The Tennessee Titans hired head coach Brian Callahan to lead an explosive offense. After three games, that hope has far from been fulfilled, as the offense rightly takes the brunt of the blame for the team’s first winless start since 2009. Entering Week 4, the Titans rank 29th in total yards (260.3), 28th in passing yards (159.3), 20th in rushing (101.0) and 28th in points scored ( 16.0) per game.

Not to mention the Titans reached the always elusive 30 points, they have never scored 20 in a single contest. Starting quarterback Will Levis leads the league in turnovers (8) and pick-sixes thrown (2). According to Pro Football Focus’ chart, Levis also ranks fourth-worst in turnover-worthy play percentage with five risky decisions.

The advanced stats suggest Callahan is doing a good job running the Titans’ offense, but the blame falls more on the players.

One of Callahan’s objections this season has been to lead an offense that produces more explosive plays (runs of 10 yards and passes of 20 yards). You might be shocked to find that the 0-3 Titans do this at a pretty high level. According to data collected by Football Insights, the Titans are currently ranked 12th with an explosive play rate of 9.3 percent.

This strongly suggests that the Titans are an inconsistent unit. Callahan calls it an effective offense. Execution, Levis’ poor decision-making and a lackluster offensive line losing pressure were far bigger problems than the design of Callahan’s offense or his playmaking efforts. Not to mention the three special teams fumbles that have directly led to pints for the opponent in every game this season.

Levis has been sacked 15 times, the second-most sackings in the league. His pressure-to-sack rate of 31.9 percent is also the second-worst among all full-time starting quarterbacks, trailing only Baker Mayfield (36.1). According to ESPN Stats & Info, Tennessee’s pass block win rate (PBWR) is 29th at 43%.

The receiving trio of DeAndre Hopkins, Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd also largely corresponded to what was announced. According to Next Gen Stats, all three senior wideouts averaged between 2.6 and 2.8 yards. In Sunday’s loss to the Packers, all three, Hopkins (3.1), Boyd (5.11) and Ridley (4.27), were well above the league average of 2.96.

The lack of consistent success in the passing game could be due to the leaky offensive line and/or Levis applying his own pressure and not always trusting his reads.

Despite all of this, Callahan’s offense still produces more explosive plays than 20 opposing offenses, including the AFC Championship Game favorites Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs. Of course, that only counts for style points and nothing more, and the Titans need real victories soon, not moral ones. The Bills and Chiefs are a combined 6-0 and the Titans hold the top spot in the waiver wire.

Callahan’s offense certainly wasn’t perfect. Making adjustments in the second half is currently a weak point for the first-time head coach and game director, whose team has a minus-34 points lead in the second half.

The explosive game data provides a clue as to why the Titans appointed Callahan.

Now if everything else fell into place…