Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis wowed fans, the media and teammates with his debut win against Atlanta last week. But opponents now have a better idea how to defend against him.
-- Photo By Wade Payne | ApThere will likely be rough waters ahead for Will Levis as a rookie quarterback.
Few young quarterbacks escape the types of bad days that happen when NFL defensive coordinators throw complex schemes and disguises designed to make a rookie QB doubt his eyes.
But for whatever Levis might go through down the line, he passed his first test as a pro quarterback with flying colors.
And it went beyond just the dazzling arm and impressive stats Sunday (19 of 29 for 238 yards and four touchdowns) in the Titans’ 28-23 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
It came with poise and execution that has, quite frankly, been missing from the quarterback position for the Titans for much of this season.
Maybe some of it had to do with better protection, or the Falcons’ decision to stick with press, man-to-man coverage for a good part of the day.
But Levis had a command of the offense from start to finish that was more emblematic of a veteran than a rookie making his first regular season appearance, much less start.
He exhibited a command of the huddle and a knowledge of the offense, often gesturing at the line of scrimmage and putting guys in the right places pre-snap.
Usually when a rookie quarterback steps onto the field, the coaching staff will try to scale down the offense and give a guy much less to have to think about when operating the offense.
But Levis showed an ability to run the full extent of the playbook, which is something the Titans and offensive coordinator Tim Kelly were able to take full advantage of against the Falcons.
Levis gave the credit to Kelly and quarterbacks coach Charles London for helping him to be so prepared.
“I was just going off my rules and what was asked of me at the position. I think that I got to thank Coach Kelly and Coach London for preparing me these last couple of weeks,” Levis says. “I thought the game plan was just really fitting for what we were going against and for it being my first start and everything.
“We have multiple ways we can open up the playbook and we showed some of that today,” he continues. “But I mean, props to them for putting me in a position to succeed.”
Head Coach Mike Vrabel says Levis showed confidence throughout the game.
“I don’t think it ever wavered,” he says. “I think that it was strong throughout. There’ll be a lot of things that we can improve on. But even just getting us in operationally, I was kind of taking a peek at the clock and I’ve got to make a decision whether I’m going to call timeout or trust the quarterback to get that snap before zero and then the ball doesn’t move, we know what the rules are.
“So I thought that was good. It could have been better, but just operationally, it was good.”
Wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, who made Levis’ day much easier with three touchdown catches, says the rookie’s demeanor on the field was like that of a veteran.
“Obviously, he’s a very talented quarterback, confident, plays the game like he’s been here before,” Hopkins says.
Derrick Henry, who normally would have been the talk of the game with his 101-yard rushing effort, took a back seat to Levis’ debut and came away impressed: “He was playing out of his mind. It was good to see, because he works so hard.
“And I could tell he was locked in all week, throughout the week, through practice. He was all excited. To see it come together for him and the offense and us being able to finish drives and make some explosive plays.
“He was calm, cool and collected. He took charge when he needed to, was voicing what we needed to do better and echoing what the coaches were giving him and then he was saying it to us. Did a great job, and I’m so glad he had a great game today.”