A funny thing happened to the Tennessee Titans last Sunday afternoon at Houston. They managed a 32-27 upset of the division-leading Texans. Now Brian Callahan’s club once again has an opportunity to win consecutive games for the first time this season. Then again, the franchise hasn’t managed this trick since Weeks 10 and 11 of 2022.
The opposition is the Washington Commanders, who are in the midst of a three-game skid after opening the season with a surprising 7-2 mark. It’s not an easy assignment for the Titans, who are 0-4 vs. NFC teams this season. However, are they catching Dan Quinn’s reeling club at the right time?
All-Time Series Record
When these franchises first met in 1971, the Washington Redskins defeated the Houston Oilers, 22-10, at RFK Stadium. Both teams have gone through name changes, and the latter is in a different city. The bottom line when it comes to this interconference setting is that the Titans own a two-game edge (8-6) in the standings. This is Tennessee’s second appearance at Commanders Field in three years, with the Titans claiming a 21-17 victory in Week 5 of 2022.
Quarterbacks: Tale of the Tape
Tennessee’s Will Levis comes off a solid effort in the upset win over the Titans at Houston. He did commit a pair of turnovers, one of those a pick-six. He also came through with a pair of touchdown passes, and managed to connect on 75.0 percent of his throws (18-of-24) for 278 yards despite being sacked eight times. He takes aim at a defense that has allowed 19 TD passes while managing only four interceptions.
He’s in the mix for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors, however Washington’s Jayden Daniels has cooled off a bit after an impressive start. The second overall pick in April’s draft has benefitted from the presence of offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. He’s thrown for 12 scores and leads the team with 556 rushing yards (5 TDs). Still, three of Daniels’ five interceptions this year have come in the past two games.
Defensive Analysis
Tennessee has been near or at the top of the NFL rankings in yards per game and passing yards per game allowed. The Titans are also eighth vs. the run., They have limited seven of their first 11 opponents below 300 total yards. The biggest issue has been a spotty pass rush and only nine takeaways in 11 games. However, this defense came up with four fourth-quarter sacks in last week’s upset victory at Houston.
A year ago, no team in the league allowed more total yards and passing yards than this franchise. The Commanders also surrendered 518 points, the third-highest single-season total in NFL annals. Dante Fowler was one of those former Dallas Cowboys who followed Quinn to Washington, and he leads the team with 8.5 sacks. Washington has allowed 122 points in seven wins, 155 points in their five losses.
Keys to the Game
Titans: Callahan’s club showed a lot of resiliency last week, and that momentum should carry over into this week’s interconference match-up. Maintaining balance will be very important. In last week’s win over the Texans, the Titans ran 66 offensive plays—33 on the ground and 33 passing. While Willis was sacked eight times, seven of those came in the first half. And Washington is looking very vulnerable these days.
Commanders: The team has a 33.8 third-down percentage in its last five games. Kingsbury (via AP’s Stephen Whyno) stated that “we haven’t been good on third down and that stops some drives. We’ve talked about, all of us coaches and players, just locking back in and resetting. We know we can get a little break after this, so resetting this week, going all in and trying to play at the level we know we can play at.”
Titans Player to Watch
Running back Tony Pollard faced Washington on nine occasions during his five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. For much of that time, he played second fiddle to two-time NFL rushing champion Ezekiel Elliott. In 2023, he easily saw his most action in this longtime rivalry.
On Thanksgiving Day at Dallas, Pollard touched the ball a combined 19 times, gaining 103 yards from scrimmage and one touchdown in the team’s 45-10 win. In the regular season finale at Washington, he once again touched the ball 19 times and reached the end zone once in a 38-10 Cowboys’ victory. Pollard ran 17 times for 70 yards and that aforementioned TD, and caught two passes for 16 yards. He figures to be busy against a defense that is improved from a year ago, but Washington is allowing the fourth-most rushing yards per game in the NFL.