Titans use high tech cold tub to revive players

The cold tub inside their headquarters seats up to 16 players at one time with electronic controls helping keep the temperature between 45 degrees and 48 degrees. Chilling at the least, but 12-year veteran offensive tackle Brad Hopkins calls it a must.

“It’s so rejuvenating for your muscles. It’s a shock once you get in there. It’s almost a necessity because our body temps are so high. To bring them down so drastically when they’re so high, it is really crazy. But you feel the effects when you get out,” Hopkins said.

Players are asked not to stay in the tub more than 15 minutes at a time, and Geoff Kaplan, the Titans’ assistant athletic trainer, said the cold tub is a big improvement over the old metal washtubs the team used during their first three seasons in Tennessee.

“We can take care of more players, help them recover faster, help them perform better. Since we’ve moved into this nicer facility and have better equipment, our records have been better, guys have recovered faster,” Kaplan said.

Eddie George started 128 straight games for the Titans between 1996 and 2003, and Kaplan said the running back went to the tub after every practice and every game.

Rookie receiver O.J. Small from Florida said he tries to spend up to 10 minutes to help his legs recover from two-a-day practices. He said the tub is so cold that his legs basically go numb the first four minutes.

“You make a face and what not. You go in it very slow. Some people like to dive in it. I’m not going to dive in. I’m going to walk in very slow,” Small said.

Hopkins wouldn’t mind being able to put some booties to protect his toes.

“Those little phalanges, they’re going to freeze off,” he said.

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PRACTICE, PRACTICE: Rob Bironas, the Arena League kicker trying to win the Titans, wrapped up the special teams session Tuesday morning by working on his kickoffs. The Titans want whoever wins their job as kicker to handle kickoffs.

Bironas spent one season in Af2 and two more in the AFL, but he also has been in an NFL camp each of the past three years. He said he has been changing some of his steps on his approach and was working to get more comfortable and more consistent.

It seemed to be working. Most of his kicks hit around the 5, which is what the coaches want to see.

“Myself, I just want to hit the ball well. I want it to come off my foot well and put it down the middle of the field,” Bironas said.

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WATCHING RETURNERS: Brandon Jones, the Titans’ second pick in the third round, is being given a chance to return punts for Tennessee, and he’s enjoying the opportunity because he always has paid attention to returners.

He returned punts in high school in Texarkana, Texas, and he was the backup returner at Oklahoma. His favorites in the NFL include Dante Hall from Kansas City.

“I hear a lot about the beer man from New Orleans,” Jones said of Michael Lewis, who set the NFL record for combined kickoff and punt return yards in 2002.

“I had to watch those guys. Another guy from my home town is Rod Smith from the Broncos. He’s returning now. I like watching him to see what he does.”