The Tennessee Titans notched their first win of the 2025 preseason with a 23-20 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Friday night. 

How did the individual units perform?

Here’s a quick report card from Friday’s victory.

Offense

The Titans’ offense started sluggish but improved throughout the night as they wore down the Falcons’ defense. Cam Ward started and was uneven in his three series, although his receivers didn’t help when given a chance. The Titans’ running game picked up in the second half and controlled the ball, but there could still be a backup quarterback issue. Brandon Allen bounced back after an early interception and was solid, but nothing spectacular. 

Notables who did not play: G Kevin Zeitler, C Lloyd Cushenberry, WR Tyler Lockett, WR Calvin Ridley, RB Tony Pollard, RB Tyjae Spears

Grade: C

Defense

Playing without their entire starting defensive line, the defense looked better in the second preseason game, although there are still areas that need improvement. Cedric Gray was everywhere and made an impact this week, and the coverage in the secondary was better early. The reserves did give up some big plays for touchdowns, but for the most part, they held their own. 

Notables who did not play: DT Jeffery Simmons, DT T’Vondre Sweat, S Quandre Diggs, S Kevin Winston Jr., CB L’Jarius Sneed, DT Sebastian Joseph-Day

Grade: B-

Special teams

Once again, the special teams were sloppy. The return game sputtered, there were too many penalties, they turned the ball over, and Joey Slye missed an extra point. Coordinator John Fassel can’t be happy with the performance, and it was clearly not good enough. 

The Titans will have to go back to the drawing board to try to figure things out. This unit has to improve if Tennessee is to be successful in 2025.

Grade: D

Coaching

The best decision of the night was to rest some of the veterans and give some young players an expanded role. Some of that worked out, and the players flashed. Brian Callahan’s play calling, especially early on, was questionable, but that could have been by design. Since teams don’t typically game plan for preseason games, calls can be made for specific reasons that fall outside the traditional game flow. 

Defensively, some of the dialed-up pressure early in the game hit home and helped set the tone for the game. Special teams need to work.

Grade: C