Titans vs. Ravens
Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore TV: CBS
Danny Sheridan’s line: Ravens by 9
Titans’ keys to victory: RB Derrick Henry is their greatest asset on offense, and when he’s running well, he can wear down a defense over the game. If Henry can break off a few big runs early, it’ll open up play action and potentially a big play against the Ravens’ aggressive secondary. Tennessee’s defense needs toget pressure up the middle to stop QB Lamar Jackson from picking them apart. But that also means shutting down the rushing attack led by RB Mark Ingram and his physical runs.
Ravens’ keys to victory: Defensively, the Ravens need to gang tackle with perfect technique to prevent missed tackles and yards after contact. Against the pass, it’s all about shutting down the deep ball. S Earl Thomas will need to have a great game patrolling the back end to ensure there are no huge completions. Offensively, the Ravens have dominated but gotten into trouble when they keep committing turnovers.
Matchup to watch: Titans LB Rashaan Evans vs. Ravens’ Jackson. If Evans, speedy in his own right, can keep Jackson from breaking any big runs, he’ll allow the rest of the defense to play a normal game. However, all it takes is one big run from Jackson for other defenders to start paying attention to the backfield, and that’s when the Ravens’ misdirection plays create big gains.
Who wins? In games where Baltimore gets an early lead, it has managed to chew up the clock on long drives. While the Titans are underrated on both sides of the ball, they’re too one-dimensional offensively to keep up.
Ravens, 38-20