Titans vs. Saints could get flexed to Sunday Night Football in Week 16
The game between the Tennessee Titans and New Orleans Saints could get flexed to Sunday Night Football in Week 16.
The Tennessee Titans and New Orleans Saints are scheduled to do battle in Week 16 at 12 p.m. CST at Nissan Stadium in a game that will be shown on FOX, but it appears there’s a chance that could change.
Katherine Terrell of The Athletic is reporting that the game between New Orleans and Tennessee could get flexed to Sunday Night Football instead, which is aired on NBC.
It appears the NFL will exercise the 6-day window to decide whether to flex the Saints-Titans game in Week 16. It's usually a 12-day window except in Week 17, but all parties agreed to it this time. Would not be surprised if this ends up a night game.
— Katherine Terrell (@Kat_Terrell) December 10, 2019
As Terrell notes, there will be a six-day window leading up to the game in which this decision could be made final. If it happens, the game will take place at 7:20 p.m. CST on Sunday night in Week 16.
This will be an important game for both teams.
The Saints have already locked up the the NFC South, but are now looking to secure one of the top two seeds in the conference in order to get a first-round bye. Ideally, New Orleans would love to get the top spot, as it would ensure home-field advantage until the Super Bowl.
Meanwhile, the Titans have an opportunity to win the AFC South after a 2-4 start. As it stands now, the Titans and Houston Texans both sit atop the division with 8-5 records and will have two meetings in the final three weeks, the first of which occurs in Week 15.
If the Titans can win in Week 15, beating the Saints the following week isn’t as important, as winning both games against the Texans gives them the division no matter what. Should the Titans lose their first meeting with the Texans, beating the Saints becomes absolutely vital. Tennessee is currently in the No. 7 spot in the hunt for the AFC wild card.
These two teams haven’t played each other since 2015, when the Titans emerged victorious in overtime, 34-28. Tennessee has won four of the last five meetings against New Orleans during the “Titans era” dating back to 1999.
The all-time series between these two franchises sits at 8-5-1.