NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee set the tempo of Friday's practice to turbo.
Coaches continuously chided players to hustle back after each repetition and go to the next play in hopes of making a quicker offensive start this Sunday than a week ago.
Left tackle Michael Roos said the team expects to move quickly on Fridays and have physical practices on Thursdays this season.
"Wednesday you kind of install (the game plan), Thursday more things are in so you want to make sure you can hit and be physical and work everything out," Roos said. "Friday is 'Fast Friday.' You get everything finalized and you should know everything you're doing."
The Titans (0-1) open their home schedule when they host the Baltimore Ravens (1-0) at noon Sunday at LP Field.
"It's going to help us out," receiver Nate Washington said. "I think Coach (Mike) Munchak has done a good job of making it aware to us that we need to get in and out of the huddle and get some things going, get an early start."
Washington hustled a day earlier as well. The speedy receiver rushed back from the hospital after the birth of his daughter Niyla Monae Washington to join the remainder of practice.
Washington had six catches for 67 yards at Jacksonville last week, but the Titans didn't score their first points until the third quarter when quarterback Matt Hasselbeck scrambled and floated a shovel pass to Kenny Britt, who turned the short pass into an 80-yard touchdown.
CHALLENGE FROM FAMILIAR FOE: The Titans and Ravens are former AFC Central rivals with 19 meetings since 1996. Although the NFL's realignment in 2002 sent Tennessee to the AFC South and Baltimore to the AFC North, the rivalry has remained strong between the teams.
Baltimore has a 10-9 advantage in the series and is 5-2 in games at LP Field including regular and postseason contests. The Ravens upended the Titans 13-10 thanks to three turnovers in the last meeting (Jan. 10, 2009 in the AFC divisional round of the playoffs). Baltimore has been to the playoffs each year since, and is picked by many experts to be there again this season. The Ravens started this year with a 35-7 win against Pittsburgh after forcing seven turnovers by the Steelers.
Munchak said the Titans embrace the challenge.
"The good thing is we're going against a good team that everyone else perceives is one of the best in the league, and they are," Munchak said. "They beat a team that they've struggled with, and now we get a chance to beat a team that we've struggled with. It's going to be exciting for us."
RINGER RETURNING: Titans running back Javon Ringer, who missed the Titans' final three preseason contests, is expected to return to the lineup against the Ravens.
Ringer had three carries for 17 yards against Minnesota but hurt his hip. His recovery took longer than expected because he had a problem with his back that doctors think stemmed from over-compensating for his hip.
Ringer, in his third NFL season, said he felt 100 percent Friday.
"I feel good and I thank God that I was able to come back," Ringer said. "Hopefully this will be it and I'll stay healthy the rest of the season. The only thing I was worried about was getting my wind back up, that football conditioning, and I went pretty hard this week so I feel like I'm going to be pretty good on Sunday."
Munchak said the Titans want to run the football more than they did against Jacksonville. Tennessee rushed 117 times in its four preseason games, compared to 105 pass attempts. Last week, however, the Titans rushed 13 times, compared to 34 pass attempts.
"He looks good and ran hard all three days of practice," Munchak said. "I'm very encouraged for him and it's good for us. He should be able to play as much as needed."
KNOW WHERE THEY ARE: Throughout practice this week, Titans defensive players wore jerseys that had the numbers of Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis (52) and Terrell Suggs (55) on the front.
Lewis, in his 16th season, leads all active NFL players with 2,498 career tackles and all active linebackers with 31 interceptions. Suggs had three sacks against the Steelers, giving him 71.5 since joining the team in 2003.
Roos said Tennessee's offense will focus on where Lewis and Suggs line up on Sunday.
"The defensive front, they move around so much," Roos said. "You've always got to make sure where they're at so you can always account for them and not leaving them free. They thrive on confusing you, making the O-line go a certain way and then getting put one-on-one with a running back."
INJURY UPDATE: Munchak said safety Chris Hope (shoulder) is doubtful, and receiver Damian Williams (hamstring) and defensive lineman Will Hayes (shoulder) are questionable for Sunday's game.
