NFL Power Ranking: Titans top AFC South after preseason’s first week

NFL Power Rankings: Number 7, Tennessee Titans

Some may call this bias. Others might say that this is a fairly accurate ranking. The Tennessee Titans land as the highest-rated AFC South team on paper and this power ranking for several reasons.

One of which is, with the first week of preseason games officially in the books, and after watching just about every one of them, here’s a statement that can be made with the utmost confidence. The Tennessee Titans may not get the national attention that teams like the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, and Kansas City Chiefs are getting, but they’re just as capable of reaching an AFC South Championship Game as any of those teams.

If the Titans wind up with home-field advantage, any of the AFC’s powers they face have to come to Nashville, and while that would be fun to watch, something else needs to be taken into consideration.

Even if they have to travel, the style of play that the Tennessee Titans want to employ on the football field (running the ball, playing ball control, and executing solidly on defense) works anywhere a football game can be played.

They can win playing like that in bad weather. They can win playing like that in domes. They can almost certainly win with that style of play outdoors in January.

Tennessee may not be seen as being in the same class as the likes of some sexier favorites, but that’s okay. This team won the AFC South a season ago despite injuries. They’ve now upgraded in quite a few areas of need. There’s no way that you’re going to convince anyone that’s been paying attention that the balance of power has now shifted to the Colts in this division just because they added Carson Wentz.