Neither Titan RB Chris Johnson nor the offensive line gave any indication things had changed in Sunday’s season opener, as the Titans mustered just 20 yards on 16 carries in a 34-13 loss to the Patriots at LP Field.
Johnson suffered through the worst game of his career, carrying 11 times for only 4 yards.
There were a few tiny sparks of life for the run game very early in the contest, as Johnson had carries of 5 and 4 yards on the Titans’ first drive, which ended with a field goal.
But he still at times looked tentative to hit the hole hard, seemingly trying to finesse his way to bigger gains instead of taking what was available. Whether that was because of poor decision-making or a lack of running room is up for debate.