The last few weeks have been difficult for the Tennessee secondary because of injuries, but Head Coach Jeff Fisher said the unit has not lost confidence.

Despite losing four regulars to injuries this season, the young Titans secondary continues to work to improve. Fisher said he wants to try to eliminate the big plays by keeping his players in a position to succeed.

''We encourage them, we correct mistakes,'' Fisher said. ''We try to anticipate things, try to put them into a position to make plays. We're trying to keep from putting them into a position where they can fail. That's the way we're playing defense right now.''

Tennessee's 40-15 loss to Oakland Sunday magnified the struggle the secondary has been dealing with recently. Raiders quarterback Kerry Collins threw for five touchdown passes and just one interception. However, Fisher said his group has not lost confidence.

''I think the difficulty yesterday was the fact that we hurt ourselves in key third-down situations,'' Fisher said. ''They got frustrated, but it's not a lack of confidence.''

Fisher has singled out just about everyone that is playing in the secondary now for the effort they have given. He said this playing time has especially be valuable for his rookie cornerbacks, and Sunday showed Fisher what these guys are capable of.

''For a little guy like Michael to drive on a curl and take Jerry Porter down to the ground with effort, that was some pretty impressive play out of him,'' Fisher said. ''He's tackling well, and this has been invaluable experience for him.''