Titans Arrive Late To London And Start Slow Against Ravens, Leaving Them 'Frustrated'
The Tennessee Titans put up a good fight at the end and that's the point: They waited way too long to get into Sunday's game against the Baltimore Ravens while the "visiting" team was ready from kickoff.
The Ravens built an 18-3 lead by halftime and held on to seal a 24-16 win at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 15: Zay Flowers #4 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates a 10 yard touchdown in the second quarter during the 2023 NFL London Games match between Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 15, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
Ravens Start Fast After Week In London
And the reason that happened may become a question that haunts the Titans and echoes around the NFL going forward. Because the Titans may have been victimized by some, well, jet lag.
The Titans, you see, got off to their slow start after arriving in London on Friday. That involved a late flight from Nashville on Thursday.
The Ravens? They were in London all week.
"It was a heck of a week capped off by a great football game," coach John Harbaugh said. "I really enjoyed Tottenham when we practiced over there ..."
Ravens tight end Mark Andrews, among others, spoke last week about how glad he was the Ravens arrived in London on Monday instead of waiting until later in the week.
"For us it's been a good decision to come early," Andrews said. "I know the first couple of days it's tough to kind of get your bearings. I feel that now we're starting to feel pretty good, get acclimated to the time zone. That's not easy. I think guys are getting good sleep and I think we're pretty fortunate to have come early, because it's not an easy thing to deal with."
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 15: Chris Moore #11 of the Tennessee Titans is fouled by Kyle Hamilton #14 of the Baltimore Ravens in the third quarter during the 2023 NFL London Games match between Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 15, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Titans Struggled Most Of First Half
Hard to argue this, especially if you saw the game. The Titans took a while to get their bearings. It wasn't until a 64 yard run by Derrick Henry happened in the third quarter that Tennessee seemed to finally wake up.
The Titans scored their first TD of the game with 8:24 left in the third quarter. It was 11:37 a.m. (ET) in the United States.
This isn't unusual.
Last week the Buffalo Bills suffered a sluggish start in their loss to Jacksonville and had to deal with questions about their travel schedule decisions. Buffalo trailed 11-0 in the opening quarter against Jacksonville and didn't get in the end zone until the second quarter.
The slow start was blamed by some on jet lag because the Bills arrived in London on Friday morning after leaving Western New York Thursday night. So the Bills basically got much of their "rest" Thursday night on their plane.
Jacksonville was already in London, staying the week after having played Atlanta the previous week at Wembley Stadium.
The whole jet lag issue will fade soon enough for the Titans because they're moving on.
But other teams flying to Europe -- the Dolphins, Chiefs, Colts and Patriots -- maybe should consider the results these London games have brought for teams flying into town late.
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 15: Ryan Tannehill #17 of the Tennessee Titans throws a pass in the second quarter during the 2023 NFL London Games match between Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 15, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Ryan Tannehill Ankle Injury A Titans Problem
The Titans, meanwhile, do have issues they will need to address. They're 2-4. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill may have a high ankle sprain that may leak beyond the coming bye week and into the Oct. 29 game against Atlanta.
The Titans are a frustrated bunch.
"I'm frustrated with losing," coach Mike Vrabel said.
He then admitted some things may not be able to be corrected with how the team is currently built.
"Maybe. We'll see," he said. "I'm not going to stop trying. Not going to stop to prepare them and teach them and fundamentals and execution..."