NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Look, learn, eliminate and forget.
That's the approach that Titans coaches and players took Monday, a day after committing seven turnovers and 11 penalties in a 19-11 home loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher said the team put things in perspective so it can prepare for its first road game on Sunday at the New York Giants in New Meadowlands Stadium.
"When the guys leave the building, they have to know exactly what happened and why it happened and make sure that everything is corrected and then leave it and move on to the next one," Fisher said. "You can't have a lingering effect when you come back to work Wednesday."
Players use Mondays to study film from the previous game and are given Tuesdays off, but Fisher said nearly all of the players worked last Tuesday and he expects more of the same this week
Tennessee (1-1) gave up a touchdown on the opening kickoff to Pittsburgh (2-0). Mewelde Moore caught the kickoff and ran eight yards to the 11 before flipping it to Antonio Brown on a reverse, and Brown ran 89 yards, mostly in front of the Titans' bench, for the score. It was Brown's first time to touch the ball in the NFL.
"It was a well-designed reverse and scheme, based on what we had seen," Fisher said. "The return man (Brown) actually went to our right and wheeled back around. They knew he was there. They expected to see him come to the left. Nevertheless, there's lanes, there's responsibilities, there's contain. Mouton was unblocked, and (Brown) should have been tackled on the 15-yard line."
Titans rookie kick returner Marc Mariani returned the ensuing kickoff 34 yards before fumbling. Starting quarterback Vince Young threw two interceptions and lost one fumble, running back Chris Johnson lost a fumble before halftime, and Kerry Collins threw an interception and lost a fumble after he replaced Young in the fourth quarter.
"You can blame it on ball security but all the turnovers were different," Fisher said. "We have to do a much better job of protecting the football at all costs."
Both of Young's interceptions occurred in Steelers territory, and the first happened during a throw into the end zone on first-and-10 from the Pittsburgh 16.
"I think, overall, we probably had too much in the game plan," Fisher said. "We probably asked too much of our offense against (the Steelers') defense. In retrospect, after talking it over with the offensive staff, I think we had too much going in the game plan. That's a reflection of how far (Young has) come. It was just a bad day offensively."
Trailing 16-3 early in the fourth quarter, Fisher subbed Collins for Young. Collins' first three series ended with an interception, a punt and a fumble, but the 16-year NFL veteran led Tennessee on a 17-play, 85-yard touchdown drive on his fourth series.
Fisher said immediately after the game that Young will remain the Titans' starter and reiterated that Monday.
"Experience had nothing to do with that decision from this standpoint," Fisher said. "It's like if I decide to fake a punt or go for it on fourth down. I made the decision. It's not carrying over. (Young) doesn't need to look over his shoulder. We needed to throw it to catch up to have a chance to win. Kerry's had a lot more experience against that defense."
Fisher said Young "shouldn't like" that he was removed from the game but can move on.
"I would expect any player that was replaced for whatever reason not to be happy with it," Fisher said, "but what you do is you come back to work, you work harder, you learn from it and you improve. The position is not an easy position to play."
Young was picked up and slammed to the ground by two Steelers defenders in the third quarter.
When asked Monday if the play should have been a personal foul penalty, Fisher said: "Yes, there should have." A reporter then asked, "Why didn't he get that call?"
Fisher replied: "You'd have to ask the referee. I was wondering the same thing. You say, 'Well, if that happened to (New England QB Tom) Brady, or that happened to so and so, there would have been seven flags on the field.' Yes, probably. Why wasn't there one yesterday? Maybe it was the heat."
For all the focus on the turnovers and penalties, the Titans defense allowed the Steelers just seven first downs the entire game and held Pittsburgh to 127 total yards.
The Titans recorded four sacks of Steelers quarterbacks Dennis Dixon and Charlie Batch. Tennessee has eight sacks on the year, third best in the NFL, and leads the league in total defense (206.5 yards per game) and passing defense (85.5 yards per game).
Defensive end Jason Babin, who is in his first year with the Titans, has recorded a sack in each game. Babin said he's happy with his start and role in Tennessee. He said he watched the Colts-Giants game Sunday night and enjoyed watching the pressure that Indianapolis put on New York quarterback Eli Manning in a 38-14 Colts' win. Babin said the Titans must be sharp against Manning.
"(Eli and Peyton Manning are) nifty," Babin said. "So many times, you're pulling them down and they sidearm it out. He's smart. He can see the blitzes. He can see the coverage. So we're going to have to be on our game."
