Byard knows how to pick ’em
TITANS NOTEBOOK
FOXBORO — A lot of things have to break Tennessee’s way if it hopes to pull off the upset over the Patriots at Gillette Stadium in tomorrow night’s divisional round playoff game.
Luckily for the Titans, they have someone in the secondary whose breaks on the ball force game-changing mistakes.
Second-year safety Kevin Byard tied for the NFL lead this season with eight interceptions. He picked off three in a 12-9 overtime win over the Browns, and two each in a 23-20 win over the Ravens and 15-10 win over the Jaguars.
No, the Browns, Ravens and Jaguars don’t bring quarterbacks who can adequately live up to an MVP candidate like Tom Brady, but Byard’s skills demand attention. For a player who had no picks his rookie year, Byard has kept up with the steep learning curve the league demands.
In other words, Byard is not a household name yet, but the Patriots will have to know where he is at all times tomorrow night.
“He’s a great player,” said Pats wide receiver Danny Amendola. “They’ve got a bunch of great players in their secondary, some names I’ve been familiar with and then some new guys.”
Brady protects the football about as well as any signal-caller in the league, but his six interceptions over the final six games of the regular season offer a glimmer of hope for a Titans team that will need to win the turnover battle to pull off the upset.
“(Byard) does a good job of reading the quarterback, playing the ball,” Pats coach Bill Belichick said. “He has good hands. He’s made a couple good catches that maybe other guys might not have made . . . . But, he has good hands, so he takes advantage of those opportunities.
“He reads the quarterback well, has had some good breaks on the ball and he’s around the ball. So if the ball gets tipped or overthrown or deflected or things like that when you’re around it, you have a better chance to get it. He’s around it a lot.”
And the less he’s around it, the better off the Pats will be.
Gronk impersonator
There’s only so much one can do to simulate what Rob Gronkowski brings to the table. But like any team that faces the Patriots tight end, someone has to try.
That guy for Tennessee this week is practice squadder Tim Semisch.
The reason Semisch plays the role is obvious. The tight end stands 6-foot-8, 275 pounds — so, according to official roster figures, he has 2 inches and 10 pounds on Gronkowski. But for a nonactive roster member compared to an All-Pro, that’s about the only advantage Semisch has.
According to Byard, though, Semisch provided the best imitation for what the Titans will see.
“I think Tim has been one of our better, if not our best, practice squad guys all year,” Byard told reporters. “Just the looks he has been giving us week in and week out, whether it is playing Gronkowski or whoever, he has been great. He has been saying, “Hey, do you want me to push off a little more or be more physical here?’ He’s done a great job.”
All hands on deck
As is the case with the Patriots, the Titans are in relatively good shape healthwise heading into the game.
Starting left guard Quinton Spain (back) and linebacker Brian Orakpo (non-injury related) both returned to practice after missing Wednesday’s workout. The only player missing was running back DeMarco Murray, who was already ruled out with a knee injury.