012 | Reply
Our defense will be ready to roll! Although we will miss Finnegan we have some players that are ready to make a name for themselves! Verner and McCourtey will be solid corners and I believe Tommie Campbell, Ryan Mouton, or Chris Hawkins will be a serviceable 3rd cornerback. Our linebackers will be improved from last year and our defensive line should be as well with the additions of Wimbley and Mike Martin. The NFL better watch out cause the Titans are rollin in the right direction!