Wimbley, defense keep Cardinals in check

Kamerion Wimbley celebrates a sack of Cardinals QB John Skelton. (George Walker IV / The Tennessean)



The Titans signed defensive end Kamerion Wimbley to a five-year, $35 million contract this summer with one thing in mind: Get to the quarterback.

Wimbley was quiet for the most part through the first two preseason games, but in a 32-27 win over the Cardinals on Thursday, he made the kind of plays the Titans hope to see more of in the regular season.

In the first half alone, Wimbley terrorized Arizona quarterbacks John Skelton and Kevin Kolb, piling up two sacks, two tackles for loss and three quarterback hits.

It should be noted that Wimbley was going up against left tackle Daryn Colledge, who only recently replaced starter Levi Brown, lost for the season with a torn triceps muscle.

But it was still an encouraging sign for a team that finished second-to-last in the NFL in sacks in 2011.

“In the previous games, I was able to get hits on the quarterback, so I definitely felt like some sacks were coming soon and they did,” Wimbley said. “We did a lot of preparation for this game because we knew we’d be playing a little longer than we did in the first two games. And we know this was kind of the tune-up for the regular season. It felt really good tonight.”

Wimbley burst into the backfield came on Arizona’s first play from scrimmage, as he beat Colledge and nailed Skelton for an eight-yard loss.

Stuck in a passing situation on second down, Skelton threw a deep pass over the middle that was intercepted by Titans safety Michael Griffin — leading to a Titans touchdown two plays later.

“You want to come out and start fast,” Wimbley said. “I was thinking back to the first preseason game against Seattle, and I don’t think that’s the impression we wanted to leave. That’s something the coaches have been emphasizing is to go out there and set the tone. That’s what we wanted to do.”

Wimbley was at it again in the second quarter, torpedoing another Arizona drive before it could get started. On a series-starting play at the Arizona 23, Wimbley broke through against Kolb, sacking the second-stringer for a six-yard loss. Arizona never got out of that hole either, punting the ball from its 12. The Titans took over at the Arizona 45, but were unable to score.

Wimbley’s efforts were part of another strong overall effort for the Titans defensive front, which came up with four sacks last week against the Buccaneers. Tennessee notched three sacks — rookie Scott Solomon had the other one — and hit Arizona quarterbacks seven times.

“The defensive line did a great job all night getting pressure early,” said middle linebacker Colin McCarthy, who picked off two passes. “We’re rushing four guys and getting as much pressure as we did, which is huge. For us to rush just four and play seven in the back, and be able to mix it up with different coverages and different stuff like that to confuse the offense, we benefit a lot from that.”

Cornerback Jason McCourty was also praising the play of the defensive line, which wound up hitting quarterbacks 10 times.

“The D-line was just getting after it,” McCourty said. “I said to those guys on the sideline that when they play like that, it makes our job easy in the back.”

Source: Titans Insider