Jim Schwartz was not a happy man after the Titans' loss at San Diego.

Tennessee's defensive coordinator wasn't happy that his team had given up 38 points, but he was equally displeased that his unit had allowed the Chargers 393 total yards on just 45 offensive plays -- 8.7 yards per play.

Schwartz was dealing with injuries even then. Tennessee had lost linebacker Peter Sirmon for the season. Backup cornerback Tony Beckham and rookie defensive end Bo Schobel were both on the physically unable to perform list as they tried to fight back from injury. Rookie defensive end Travis LaBoy had done virtually nothing due to a concussion. Safety Lance Schulters sustained a foot injury that would end his season. Middle linebackers Rocky Calmus and Brad Kassell were both hurt and outside linebacker Rocky Boiman was trying to play on an injured knee (but would eventually miss time).

Schwartz knew that he was due to get some people back and promised that the Titan defense would improve.

He was a man of his word.

At Green Bay, Tennessee again gave up a lot of yards, but most of them were garbage yards as the Titan D forced six Packer turnovers in route to a 48-27 win.

The improvement didn't stop there.

Over the course of the next five games, Tennessee's defense gave up an average of just 276 yards and 15.2 points per game (opposing defenses actually scored 18 points themselves on the Titans during this period via interception returns and safeties). During this period, the cry from the Titans' fans was, "We need some offense to help our defense".

One month later, the cry is just the opposite.

As the Titans rack up huge yardage and point totals in December, "Where's the defense?" is what Titan fans are saying now.

The problems started in the final moments of Tennessee's stunning loss to the Chicago Bears.

In less than a minute of game time, Albert Haynesworth and Tank Williams were both injured.

At the point that Haynesworth was hurt, a case could have been made for him as Tennessee's defensive MVP. The third-year defensive tackle was second on the team in total hits (almost unheard-of for a tackle) and even today, after missing five games with an elbow injury, he still ranks fifth with 56 tackles. Haynesworth's play was opening up opportunities for his fellow defenders.

Case in point: Kevin Carter had three sacks in that Chicago game.

Williams' knee injury immediately ended his season and sent the defensive staff scrambling. Also in his third season, Williams played well against the run, could be counted on to be positioned properly against the pass and was smart enough to be moved around all over the field. Williams' versatility gave Schwartz flexibility to confidently mix up his schemes, worrying opposing offenses with various looks.

In the space of a minute, the Titans' top defensive lineman and cerebral safety were gone. And there was more.

One of the league's best shutdown corners, Samari Rolle, gallantly limped through the Jacksonville and Houston games before giving in to a knee injury that would require surgery. Tennessee's strategy since 1999 has been to put Rolle on the other team's top wideout, essentially making the game 10 on 10. With Rolle gone, that thinking -- a staple of Tennessee's defense plans every week -- was completely gone. One of the best of the best at one of the toughest positions in football was to be replaced by a very green rookie, Michael Waddell.

Nickelback Andre Woolfolk seemed to be growing more and more comfortable in his role when a wrist injury at Jacksonville ended his season.

Promising young safety Justin Sandy had been called up from the practice squad for the Jacksonville game and was promptly lost for the season with a broken foot. Sandy played just ten plays.

And you wonder where the pass defense has gone? It's in the training room.

You could feel this coming during the Houston game when the Titans' lost a 21-3 lead and fell to the Texans, 31-21. During the second half of the game, Houston began to expose Tennessee's problems as the young Titans tired. The great fear immediately after that game was that the high-powered Colts would do more of the same the next week.

And they did.

It's important to keep prospective right now about the Titans defense. The most obvious factor is that the injuries have taken away some of the Titans' best players, specifically in the secondary. In losing these players, Schwartz's options scheme-wise are also incredibly limited. He can't mix up coverages and defensive looks like he could at mid-year. And if he blitzes, he is leaving a woefully inexperienced secondary exposed to big-play threats.

The only thing that Schwartz can do it is ride it out.

Obviously, there are positives. Randy Starks is leading the growth among the young defensive linemen. The thought of Haynesworth returning to join in that mix is beyond promising.

Kevin Carter leads the team in sacks playing both defensive tackle and defensive end. His leadership is a factor in the growth of the youngful defensive line.

Keith Bulluck has had another Pro Bowl year at linebacker.

Brad Kassell has overcome his Achilles injury and has 98 tackles at middle linebacker. The injury situation has forced Kassell to be an every-down player, making him learn pass coverages which should help both he and the Titans for the future. Kassell's on-field leadership has also been a plus, as he has drawn rave reviews from his teammates.

What's happening right now should not be a huge shock. No team in the NFL could withstand these sorts of injuries --no one has a roster or salary cap room to be able to weather this storm well. As Houston moved the ball well in the second half on November 28, we feared that we were seeing a prelude to the season's final month. We feared that the progress of mid-season would be lost and forgotten.

Sadly enough for Tennessee, it all came to pass just as it appeared it would.

Whether you are a "glass half-empty person" or a "glass half-full person", keep in mind what was going on during that six week period in October and November, what the Titans defense was doing before the injuries started to cripple them.

Right now, the Titans defense looks like it is miles away. But looks can be deceiving, especially when you aren't looking at the real defense.

Don't be surprised if they stage a major uprising in 2005.