Titans Schedule: Analyzing Weeks 8-10

Taking a different and more informative approach to analyzing the Tennessee Titans Schedule.

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Everyone, I got two full stamina bars and a master sword, and I am ready to kick some ass. Also, in reality, I have a beer gut and I am constantly tired. That is okay because it is a brand-new week and the wife and I are about to embark on something called Hotworx that will eventually become a membership we never use.

Also, super cruel for a gym to be next to my favorite, and only, good restaurant in a few minutes from my house.

Do Bye Weeks Matter?

Yes and no. Obviously bye weeks do matter on their face. A full week off can really do well for NFL players. Giving them the chance to reset mentally and physically. That matters.

What I struggle with, and continue to push back on, is this idea that when the bye week is set matters universally to every team. What I mean by universal is that teams always get a benefit with it being in a certain time and other teams always struggle when its it at another point in the schedule.

Fact of the matter is, Braden Gall put it best: It only matters when it matters. Meaning that your season week by week can change the needs of the bye week. Could an early one after a lot of away games prove more useful than it being later in the year? Could certain injury timelines dictate that it is better to have it later in the season?

Sure, but there’s no way to know that it matters until it does. This preseason prognostications and proclamations about bye weeks are pretty fruitless. The Titans went 11-5 in 2020 with a bye week in week four. It never mattered to them.

On the flip side the Titans had a week six bye week in 2022 and you could make the strong case that it needed to be later in the season. However, that was just that season.

In the end, I don’t get worked up over bye weeks, and really neither do players. You shouldn’t either.

Week 9: at the Pittsburgh Steelers

You may be thinking…wait…aren’t the Steelers after the Falcons? Yes. However, this is a paid subscription service and to be honest…the Steelers didn’t interest me all that much. So, I thought I would throw my paid subscribers a bone and put the Falcons…the more in-depth coverage…behind the paywall.

Sorry, not sorry.

Key Additions: Allen Robinson, Isaac Seumalo, Nate Herbig, & Patrick Peterson
Key Losses: Cam Sutton, Devin Bush, Terrell Edmunds,

Observation of the Game: This is normally the stat section, but I want you to go look at Kenny Pickett’s sample size from his rookie year and compare it to Trevor Lawrence’s rookie year. Pretty close in a lot of key areas. Now, I am not one to believe in a baby hands quarterback like Pickett and he did nothing to really show me that he can be a true NFL quarterback…but…could he make a run like Trevor Lawrence when given a better offensive line?

Doubtful, but it is a key observation to watch going forward for this team. They put full faith in Pickett to be their franchise guy. They may have chosen the lesser of two evils in drafting Pickett over Malik Willis, but I am not convinced either are worthy of the franchise quarterback label.

Key Matchup to Exploit: Taking away the Steelers run game should be priority for the Titans. I absolutely love Najee Harris and think that he can be a great running back, but there is just something about his fit with the Steelers that hasn’t been appealing.

It’s odd, because the Steelers should be a team he works well with. he isn’t a slouch, but maybe he is a running back that depends more on the offensive line than I previously thought. Diontae Johnson is just a drop machine. Pickens is very hit or miss in his connection with Pickett. So, if you take the running game away from the Steelers what are they?

Scariest Matchup for the Titans: Their pass rush versus this offensive line may just very well be the thing that haunts the dreams of everyone on the Titans side. I talked about this when I previewed the Browns, but this is going to be the second most daunting defensive line the Titans face this season. The Titans should, in theory, be gelling on the offensive line and hitting their groove by the point. Theoretically. Injuries happen and, of course, players/scheme don’t live up to their billing.

Write it down. This matchup is going to dictate the rest of the season’s outcome in regard offensive line.

Steelers’ Summer Storylines to Watch: The Steelers are flying under the radar in the AFC North, so the storyline is to watch is…well…I guess the Alex Highsmith extension? Nah.

Kenny Pickett’s progression? Maybe…?

In the end, I am kind of with the rest of America…the Steelers are kind of boring.

Why the Titans Will Win: Because Kenny Pickett just plain sucks. This dude average under 6 NY/A and wasn’t that great outside of one weird, miraculous drive versus the Ravens. I don’t get it with Kenny P and I never have an d likely never will. I will live in denial that he is any good.

However, right now, as I write this…he STINKS. He’s at best a 28th ranked quarterback in the NFL for me. The Titans will win because Mike Tomlin is struggling to get anything out of this offense.

Why the Titans Will Lose: When you back a wild animal into a corner it is never a good thing and Tomlin at this point may be getting rabid, and desperate, for a win. I could beat up many wild animals with my bare hands, but I never would want to face a wild Mike Tomlin in a cage match.

This defensive line could easily overpower the Titans offense and change the whole dynamic of the game. Tomlin is like Vrabel…he’s just as happy winning by one point as he is by 30 points. Tomlin is going to suffocate the Titans offense and that is how they will lose.

Final Verdict: I struggle to see a true path to where the Titans walk out of this one on the road with a W. I hate the terrible towels and Kenny Pickett, but Tomlin is just as good, if not better, at game-planing. That is the key, who is going to limit mistakes and force turnovers. The Titans have struggled with generating turnovers, but the Steelers have not. I think that swings it the Steelers way. Flashback of 2017 Thursday Night Football…Mariota….yuck.

Week 8: vs Atlanta Falcons