Chris Johnson: 11 carries, 4 yards

Chris Johnson suffered through his worst outing as a pro in Sunday's 34-13 loss to the New England Patriots.


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The Tennessee Titans running back was advertised as a new-and-improved version of the man who stumbled out of the gate last season following a long, n@sty holdout. He got his money in 2011, but failed to deliver on the field.

That theme continued against the Patriots. Johnson was held to just four yards on 11 carries, the primary suspect in a ground game that produced a paltry 20 yards on the day. Titans guard Leroy Harris believes there's more going on here and pointed to systemic problems in the offense.

"When you've got a guy like C.J., you know he's going to draw a lot of attention," Harris told the Tennessean. "So (the Patriots were) going in there and trying to push us lateral in all aspects -- pushing the linemen lateral and then trying to corral him. We've got to get where we're getting our foot stuck in the ground and getting downhill."

That's not all. A source told ProFootballTalk.com that Titans players are unhappy with offensive coordinator Chris Palmer. The question they're asking internally, according to the source, boils down to, "What has this guy ever done?"

Palmer has 21 years of NFL experience, so we're not about to tear apart his qualifications. The doubts and questions are a concern, but nothing new for any team that finds itself struggling on offense with a young quarterback learning the ropes. What we don't want to do is point to Johnson, blame him alone, and move on. There's more to it in Tennessee.