It’s the first full week of NFL preseason contests and we have a matchup featuring a pair of former AFC Central foes locking up on the gridiron down in Charm City. The Tennessee Titans are on the road as they travel to face the Baltimore Ravens Thursday night in the opening tune-up game for both teams. Tennessee finished 12-5 in 2021 and won the AFC South only to lose 19-16 to Cincinnati in the AFC Divisional Round at home, leading to disappointment. Baltimore was ravaged by injuries last season and fell apart down the stretch, finishing 8-9 to miss the postseason. These teams have met 21 times in the regular season with the Titans holding a narrow 11-10 advantage.
Tennessee finished the regular season 12-5 and earned home field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs last season thanks to wins over Buffalo and Kansas City. Of course, things didn’t go their way in the playoffs as the Titans put the game in the hands of Ryan Tannehill and the passing game as opposed to the league’s fifth-best run game. Tannehill threw three interceptions, including one that set the Bengals up for the game-winning field goal in the final second, and the Titans were done. Speaking of gone, both starting receivers from a season ago, Julio Jones (Buccaneers) and A.J. Brown (Eagles) are no longer with the team. Robert Woods was picked up from the Rams but is recovering from a knee injury. Tennessee drafted QB Malik Willis from Liberty along with WR Treylon Burks from Arkansas. RB Hassan Haskins will be slotted in to provide another physical back to work with Derrick Henry. Willis will get a chance to prove he ca n unseat Logan Woodside as the #2 QB on the roster starting here. Losing offensive lineman Rodger Saffold III and David Quessenberry means that the team is going to have to make some changes there as well. That’s not good news for Tannehill, who was sacked 47 times last season.
Last season, the Titans were 24th in the league in passing offense with 201.1 yards per contest and fifth in rushing offense by averaging 141.4 yards per game. Tennessee finished 15th in the league in scoring offense with 24.6 points per game and 6th in scoring defense by allowing 20.8 points per game. Ryan Tannehill was 357 of 531 passing for 3,734 yards with 21 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He was fourth on the team with 270 rushing yards plus seven scores though he was sacked 47 times last season. Derrick Henry led the team with 219 carries for 937 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. D’Onta Foreman (133 carries, 56 6 yards, three TD) and Dontrell Hilliard (56 carries, 350 yards, two TD) carried the load with Henry on injured reserve. With Foreman gone, Haskins gets a crack to step in and potentially upend Hilliard for the #2 role. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine (38 grabs, 476 yards, four TD) is the top returning receiver from last season. Randy Bullock is 42 of 45 on extra points and 26 of 31 on field goal attempts with a long of 51 last year.