Titans' Jake Locker facing biggest game of his career

Talk about an early crossroads in a make-or-break season.

From the outside looking in, Sunday looms as the biggest game of Jake Locker's NFL career.

Given what happened last weekend against the Cowboys, Locker is under heavy pressure to rebound on the Titans' trip to Cincinnati.

He needs to give everyone — coaches, teammates, fans, media — a reason to believe the offense is in good hands moving forward.

Is this an overreaction? Maybe. But there's a lot of overreacting in the aftermath of the Dallas debacle.

The manner in which Locker performed in that game, particularly in the first half, was a red flag. All his quality work in the offseason, the preseason and Week 1 suddenly was compromised by that wave of wayward passes.

"I didn't play very well," Locker acknowledged.

In the first half, Locker threw 12 times, completing only four for a grand total of 26 yards. He also threw an interception. Many of his throws were wild-high. The Titans went three-and-out on their first three series and did not run more than five plays on any of their six first-half possessions on their way to a 16-0 halftime deficit.

At halftime, Locker's passer rating was a lowly 7.6.

Coach Ken Whisenhunt said there were mitigating circumstances — receivers didn't make plays, pass protection wasn't great, etc. — but acknowledged Locker had a bad day.

The important thing, Whisenhunt noted, is that his quarterback responded and played better after halftime. Locker completed eight of his first nine passes in the third quarter.

"I like the fact that he recovered and played better in the second half," Whisenhunt said. "That's an important piece of it."

Said Locker: "I thought we did a great job in that game of putting that behind us and moving on. We have to continue building off of that."

Even so, Pro Football Focus, which analyzes video of every snap, ranked it his worst overall game as a pro.

The alarming part was that the bad performance came out of nowhere. Locker has been the model of consistency since training camp. His decision-making and accuracy have been praised by coaches and teammates alike.

The good news is that Locker has a history of responding well to bad games. The bad news is there have been quite a few bad games that required a rebound.

In 2012, Locker struggled at San Diego but came back to throw for a career-high 378 yards in an overtime win against Detroit. That same year, he responded to a horrible performance in the chill and wind at Green Bay to post a 94.3 passer rating in a win over Jacksonville.

Last season, he bounced back from a so-so opener at Pittsburgh to post big numbers in successive games against Houston, San Diego and the New York Jets before getting injured.

Thus, history tells us that he will bounce back. With consecutive road games at Cincinnati and Indianapolis after the loss to Dallas, he'd better.

Locker has a lot going for him. He's worked diligently to rehab the foot injury that cost him the final seven games of last season. He's embraced Whisenhunt's playbook and has spent extra hours studying its nuances.

In short, you couldn't ask for a better, more diligent student of the game.

But it takes more.

As the Titans attempt to break the cycle of mediocrity, Locker is counted upon to become a franchise quarterback. And true franchise quarterbacks respond to adversity. They respond to a poor game with a strong performance.

And Locker needs help. One thing the Titans must do is get the ball into the hands of wide receivers. Against the Cowboys, Kendall Wright, Nate Washington and Justin Hunter accounted for only six catches and 58 yards. A week earlier, that threesome had 13 receptions for 168 yards against Kansas City.

Don't be surprised if the Titans utilize more no-huddle, hurry-up offense at Cincinnati. Locker seemed far more comfortable in the no-huddle in the second half of the Dallas game. It prevents defensive substitutions and limits schemes, which makes it easier on the quarterback.

As the season hits an early pressure point for Locker, the Titans need to play to his strengths.

David Climer's columns appear on Friday, Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. Reach him at 615-259-8020 and on Twitter @DavidClimer.