By Ron Wynn
The fact over 1,000 fans showed up for the Titans’ first public practice last week shows just how much the city hungers for a winning team. The Predators had an awful year, missing the playoffs and narrowly avoiding the cellar. The Sounds started the week with the most losses of any team in the Pacific Coast League (71), and were mired in last place, 15 games behind first-place Omaha.
The Titans invested big money in free-agent signings and draft choices. They’ve rebuilt the offensive line and brought in a short-yardage specialist who’s coming off back-to-back 1,000 yard rushing seasons. They made marquee draft choices at guard and wide receiver.
But perhaps the biggest reason for optimism that they might return to the playoffs for the first time since 2008 is the schedule, which the NFL released a few weeks ago. It is far from the gauntlet it has been in past years, and is considered less than formidable by those in the schedule ranking business. It’s frontloaded a bit during the first eight games, but even there the Titans catch some breaks.
They open the season September 8 against the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road. But Pittsburgh was just 8-8 last season, and aren’t quite the formidable foe of the past. The second game is a big one as they head to Houston for an early showdown with the Texans. Assuming they’ve got Chance Warmack signed and ready to go, the first round draft choice will no doubt go head-to-head against J.J. Watt, who personally wrecked the Titans twice last year.
They open the home season with three games against teams they should beat. The first is the San Diego Chargers September 22. That’s followed by the New York Jets, a team in disarry, September 29. The Kansas City Chiefs won a meager two games last season despite having five Pro Bowl players. They’ll be at LP Field October 6. The worse that should come of those first five games is a 3-2 mark. A best case scenario would be 4-1.
Things then get rough for two weeks. There’s a road game against the Seattle Seahawks, who last season had the NFL’s best home record. Then the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers come to town. If they somehow can split those games, the Titans would go into their bye week (week 8) with a 5-2 mark, but more reasonably they should be 4-3.
The first two games after the bye are against the St. Louis Rams on the road and the Jacksonville Jaguars at home. They’ve got to win both of those to have a reasonable playoff shot. Assuming they win that one, they would be 6-3 and entertaining the Colts at home November 14 in a Thursday night game. A win there makes them 7-3. They hit the road for three straight, facing Oakland (Nov. 24), the Colts again (Dec. 1) and the Denver Broncos (Dec. 8). If they come out of those 1-2, that sets them up at 8-5 for the final three game push.
The December 15th home game against the Arizona Cardinals is certainly one you would anticipate being in the win column, and likewise the Dec. 22 road contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars. That would put them at 10-5 for the home and regular season finale against the Texans. A win gives them a sterling 11-5 mark and very much puts them in playoff position. Even a loss would leave them at 10-6 and still in very good shape for the playoffs.
Of course, all of this is on paper. The Titans have been known to blow games they should win, especially against divisional opponents. They must get splits against Houston and Indianapolis, and definitely should sweep Jacksonville. They can’t afford to lose road games to inferior competition, which has been something they seem to do every year. They definitely can’t afford a 1-3 or 1-4 start.
But should they fail to make the playoffs, this time they can’t really blame it on the schedule.