NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Jurrell Casey has been elected to the past two Pro Bowls and is a crucial piece to the Titans' defense.

The defensive lineman isn't satisfied, which is why the Titans love him.

Casey stayed in town for the bulk of the dark period, lifting under the watch of strength and conditioning coach Steve Watterson -- who’s allowed to assist in the weight room but not, technically, to coach.

“Normally I go back to California and do my training,” Casey said of his work from the end of the season until Monday’s start of the offseason program. “I stayed here. My wife has been real busy, so she came her for the long haul.

“I’ve just really been grinding here at the facility and trying to get myself better strength-wise. Normally when I go back home, I am more focused on conditioning and cardio and things like that. I wanted to focus on more strength building, and Watterson was the best guy for that this year.”

Strength wouldn’t have been my guess for what Casey needed to concentrate on the most.

“The biggest thing was really just holding ground,” he said. “A lot of times last year, I was knocked off the ball a little bit more than I wanted. That’s more technique, trying to build on playing the proper technique and making sure I control the line of scrimmage.

“We finished second in the league stopping the run, but we need to be first. And that’s something I wanted to take on myself to make sure we get that done.”

Casey said he and the rest of the defensive line spent some time together during the down period.

"I worked a lot with my D-line this offseason," he said. "That’s just taking that next step. Past years we never really got together. This offseason was big for that."

Coach Mike Mularkey has to be happy to hear that from one of his key defenders.