The Tennessee Titans (2-4) will return to action on Sunday for a Week 8 game with the Atlanta Falcons (4-3) after enjoying a bye the week prior.
Tennessee enters this game at a crossroads, as the team must decide whether it will hold on to key players on both sides of the ball in order to make a run at this season or if it will have a fire sale at the Oct. 31 trade deadline and start looking toward the future.
A win may lead to Tennessee holding, but a loss would almost certainly seal the deal to force the Titans to be sellers, which, in reality, they should be regardless of Sunday’s outcome.
The Falcons find themselves in a very different position, with head coach Arthur Smith and Co. sitting in first place in the NFC South.
Now, a look at how experts from different media outlets see this game going on Sunday.
USA TODAY
Jarrett Bell: Falcons (27-23)
Chris Bumbaca: Falcons (18-16)
Nate Davis: Falcons (24-16)
Safid Deen: Falcons (20-16)
Tyler Dragon: Falcons (21-20)
Victoria Hernandez: Titans (25-21)
Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz: Falcons (28-17)
Lorenzo Reyes: Falcons (20-13)
NFL.com
Ali Bhanpuri: Falcons (20-12)
Brooke Cersosimo: Titans (20-16)
Dan Parr: Falcons (18-15)
Gennaro Filice: Falcons (13-10)
Tom Blair: Falcons (23-17)
CBS Sports
Pete Prisco: Titans (21-20) – “The Titans are a mess right now, while the Falcons are in first place after beating Tampa Bay on the road last week. The Titans might be leaning towards giving rookie Will Levis his first start of his career here. That’s a tough challenge against a solid defense, but Levis is going to be a good player. That starts here. Upset special.”
Will Brinson: Falcons
Jared Dubin: Falcons
Ryan Wilson: Falcons
John Breech: Falcons
Tyler Sullivan: Falcons
Dave Richard: Titans
Jamey Eisenberg: Falcons
Bleacher Report
Bleacher Report’s Week 8 picks
Gary Davenport: Titans
Brad Gagnon: Falcons
Ian Hanford: Falcons
Kristopher Knox: Titans
Maurice Moton: Falcons
Wes O’Donnell: Falcons
Brent Sobleski: Falcons
Score prediction: Falcons 21, Titans 16
ESPN
Stephania Bell: Falcons
Matt Bowen: Falcons
Mike Clay: Titans
Dan Graziano: Falcons
Kimberly A. Martin: Falcons
Eric Moody: Falcons
Jason Reid: Falcons
Lindsey Thiry: Titans
Sam Wickersham: Titans
MMQB
Albert Breer: Falcons
Mitch Goldich: Titans
Claire Kuwana: Titans
Gilberto Manzano: Falcons
Conor Orr: Falcons
John Pluym: Falcons
Matt Verderame: Falcons
Pro Football Talk
Pro Football Talk’s Week 8 picks
Chris Simms: Falcons (19-17)
Mike Florio: Falcons (21-14)
Sporting News
Sporting News’ Week 8 picks
Vinnie Iyer: Titans (20-17) – “Arthur Smith was once the Titans’ offensive coordinator. But that also means Mike Vrabel and his coaching staff know his tendencies. The Falcons are still a running team first and the Titans are a run-stopping defense first. The Titans should come up with good personnel and game-plan twists after a bye, when Vrabel tends to have great success. They’ll grind to victory with Derrick Henry and enough of DeAndre Hopkins for whoever’s at QB opposite a road-shaky Desmond Ridder.”
Bill Bender: Titans (21-17) – “The Falcons have been tough to pick this year because they are 1-3 ATS as a favorite and 1-2 ATS as an underdog. It’s another coin-flip game for a young team on the road, but Tennessee is coming off a bye week. The Titans are 2-0 S/U at home. Atlanta ranks eighth in the NFL in rushing defense (95.3), so Tennessee will need to be more than Derrick Henry.”
The 33rd Team
Ryan Reynolds: Falcons (17-16) – “The Tennessee Titans just traded safety Kevin Byard to the Eagles. That move not only weakens Tennessee’s already beatable secondary, it signals a lost season. The Titans are also expected to deploy a combination of Malik Willis and Will Levis at quarterback against the Atlanta Falcons. Needless to say, things are not going well for Tennessee. The Falcons are now 4-3 and in control of the NFC South; Atlanta’s defense is giving up the ninth-fewest points per game this season. The Falcons want to run the ball at a high rate, but this week, they face one of the best run defenses in the league. Desmond Ridder has been more productive recently, but turnovers have been an issue. Still, he has a high-upside matchup against Tennessee’s reduced secondary. The Titans’ clearest path to victory is through creative game planning on offense while Ridder struggles.”
Overall expert tally
Number of experts picking Titans: 13
Number of experts picking Falcons: 36
