Titans vs. Ravens: 3 keys to victory for Tennessee in Divisional Round
By Ravi Konjeti
Contain Lamar Jackson
Like I wrote earlier in the week, stopping Jackson is a near impossible task.
Jackson has the ability to throw darts to open receivers or run with wide receiver speed and elusiveness in the open field. Jackson, paired with Mark Ingram, have a potent read option that has both players over 1,000 yards rushing on the season.
For the Titans to win, they are going to need the defense to string together its best effort. Jackson and Rashaan Evans are going to be the two vital pieces in shutting down the read option. The Titans need to consistently get hits on Lamar and Ingram in the backfield to slow them down.
The Ravens run a large amount of tight end sets with Mark Andrews, Hayden Hurst, and Nick Boyle. Kevin Byard and Logan Ryan will need to matchup against the size and physicality of the Ravens’ TE’s. On passing downs, the Titans need to take away the tight ends and force Jackson to look outside to his seldom-used wideouts in Marquise Brown and Willie Snead.
It’s a huge task to try to stop this Ravens offense. Jackson’s athletic ability paired with one of the best offensive lines in the NFL make it a deadly combo. Last week, the Titans struggled to get consistent pressure on Brady. Luckily, that was masked by strong secondary play paired with poor offensive weapons for the Patriots.
This week, Harold Landry and Kamalei Correa will need to set the edge and get into the backfield fast when necessary.
If the Titans can force the Ravens to punt or settle for field goals, then they have a great shot at winning this game. The more times the Titans can pound the ball with Henry, the better.