Tennessee Titans face tough odds in opener vs Denver Broncos

DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 13: Kevin Byard #31 of the Tennessee Titans intercepts a pass intended for Noah Fant #87 of the Denver Broncos in the third quarter of a game at Empower Field at Mile High on October 13, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 13: Kevin Byard #31 of the Tennessee Titans intercepts a pass intended for Noah Fant #87 of the Denver Broncos in the third quarter of a game at Empower Field at Mile High on October 13, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /
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The Tennessee Titans have the odds stacked against them on Monday Night Football against the Denver Broncos.

The NFL schedule for 2020 was released on Thursday, and Tennessee Titans fans heard “good” news when they found out the team would get a Monday Night Football game in week one to open the season.

Finally, the team is getting some respect nationally, and while it is not as much respect as they deserve, it’s a start. A primetime game is a chance for a team to prove themselves in front of the largest audience.

Their week one opponent will be none other than the Denver Broncos, who the Titans quietly have a lot of history with.

The most recent history between the two is when Jurrell Casey was traded to Denver for a 7th round draft pick. Most would agree that a 7th round pick is not near enough for Casey (at least the 2018 version of him), but in an effort to clear up cap that was tied up in a veteran player, the Titans made the trade anyway.

Adding a veteran like Jurrell Casey to the Broncos already stout defense could spell trouble for the Titans in week one. The defense now consists of players like Von Miller, Jurrell Casey, Bradley Chubb, A.J. Bouye, and Justin Simmons. Plus, Casey has already stated that week one will be a special matchup for him.

After taking a look at the Titans schedule, I believe they are easily an 11-5 team and AFC South division winners. Although I expect this to be one of the best Titans teams we have seen in a while, I think week one could be a bit tricky for them.  Tyler Rowland, host of the LockedOnTitans Podcast, stated this while on the Titans Time Podcast:

"Since the Broncos have opened their new stadium, they are 19-1 in September home games. They are 48-9-2 all time in September home games. So, the Broncos have a decisive advantage in September games due to the altitude."

The stats are there to back up the fact that the Denver Broncos have an advantage during home games early in the season, especially in the first game of the season when players might not really be in-game condition quite yet.

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There are still some question marks regarding the Denver Broncos offense. Drew Lock has limited experience, but when he has played it has looked pretty good including a nice performance in a win over the Houston Texans.

Denver has a very young offense that might not be completely running on all cylinders by the time they play in week one, so that gives the Titans a small window to make up for their disadvantage.

I’m not saying that Tennessee is facing insurmountable odds in their first contest of the season, so don’t get me wrong. I think it will be a very close game that both teams have an equal chance of winning until the very last play.

But, the statistics show that Tennessee is at a large disadvantage vs the Denver Broncos. The odds are in almost every way stacked against them, but last season the Titans showed that they are a team that can prevail when the odds are against them. They are extremely capable of proving the doubters wrong, in fact, it motivates them.