Chris Johnson: Missing piece for Titans?

NASHVILLE -- In 1999, the Tennessee Titans felt like they were one piece away from being a serious contender. They danced in the draft room when Jevon Kearse fell to them at No. 16. It turned out a rookie-record 14.5 sacks provided just the boost the defense needed and catapulted the franchise to its one and only Super Bowl appearance. In 2008, the Tennessee Titans felt like they were one piece away from being a serious contender. The offensive playmaker they landed did not come in the form of a wide receiver as so many craved, but instead in the shape of a versatile running back with the sort of speed the franchise hasn't seen since it has been in Tennessee.
Might Chris Johnson in '08 be akin to Kearse in '99?
"I don't think you can go there at this point in time," general manager Mike Reinfeldt said. "But you can kind of see he energizes our whole offense, doing so many different things. There was a play at the end where [a receiver] catches it, and they're double-teaming [Johnson] on an out-and-up. He changes the dynamics out there, which is huge."
We'll need a lot more evidence to anoint Johnson the second-coming of The Freak, and we'll need a new name for it too since Kearse is back in Nashville. But the first sampling of Johnson in the Titans' offense sure suggests that the production he can provide can make up for a multitude of deficiencies, and that he's like Kearse in meeting this criteria: He's unlike anything they've had before him.
"He's got the supporting cast, it's not like he's got to come in and carry all the weight on his shoulders," Kearse said of Johnson, drafted with the 24th pick in the first round. "Just like when I came in my first year, I didn't feel like all the stress was on me to do everything, I was able to just be comfortable, just go out and make plays, be that missing piece. So far that's what it's looking like...
"We've got somebody who can break that big one and get us six. On the defense, it's incentive for us to get the ball back so we can watch this young boy use those fresh legs. He's the fastest guy I've seen on the field in a minute. I watched the Olympics. This guy, it seems like he's got a lot of track speed. I want to see No. 28 go, go, go."
The comparison isn't completely parallel, of course.
Kearse's rookie season was the team's first in its new building, came after three straight 8-8s and arrived with the fate of his coach and general manager hanging in the balance. That team needed one top-flight pass rusher to complete the picture.
This team is celebrating its 10th season here now, is coming off a playoff season and appeared to need more than one skill player with speed and moves to round out the roster.

Still the juice Kearse brought then and Johnson brings now feels similar. Just as Kearse did with seven tackles and a forced fumble in his very first game, it felt as if Johnson grabbed the collective hand of a sellout at LP Field and jammed it in a power outlet.
His 93 rushing yards were the most by a rookie running back for the franchise since Earl Campbell had 137 at Atlanta on opening day in 1978. Johnson's 127 yards from scrimmage accounted for 41 percent of Tennessee's offense. He averaged just over seven yards a touch.
On his first career touchdown, he slowed and reached behind him, adjusting to a less-than-perfect pass from Vince Young, then fought to regain his balance and launch himself into the end zone for a 7-yard catch. It was just the sort of adjustment the Titans are desperate for their receivers to show they can make.
And by the count of fullback Ahmard Hall, the Titans split Johnson out of the backfield just once. As the season moves on, defenses will have to account for him out of all different spots in all different formations.
"Chris is the next big thing," Hall said. "He slips loose, he's gone, no one is going to catch him. It's so exciting because we haven't had that here in a long time. Chris is the X factor. You put him in there, he can catch the ball, you have to respect him when he's out wide or whatever... We've got a lot in store for Chris. It's only going to get bigger and we're only going to give teams more to prepare for each week with the threat of what Chris can do."
The Titans are hoping a Johnson-LenDale White backfield can rank with a Fred Taylor-Maurice Jones-Drew combo as one of the NFL's top rushing tandems.
Taylor was complimentary about Johnson.
"If you blink, you might miss him," he said. "I think with that addition, they improved on offense... I think they put their puzzle together pretty well. It's going to be hard to beat them."
Taylor likes the Titans' backfield, where bruiser LenDale White chipped in with 15 carries for 40 yards. But after one week, Taylor warned us not to jump to conclusions.
"Chris is a young guy, he's not that big either, the wrong hit can kind of damage him," Taylor said. "In no way am I wishing any bad on him. But he has to prove he can stay the long haul. That's what this league is all about. It doesn't matter how you start."


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