The Tennessee Titans are a little more than 24 hours away from hosting the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons in a Week 8 showdown.
Coming off a bye, Tennessee is now stepping back on the football field without one of the greatest players and leaders in franchise history. The decision to trade Kevin Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles creates another question mark for a team that is full of them at the moment.
Despite the move, Tennessee has a chance to get back on track against a formidable opponent that has a lot of familiar faces on the roster.
A win would get the Titans back to within one game of a .500 record, while another loss would likely put an end to any realistic chance of turning their season around.
Sunday’s contest has a ton of matchups that will play a big part in helping to determine the outcome of the game. Let’s not waste anymore time and find out which four specific matchups we’ll be keeping our eyes on come Sunday.
QB Will Levis vs. Falcons’ pass defense
During the week, Titans head coach Mike Vrabel has said the team will use both quarterbacks, Will Levis and Malik Willis, in place of an injured Ryan Tannehill, with Vrabel even suggesting the two could alternate series.
I personally have a hard time believing the Titans will actually do that. If I had to guess, I think it’s much more likely that Willis ends up having a couple of packages where he occasionally gets to use his legs.
Regardless of who is back there, the Titans will have their work cut out for them against a talented Falcons pass defense that is allowing the seventh-fewest amount of yards per game (190.1).
Cornerback A.J. Terrell has sneakily been one of the better players at his position for a few years now, while safety Jessie Bates currently owns the highest overall grade amongst all safeties (91.3), per Pro Football Focus.
It could be a rough day for someone like Levis, who will be making his NFL debut in some form of fashion.
However, the talent that the Kentucky product possesses is very real. He has the arm talent to make every throw on the football field and he is a severely underrated athlete who can not only extend plays with his legs, but make them as well.
LOOK AT THIS MONSTER RUN BY QUARTERBACK WILL LEVIS
HIT THE SPIN MOVE ON EM TOO#BBN
pic.twitter.com/I1p3LBr7YT— Kentucky Kavalry #BBN (@KentuckyKavalry) October 10, 2021
Levis also has plenty of experience with running a pro-style offense, so that won’t be foreign to him come Sunday. He tends to thrive in play action, and that’s one of the reasons why many felt he would be a good fit for the Titans during the pre-draft process.
I won’t act like I was Will Levis’ biggest supporter during the pre-draft process, but that arm talent paired with his ability to run a pro-style offense always intrigued me.
At this point, he’s got my support until he gives me a reason not to.#Titans https://t.co/RgK8ktB5Ww pic.twitter.com/bUXrvC1jC8
— Shaun Calderon (@ShaunMichaels98) October 17, 2023
I’m very intrigued to see him operating the play-action game now that he has players such as Derrick Henry, Tyjae Spears, DeAndre Hopkins, and Treylon Burks to lean on.
That alone is miles better than anything he ever had at Kentucky when he was essentially forced to carry the entire program on his shoulders just to give his team a chance against superior SEC teams on a weekly basis.
If the Titans are going to win this weekend, Levis must be smart with the football because the Falcons have several talented defenders who will try to capitalize on rookie mistakes.
Titans’ pass rush vs. QB Desmond Ridder
In order for Tennessee to come out on top tomorrow, it’s going to need its pass-rushers to wreak havoc against Falcons quarterback, Desmond Ridder.
The Cincinnati product has been prone to putting the ball in harm’s way at this season. Ridder has fumbled the ball a total of six times, losing one of them, on top of throwing six interceptions, as well.
As a team, Atlanta is tied for the second-worst turnover differential (-7) in the league. Tennessee has the opportunity to capitalize on these mistakes if it’s able to consistently make Ridder uncomfortable in the pocket.
To truly accomplish that, the Titans desperately need Jeffery Simmons to get back to being the dominant and disruptive player he was prior to hurting his shoulder.
Unfortunately, this could be a difficult week to get back on track, especially whenever he’s lined up against Falcons All-Pro guard Chris Lindstrom or center Drew Dalman. Those two are a big reason why the Falcons are currently ranked as the third-best offensive line.
Falcons move into the top-3 💪
Offensive line rankings entering Week 8:https://t.co/3lUIr484jb
— PFF (@PFF) October 27, 2023
According to PFF, both Lindstrom (84.5) and Dalman (82.5) have recorded the second-highest grade amongst any player at their respective position.
Despite their success upfront, especially in the run game, Atlanta is relatively vulnerable in pass protection. The Falcons enter Sunday’s battle ranked in the bottom 10 of the NFL (T-23rd) when it comes to sacks allowed per game. The Falcons are allowing an average of 2.9 sacks per contest.
This would be a great time for the pass-rush to make its presence felt in this one, especially against an offense that sports some talented pass-catchers who figure to give Tennessee’s short-handed secondary (Roger McCreary is out) fits.
If the group can get after Ridder, it will undoubtedly go a long way toward picking up a much-needed win.
RBs Derrick Henry and Tyjae Spears vs. Falcons' front-seven
The Falcons are one of the few teams who have a top-10 defense against both the run and pass. Atlanta is only allowing an average of 95.3 yards per game on the ground, which is the eighth-fewest at the moment.
However, this week the Falcons are facing a ridiculously talented running back tandem in Derrick Henry and Tyjae Spears that has combined for at least 129 total yards from scrimmage in five games this season, three of which they eclipsed over 145 total yards.
With a rookie quarterback likely playing the majority of the game, Tennessee desperately needs a strong showing from its pair of running backs, both on the ground and through the air in the short passing game.
Titans' run defense vs RBs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier
If the Titans want to stay undefeated inside Nissan Stadium, they have to get back to being a suffocating run defense.
Before their last two losses, the Titans were only allowing an average of 70 rushing yards per game, the fourth-fewest in the NFL. Since then, they’ve allowed well over 100 yards on the ground in each of the last two contests, which has raised their average to 102.0 rushing yards allowed per game.
The Titans now enter Sunday’s contest with the 14th-best run defense in the NFL after sporting one of the best in each of the last two seasons.
Meanwhile, The Falcons are heading into Sunday’s showdown averaging the eighth-most amount of yards per game on the ground (124.3).
Atlanta’s backfield duo of Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier have combined for 705 rushing yards on the year. Robinson, in particular, has shown flashes of brilliance in his limited sample size, averaging 5.0 yards per carry.
The Titans must find a way to limit their impact, which in turn would force an inconsistent signal-caller in Ridder to win this game with his arm.
