Robert Saleh faces his former team as Tennessee debuts a new defensive identity. Success hinges on pressuring Geno Smith and minimizing Week 1 errors to spark a resurgence.
The Tennessee Titans are just hours away from starting the Robert Saleh era.
It's been a long time coming for this team. This has been one of the longest offseasons I've ever experienced being around this franchise.
What better way to kick off the year than with a game against your old team? That's the case for Saleh as he takes on the Jets in game one of his Titans tenure.
We finally get to see the product of one offseason of Cam Ward and Brian Daboll working together, as well as the Titans learning a new defensive system. The team is moving from a 3-4 to a 4-3, meaning that outside linebackers are a thing of the past.
The Titans aren't going to be fully healthy. They'll be missing starting linebacker Cedric Gray after he was involved in a UTV accident celebrating Labor Day. Gray was ruled out with a concussion on Friday's injury report.
Keldric Faulk also appeared on the injury report with a shoulder injury, but was a full participant in practice throughout the week and is playing on Sunday.
Sadly, the Ring of Honor ceremony for Chris Johnson has been postponed because he and his family were unable to travel to Nashville this weekend. Still, it will be an exciting game as the Titans play their first regular-season opponent under Saleh.
Before we get to see how fast and violent Saleh's team plays, I thought of three keys to a Titans win on Sunday:
Limit the Mistakes
This will be the first time we see the Titans play in a meaningful NFL game in 2026.
I wouldn't go out there and expect the team to be perfect. It's Week 1 of the 2026 season, and there's definitely going to be mistakes made.
One thing this Titans team cannot do is give Geno Smith and the Jets more chances by turning the ball over. I think the Titans are definitely capable of beating the Jets.
They can't afford to give them extra chances with turnovers or silly mistakes in the first week.
If they can limit those mistakes and not give the ball away, they will be in this game. There's a difference between a mistake that results in a turnover and a punt. Here's hoping the Titans make little mistakes that the Jets can't take advantage of.
Find Ways to Create Pressure
Jeffery Simmons can't be the only player who gets after the quarterback again this year.
The Titans were 14th in team sacks last year with 42.
Thankfully, the Titans realized that Simmons needed help and added John Franklin-Myers, Jermaine Johnson, Faulk, Jacob Martin, and many others.
Breece Hall is going to be a problem on his own, but the Titans can't allow Smith to sit in the pocket all day. They need to put pressure on him and force him to make mistakes.
I want to see this Titans team prove they have fixed the pass rush, and hopefully that leads to more turnovers, another area where the Titans struggled last year.
Don't Put Too Much on Cam Ward's Plate
We know that Cam Ward has the potential to be a special player, but as we saw last year, he can't carry the offense on his own.
The Titans need to establish the running game with Tony Pollard, Tyjae Spears, Julius Chestnut and Nick Singleton. Notice how I mentioned all of the running backs.
Pollard can't be the only one having success in this Titans' backfield.
If the Titans can keep the chains moving by running the ball efficiently and keep the offense out of long downs, that will pay dividends.
Hopefully, by the time I write my next article, it'll be about a Titans win and a good start to the Saleh era.
Titans-Jets kicks off at noon CT on CBS.
