How Did Quandre Diggs Stop Tyreek Hill? Breaking Down the Titans’ Defensive Play

During the first half of their Monday Night Football matchup against the Miami Dolphins, the Tennessee Titans made a 4th-down stand at midfield to create a turnover on downs. The stop came on a jet sweep to Tyreek Hill, who was tackled on the sideline for no gain.

It was no surprise that Hill was given the ball to make the play. However, Diggs looked ready to counter this move from Mike McDaniel. As the ball was snapped, cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr. tore into the backfield from his boundary alignment.

The rookie fifth-round pick got around Dolphins’ receiver Jaylen Waddle and forced Hill to bounce his run backward, which delayed his movement up the field. After Brownlee Jr. diverted Hill from his original path, linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. pursued him to the outside.

His effort prevented Hill from being able to turn the corner once he navigated his way past Brownlee Jr. Finally, safety Quandre Diggs arrived on the scene. The defensive back was able to fly toward Hill as he approached the sideline, and made a tremendous form tackle to keep him from reaching the first down marker. This handed over a 1-yard loss to the already struggling Dolphins.

The executed play was completed as the Titans delivered another field goal and took a 9-3 lead after the second quarter. While Tennessee offense looked promising, it was the defense that provided the edge to the team, especially in terms of limiting the ‘Cheetah’

Hill’s exceptional speed makes him a scoring threat from anywhere on the field. It takes a village to limit his impact. Luckily, Tennessee had a pantheon of Titans available to do just that.

Tyreek Hill hasn’t been in tip-top shape lately

Hill, who was voted the league’s best player by his peers this offseason, has not been able to find his footing in Miami’s offense since quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was injured in Week 2. He recorded just 40 receiving yards against the Seattle Seahawks last week, and only had 25 yards versus the Titans through three quarters.

Unfortunately for Hill, his struggles to find space to operate translated to his ball security. On the Dolphins’ opening drive, he failed to corral an errant lateral from quarterback Tyler Huntley. His inability to snare the pigskin allowed Tennessee to recover and gain another possession.

Miami trailed Tennessee 19-6 at the end of the third quarter. Both, the Dolphins and Titans will be 1-3 if Miami is unable to overcome the 13-point fourth-quarter deficit.