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NASHVILLE — This has been a strange start to the season for Tennessee Titans offensive linemen Peter Skoronski and Nicholas Petit-Frere. They both missed time — for vastly different reasons — but now they are lined up side-by-side on the left side of the Titans' line, hoping for better results as the season gets a re-boot.
Fresh off a bye week, Titans coach Mike Vrabel said that Petit-Frere will start at left tackle on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, replacing the ineffective Andre Dillard. Petit-Frere — a regular starter a year ago at right tackle — missed the first four weeks of the 2023 season because of a gambling-related suspension by the NFL.
He didn't play in Week 5, still working back into game shape, but was thrown into the fray early in the Week 6 showdown with the Baltimore Ravens in London after Dillard struggled early.
He played well, for the most part, but allowed some pressures, too. It was a lot to handle, especially in his first full action of the season.
"Being back on the field, I was excited to be back out there with the guys,'' Petit-Frere said. "I had a lot that I can improve on, of course, and we've done that during the bye week and now this week
"There's still a lot of conditioning work that I have to do, and we did a lot of that during the bye week. It's just all about getting back in the swing of things. I still think there's always a lot more to improve on as far as communicating. Getting more reps is important, and we're learning as we go. I'm just ready to help the team win any way I can. That never changes.''
Part of that was making the switch from the right tackle spot to the left. Chris Hubbard, who was signed as a free agent after Petit-Frere's suspension was announced, has played well at right tackle. Vrabel didn't want to make any changes there when Petit-Frere's suspension was cut from six games to four.
Dillard hasn't been good, and it made sense to make a change there. We'll see about the results on Sunday against Atlanta, which brings a physical defensive front to Nashville for Sunday's Noon CT game.
The Titans play twice in five days this week, traveling to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers on Thursday night. With their bye week behind them, they will now play 11 games in 11 weeks.
Skoronski started the season opener at New Orleans and graded out as the Titans' top offensive linemen. But he needed an emergency appendectomy the day before the Week 2 game against the Los Angeles Chargers, and he missed three weeks.
He played two games, and feels good coming out of the bye week. This, is says, feels like something of a fresh start, too. He's excited to get back to work.
"I definitely feel rested and the body feels, so the break was nice. Now we're ready for the gauntlet of the season,'' Skoronski said. "I think the bye week has helped. We've gotten a lot of work done, and we've taken a hard look at what's been going on.
"We haven't reinvented the wheel or anything, but more intensity and better execution, that's the goal. We just have to execute better. Working as a unit, just being around the guys more and spending more time together, we're all starting to gel together more. We're learning more about what guys like to do and how we can work better together. I definitely think we'll see some progress there.''
Veteran quarterback Ryan Tannehill is out with a high ankle sprain, so the Titans will have to move forward with young quarterbacks Malik Willis and Will Levis. Willis played some a year ago as a rookie when Tannehill was injured, and didn't fare well. Levis is a rookie now, and he missed several important weeks of training camp with a thigh injury.
Vrabel has been coy about who will start, and he's said both will play. In either case, for the Titans to be successful, the offensive line has to be better. It's been a problem area for years now, and it has to improve.
Skoronski and Petit-Frere are both well aware of that.
"In one way, nothing really changes no matter's who's back there,'' Skoronski said of the quarterback situation. "You still need to take care of your assignment and beat your guy. We need to take care of what we take care of up front. Obviously, with Ryan being so experienced, there's some fundamentals where we he's seen a lot, and that helps out a little bit. With the younger guys, we want to give them enough time to make good decisions.''
Willis came in late against Baltimore in London two weeks ago after Tannehill couldn't return. He was sacked four times in nine drop-backs in the 24-16 loss. There were times he held the ball too long, and he failed to make quick decisions.
But he also felt a lot of pressure from the Baltimore front. It wasn't a good look for anyone.
"That's obviously a tough situation for him to come into a game, and two-minute is never fun when those defensive linemen get to come right after you. We're not damning Malik for any of that,'' Skoronski said. "We've watched the film and we're moving on, too. We're going forward. There's all stuff that I can do better and we can do better as a group, and we've been through a lot of that in the bye week, too.
"We're expecting a good performance on Sunday (against Atlanta). We're putting in the work, and we have a good plan. It still just comes down to winning that battle with your guy, and doing that on a consistent basis. We're doing all we can to get there.''
Related Titans stories
- FRIDAY INJURY REPORT: The Tennessee Titans released their final injury report of Week 8 on Friday and ruled out three players including starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill. CLICK HERE
- WEEK 8 KEYS TO VICTORY: The Tennessee Titans are facing a must-win situation in Week 8 with a matchup against the Atlanta Falcons set for Sunday and if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Titans will have to accomplish three key items. CLICK HERE
- TITANS TRADE RUMORS: The Tennessee Titans shipped off veteran safety Kevin Byard this week and could make more deals before next week's deadline. Here are the latest rumors on the Titans' trade front. CLICK HERE
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