Fight breaks out between Tennessee Titans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers to end joint practices

The Tennessee Titans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers held their second of two joint practices Thursday at Saint Thomas Sports Park.

Here’s what stood out:

(Review highlights from Wednesday here)

A fighting finish

While the Titans and Buccaneers seemed to be on the brink of a scuffle the past two days, they'd managed to avoid one until the final moments of Thursday's practice.

Titans defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons and Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette ended in the middle of a brief - but legitimately feisty - skirmish in which a few punches were shared. Titans coach Mike Vrabel jumped in quickly to help extinguish the flare-up, and both teams were then separated on the field as practice ended.

Without singling out Simmons after practice, Vrabel was not pleased with what had just transpired.

"We should be able to not do dumb (expletive) that hurts the team," Vrabel said. "I'd say that's an example of that."

Caleb Farley rebounds

Cornerback Caleb Farley was a standout of Thursday’s practice after some struggles on Wednesday, ending the day with an interception and two pass-breakups in the end zone. Earlier in 1-on-1 drills, Farley successfully defended Julio Jones on a rep.

"I absolutely came in today with a mindset to be better than the day before," Farley said, "but I wake up every day like that."

Overall, the cornerbacks continue to be a bright spot. Rookie Roger McCreary was solid in the joint practices, as he has been since he got to the Titans. McCreary is pushing Farley and seriously challenging for playing time both in the slot and the boundary positions.

A defensive day

Neither side was able to score in two hurry-up possessions late in practice. The Titans ran out of time during quarterback Ryan Tannehill's possession, which included a trio of completions to Kyle Philips but opened with a sack.

"In that situation, I think if you take a sack on the first play, it's going to be next to impossible," Vrabel said. "... Not good enough."

Farley's interception ended the Bucs' first hurry-up drive. The second for Tampa ended with safety Adrian Colbert intercepting a tipped desperation pass in the end zone.

Treylon Burks returns

First-round rookie wide receiver Treylon Burks was back Thursday after exiting Wednesday's joint practice with an undisclosed ailment. While he was in uniform Thursday, Burks was clearly limited and sat out some drills.

Whatever the issue, it appears to be minor. Burks was limping in a few instances in the two practices leading up to the Bucs' arrival, but he said at the time that he was fine.

Taking roll

The Buccaneers were again without some of their top offensive weapons Thursday, with receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Russell Gage sitting out practice.

Among the other players missing Thursday's practice for the Titans were Denico Autry, Theo Jackson, Chris Jackson, Nate Davis and Elijah Molden, who'd recently returned to practice.

A new Titans defensive back wearing a No. 25 jersey was out there Thursday. Check of the roster: Tyree Gillespie, the safety that was just acquired via trade from the Las Vegas Raiders.

Harold Landry was in uniform but sat out most of the drills. Same for running back Derrick Henry, who has been sitting out much of training camp to this point anyway. During Thursday's practice, Henry conditioned in the sand pit alongside the field. When asked by a reporter about how tough it was, Henry jokingly invited him to join him "if you want to see."

"If you ain't in shape," Henry said, "it's going to get you."

Extra points

• Quarterback Malik Willis had a hurry-up snap in which he extended the play with his feet and fired a sidearm dart back across his body to Racey McMath, who was open with a lot of space. It was another good example of Willis' up-and-down training camp. On a day in which he had a rough 7-on-7 drill, throwing an interception and missing other throws, he also threaded the needle to Chig Okonkwo for a touchdown in a red-zone drill - a play that drew cheers from onlookers.

• Willis continued to get more joint-practice reps than Logan Woodside on Thursday. Said Vrabel: "We have to try to see how quickly we can bring Malik along. I think that would be the reason why."

• Vrabel - who spent most of the practices watching his defense - was critical of the Titans' run defense during a sequence in which the Buccaneers ran it eight consecutive snaps to start: "I don't think it was the run defense that we expect."

• On one play, the Titans' young cornerbacks had trouble getting lined up without safety Kevin Byard on the field. And this was apparent because Byard corrected it from the sideline as soon as the play ended.

• The Titans' Rashad Weaver juked out tackle Fred Johnson on a pass-rushing drill, getting inside easily. Weaver continues to flash in these practices and is becoming more of a player to watch this season.

• Dontrell Hilliard had two touchdowns in 7-on-7 work in the red zone, getting behind Tampa star linebacker Devin White.

• During a late red zone drill, Tannehill found Nick Westbrook-Ikhine for a 10-yard touchdown.

• Philips was as tough a cover for the Buccaneers as he has been for Titans defenders this camp, making former Titans DB Logan Ryan touch the grass on one double-move.

• Ryan and rookie RB Hassan Haskins had a big collision in a red-zone team period run play.

• With Nate Davis sidelined, Jordan Roos continued to step in at right guard.

Up next

The Buccaneers will stay in Nashville through Saturday’s 6 p.m. preseason game against the Titans at Nissan Stadium. It’ll be the second contest this preseason for each team. The Titans lost last week to the Baltimore Ravens 23-10, and the Buccaneers lost 26-24 to the Miami Dolphins.

Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at gestes@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Gentry_Estes. 

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers conclude practices with a fight