Behind Enemy Lines: An Interview with the Music City Miracles
What's happening in Nashville these days?
by: Gregory Gethard
The story of this NFL season so far has been the Tennessee Titans. We New Yorkers are probably too preoccupied with things like the financial crisis, Page Six and Brett Favre to have noticed. Explaining all of this to me is Jimmy Morris, a blogger with The Music City Miracles, the coolest named Titans blog out there.
Here's our exchange.
Gregg: Okay. Fess up. How the heck is this team undefeated? The onlypeople in New York who have really noticed are Nashville ex-pats.What's the secret?
Jimmy: Those are great questions. The Titans are built on playing great defense and running the ball. They have done both of those pretty well all season long. Jeff Fisher also discovered the forward pass a few weeks ago and that has worked pretty well for them.
Gregg: Your Kerry Collins Experience seems a lot different than the Kerry Collins Experience here in the New York area. What has the difference been?
Jimmy: Haven't you seen the grey beard? Kerry Collins has matured since his time in New York. It appears that he learned a lot from what he went through early in his career and has turned it around. He is also making better decisions on the field because he has been in the league longer and understands the offense and what defenses are trying to do to take it away.
Gregg: The season was off to a contentious start, to say the least, with all sorts of wild Vince Young news making headlines. What are the general thoughts about Vince's future with the team?
Jimmy: Vince's future with the Titans is up in the air to say the least. A lot of it depends on how the year ends up. Collins is a free agent at the end of the season and has made no secret of his desire to be a starting quarterback next season. It will be really hard for the Titans to let him walk if he is able to take this team to the Super Bowl.
Beyond all of that Vince has to prove to the Titans that he is capable physically and mentally to be a franchise quarterback in the NFL. The front office and Jeff Fisher will never say publicly that they have lost faith in VY, but I believe they have. He has a long way to go before they hand him the keys to the franchise again.
Gregg: The Titans are somehow underrated despite being undefeated. Who is the most underrated player on this underrated team?
Jimmy: Cortland Finnegan. Finnegan has a reputation around the league for being a hard-nosed player, but he doesn't always get the credit he deserves for his work as a cornerback. He has become a shut down corner, and unlike the Rainmaker he will actually play his assignment in the defense.
Gregg: One of my all-time favorite players is Steve McNair. Can you just wax poetic for a bit over what he meant to the franchise and you personally over the years?
Jimmy: Steve McNair is my all-time favorite player. He is one of the toughest players to ever play in the NFL. If he could walk he was going to be on the field, and he found a way to make big plays when the Titans needed them the most. I wish he could be the quarterback of the Titans every game for the rest of my life.
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