Burning question: is it Jake Locker time in Tennessee?

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While Cam Newton shined and Blaine Gabbert and Christian Ponder struggled in their rookie seasons, fellow 2011 first-round selection Jake Locker simply sat. The Tennessee Titans signed Matt Hasselbeck after drafting Locker to be their starting quarterback in 2011, and Hasselbeck indeed was the starting quarterback for the Titans every single game. 2012 is a new year, though. Will it be Jake Locker’s time to start, and will this affect what the Titans will do in the offseason?

Personally, I thought playing Matt Hasselbeck all season was the right thing to do. With no offseason, and coming out of college with serious accuracy questions, starting Locker as a rookie was a dicey proposition. There were some calls to start Locker at the end of the year.

In evaluating Locker’s play at TotalTitans.com, I saw decidedly mixed things and was against Hasselbeck being benched so long as the season was not irrelevant.

The Titans apparently agreed with me, as they were in playoff contention through after their Week 17 game had ended and Hasselbeck got the starts. Further, while Hasselbeck is not an elite quarterback, I thought he had a very good season and was the Titans’ most valuable offensive player.

Beginning with head coach Mike Munchak’s season-ending press conference, and continuing on with any time Munchak or GM Ruston Webster has spoken in public, the consistent mantra has been the Titans’ 2012 starting quarterback job will be an “open competition” in training camp, and the best player will start come Week 1 next season.

Obviously, teams speak of open competitions for starting jobs much more than they actually have open competitions for starting jobs. Locker challenges opponents in ways Hasselbeck cannot, with his arm strength and mobility, but it will be his ability to develop as a passer that determines whether he can win the Titans’ starting job in 2012. Can he read defenses and wide receivers and throw the ball to the right player and spot? Can he hit that spot when he tries to throw the ball there, especially on throws outside the numbers?

The Titans do not simply want to hand Jake Locker the starting job. The last time they handed a high first-round draft pick the starting quarterback job, it did not end up very well. Vince Young used his mobility to make plays, but failed to develop high-level passing skills. Young apparently had psychological issues Locker does not seem to, but the Titans probably understand their quarterback must show the ability and willingness to work on developing high-level passing skills if he is to be a successful long-term starter.

Thus, the competition, which I believe will essentially be a referendum on Jake Locker’s devleopment and work this offseason. If he puts in the time, the job will be his. If not, Matt Hasselbeck will start for another season.

Beyond the quarterback position, the Titans are hoping a return to full health from Kenny Britt will solve their issues at wide receiver. Britt was awesome in his limited time on the field in 2011, but expecting that level of play for sixteen games in 2012 seems like a dubious proposition. ACL injuries frequently take two years to fully recover from, and Britt also missed significant time in 2010. Without him, the receiving corps isn’t nearly as potent, but the Lavelle Hawkins extension shows the Titans seem content to stick with what they have.

What would help Locker would be a return to productivity by the running game. A year of cohesion on the offensive line failed to transform them from average into the outstanding line the Titans used to have. Right guard Jake Scott is a free agent and unlikely to return. There is no clear replacement for him on the roster. Scott remained a somewhat capable pass protector, but was a liability in the running game.

As I wrote during the season, though, the biggest liability for the Titans’ running game was Chris Johnson, who spent too much time going down easy and not enough breaking tackles. Research by Football Outsiders has indicated mobile quarterbacks generally tend to help running backs be more productive, but if Johnson plays like he did for much of 2011, it won’t matter if Locker starts or not.

On par, though, the parts around the starting quarterback will be at least as good in 2012 as they were in 2011. Matt Hasselbeck produced an offense fairly close to league average in 2011. If Jake Locker puts in the work and improves, he should be able to do at least as well in 2012. If the Titans can maintain the defensive improvement they showed, that might leave him on the right side of the playoff bubble instead of the wrong side.

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