The Patriots have known for a long time that Tom Brady was going to start the season opener at Tennessee on Sept. 9.
But now the Titans have decided on a starting quarterback as well, as head coach Mike Munchak will go with second-year pro Jake Locker, according to The Tennesseean's Jim Wyatt. Locker was the eighth overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft out of the University of Washington and was battling 14-year veteran Matt Hasselbeck for the starting job in training camp.
Hasselbeck started all 16 games last year as the Titans went 9-7, while Locker saw action in five games, notably relieving Hasselbeck in a Week 14 contest against the Saints and almost springing the upset. Down five points, the Titans had the ball at the Saints' five-yard line with five seconds remaining, but Locker could not get a throw off, as he was sacked by Jo-Lonn Dunbar to end the game. All told, in five games, Locker completed 34 of 66 passes for 542 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions.
Now the 24-year-old Locker will have a longer opportunity to prove himself. That begins against a Patriots pass defense that allowed 4,704 yards last season, the second-highest single-season total in league history.
