NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota has been sacked an NFL-high 17 times, including nine times in Tennessee's loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday. Naturally, blame is going to fall on the offensive line -- but the failure to protect Mariota extends beyond there.

"It was inconsistency, whether it be fundamentals or just the way that we communicate in picking up the protection," left guard Rodger Saffold said of the pass-blocking for Mariota. "We're taking the blame collectively as an offense."

Jacksonville's front had its way with the Titans' offensive line and pressured Mariota a career-high 18 times. One of the sacks came on a twist by Jaguars defensive linemen Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue. Campbell attacked left tackle Dennis Kelly from the inside while Ngakoue looped inside to get pressure. Campbell ended up with the sack, but the interior pressure by Ngakoue along with Allen coming around from the right side after beating Jack Conklin left Mariota with nowhere to go. (Animations provided by NFL Next Gen Stats.)

Those kinds of coordinated pass rushes are difficult for offensive lines to stop. The Falcons, the Titans' Week 4 opponent, have a dangerous pass-rushing duo in outside linebackers Takk McKinley and Vic Beasley. The way they generate speed-to-power to drive offensive tackles back paired with defensive tackle Grady Jarrett's ability to pressure the middle leaves quarterbacks nowhere to go. Titans coach Mike Vrabel is well aware of the challenge the offensive line will face.

"I believe we have to have a firm pocket inside so that we can step up," Vrabel said. "Some of those speed rushers, there's a spot about 8 yards that they get to. They end up behind the quarterback, so if we have a firm pocket inside we can step up. If we can't do that, those speed rushes look a lot better."

When asked about the Falcons' pass rush, Vrabel described a play where they sacked Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz in Week 2.

"There was a really nice rush on the right side where they ran a game, and so Wentz went out of the back of the pocket. Vic Beasley ran the edge at about 10 yards. Normally that wouldn't be a great rush, but because of the design the quarterback was forced to go out of the back of the pocket, and it resulted in a sack."

How can the offense cut down on Mariota's sacks?

Offensive linemen winning one-on-one matchups: Pass-rush win rate is a metric powered by NFL Next Gen Stats. Through the first three weeks of the NFL season, the average pass block win rate for an NFL offensive linemen is 91 percent. The Titans had two offensive linemen (Saffold and Jamil Douglas) fall below that average. They simply have to do better to help cut down on the pressure on Mariota.

More decisive play at QB: Mariota is averaging 2.56 seconds in the pocket on plays that end in a sack, which is 11th longest in the NFL. The league average on sack plays is 2.44 seconds in the pocket. He is also averaging 2.97 seconds before passing this season, fifth longest in the NFL (the league average is 2.71 seconds).

On average, Mariota is getting time to throw the ball. There have been some coverage sacks where Mariota had time, but didn't have open receivers. Other times, Mariota had open receivers but failed to get them the ball because his eyes shifted to the pass rush and he braced himself too early to take the sack.

Quicker developing routes: Tennessee struggled to find success on first or second down against Jacksonville because of holding penalties and sacks that lead to third-and-longs. The Titans have faced 24 third downs of seven or more yards this season, third most in the league behind the Cardinals (30) and Jets (25). They have run 18 plays of third-and-10 or longer, tied for second most behind the Jets (20).

One way to cut down on sacks and holding penalties is to reduce the time Mariota holds the ball before throwing a pass. The Titans should use his pass-catchers on shorter routes and give him simple reads. Incorporating more wide receiver/tight end screens, run-pass options and quick route combos such as flat/curl or double slants should expedite the decision-making process for Mariota and help him getting the ball out quicker. Successfully executing the quick-hitting routes will eventually open up shots down the field on double moves like a "Sluggo seam" where the wideout runs a slant before exploding up the seam.