Mistakes mounting for Jake Locker

SAN DIEGO Coming off the bench last season, quarterback Jake Locker managed to avoid costly mistakes.

As an NFL starter for the first time, however, the second-year pro made two critical mistakes in the season opener against the Patriots, losing a fumble that was returned for a touchdown and throwing an interception.

He made another one against the Chargers, as his first pass of the game was intercepted by safety Eric Weddle. Six plays later the Chargers took a 14-0 lead, putting the Titans in catch-up mode.

Locker acknowledged he should’ve thrown the ball away. He finished the game 15-of-30 passing for 174 yards with a touchdown and the pick. The Titans were 1-of-9 on third down. “We were not able to consistently move the ball,” he said. “We had inconsistent drives. We did not execute the way we should have.”

Locker’s touchdown pass was a 15-yarder to rookie Kendall Wright, but he missed a wide-open Taylor Thompson deep downfield and failed to connect with other open receivers. He also avoided sacks, however, and was more alert about throwing the ball out of bounds at times when under pressure.

“We’ll have to go back and look at that on tape exactly why some of his throws weren’t as good as you’d like them to be,” coach Mike Munchak said. “Early in the game … he was moving around in the pocket more than he probably needed because of the pressure. Some balls floated because of that.”

Source: Titans Insider