Tennessee must ignite a stagnant ground game and contain Jalen Hurts’ scrambling ability to overcome early-season struggles and secure a crucial home upset against Philadelphia.
The Tennessee Titans have a steep hill to climb to redeem themselves in Week 2.
After losing to the New York Jets 23-10, a tougher challenge awaits them in the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Eagles come to town after a 24-22 win over the Washington Commanders in their season opener.
The Titans have an opportunity to turn things around if they can somehow muster a win against the Eagles at Nissan Stadium on Sunday. It won't be easy after how much they struggled to compete with the Jets for four quarters.
On the final injury report, the Titans had three players listed. Linebackers Cedric Gray and James Williams Sr. have been on the report the entire week, but Cor'Dale Flott was a late addition.
Gray missed the first game with a concussion following his UTV accident. Williams landed on the injury report with an elbow issue and was limited at practice during the week. Flott appeared on the report on Friday and didn't practice because of a quad issue.
Even though it looked bad, Robert Saleh expects Flott to suit up for the Titans on Sunday.
The Eagles present a unique challenge and opportunity for the Titans. Here's how they can rise to the occasion and beat Philadelphia:
Establish the Run
We saw just how detrimental it was for the Titans to lack a solid running game against the Jets last week.
The Jets' defensive front stuffed the Titans in the backfield all day long. Tony Pollard led the team with 35 rushing yards, as the Titans nearly abandoned the running game in the second half.
Cam Ward had 21 rushing yards, and Tyjae Spears contributed 12 to the tally.
The Titans must absolutely get the running game going against the Eagles on Sunday if they are going to have a chance.
Last year proved that while Ward has a lot of potential, he can't do this on his own. Getting the running game going early is a major key to success.
Keep Jalen Hurts in the pocket
Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons said it best about Jalen Hurts.
The Titans can't allow him to get outside of the pocket and create plays for the Eagles. The Titans need to stay contained and force him to play quarterback.
Hurts is a talented player, and if the Titans don't respect his ability to run and navigate the pocket, it's going to be a long day for the defense.
Keeping him in the pocket will allow the Titans to put more pressure on him and hopefully lead to mistakes. Keeping him in check will allow the secondary to have better coverage and will force Hurts to beat the Titans' defense with his arm, not his legs.
Keep Eagles Offense in Long Distance Situations
We all know what the Eagles' signature play is.
They've been doing the tush push for many years now with Hurts at quarterback. Even if you stack the box, it's one of the hardest plays for any defense to stop.
To ensure the Titans don't have to worry about facing this play, they need to make sure Hurts and the Eagles' offense don't often get into short-yardage situations, especially on third and fourth down.
This means not giving them extra yards with dumb penalties and putting them in 3rd-and-long or even 4th-and-long if it comes to that.
We're going to learn a lot about his Titans team from this game. If they can shock the NFL world and beat the Eagles, it could change the entire trajectory of the season.
