The Tennessee Titans are nearing their intra-conference showdown with the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday at Nissan Stadium.
Tennessee is not only trying to get back to .500 on the year with a win on Sunday, but the team is trying to beat the Bengals for the first time in the Mike Vrabel era.
Buy Titans TicketsCincinnati has dominated this budding rivalry with the Titans of late, winning all three games since the start of 2020, including the gut-wrenching playoff loss at the conclusion of the 2021 season.
Both teams started the year with high hopes that have quickly shifted into desperation. Tennessee and Cincinnati enter tomorrow’s game needing a victory in the worst possible way in order to avoid a disastrous 1-3 start.
This contest has several smaller matchups within the game that are going to heavily influence the outcome. So, without further adieu, let’s find out which four specific matchups we’ll be paying attention to most.
EDGE Trey Hendrickson vs. LT Andre Dillard
This isn’t as lopsided as last week’s matchup with Myles Garrett, but considering the way Hendrickson is playing, it’s pretty damn close.
Through three games, the Bengals stud pass-rusher has totaled 78 pass-rush snaps, 15 pressures, 10 hurries, three sacks and a win rate of 25.6 percent. Last week alone, Hendrickson tallied two sacks and 10 pressures.
Meanwhile, Andre Dillard leads the league in sacks allowed with a total of six, which is three more than any other tackle and two more than any other offensive lineman.
The Washington State product is currently on pace to allow 34 sacks and 91 pressures. For comparison, the much-maligned Dennis Daley finished last year with 12 sacks and 52 pressures allowed.
Andre Dillard has already managed to tie Taylor Lewan’s sacks allowed total from 2019-22 despite playing in 32 less games and 1,685 less snaps. https://t.co/qOR64wD72K
— The Titans Wire (@TheTitansWire) September 28, 2023
In my opinion, we’re nearing the end of the Dillard experiment unless he drastically turns it around sooner rather than later. This week might be his last chance.
There’s a bunch of talk about needing to help Dillard out, and that’s fine on occasion, but it’s impossible to do it throughout the entire game. At some point, the Titans need to be able to rely on their tackles to hold up long enough so the rest of the offense can thrive.
Mike Vrabel says there will be times Andre Dillard is 1 on 1 with Trey Hendrickson. pic.twitter.com/o5ok0xl5lo
— Cory Curtis (@CoryCurtis2) September 27, 2023
It’s even more impossible to do when the opposing defense is successfully getting after the quarterback by rushing just three or four guys. That means the defense is dropping seven or eight defenders into coverage, therefore, having to add extra blockers means you’re going to sacrifice skill players.
Attempting to beat that many defenders in coverage with five potential pass-catchers is already hard enough. If you’re going to go max protection all game to try and limit the pass-rusher’s impact, that’s going to leave your offense with only two or three viable targets, which is basically the equivalent of football suicide at that point.
If that’s honestly what this offense has to do just to have a chance at holding up against a dominant pass-rusher, then it’s time to try something else because its clearly not working.
Dillard undoubtedly has a ton of pressure on him this weekend, but a solid performance against Hendrickson could go a long way toward winning the fanbase over, at least for the time being.
CB Kristian Fulton vs. WR Ja’Marr Chase
Ja’Marr Chase is coming off the best performance of this young season, catching 12 passes for 141 yards en route to helping the Bengals win their first game of the year. In total, he’s recorded 22 catches for 211 yards while receiving an overall grade of 73.8, per Pro Football Focus.
As for Kristian Fulton, he has received an overall grade of 39.8 on the year after allowing a perfect passer rating when targeted (158.3). Quarterbacks have completed an unacceptable 87.5 percent of their passes against Fulton (7-of-8) for 165 yards and one touchdown.
How effective CB's have been preventing separation and how often they're targeted pic.twitter.com/Pmikxbdmau
— Jrfortgang (@throwthedamball) September 27, 2023
Those numbers might be even higher had the referees not messed up a play that could’ve been a long Amari Cooper touchdown for the Browns.
I expect to see Chase being covered by a couple of different Titans defenders depending on where he lines up, but there’s no doubt that we’ll see the two LSU products face off a handful of times on Sunday.
Should Fulton be unable to hold his own against one of the league’s premier wide receivers, it could be another long day for the Titans’ pass defense.
Titans' defensive front vs. Bengals' offensive line
After a disappointing showing against the Browns, the Titans’ defensive line has the opportunity to bounce back against a seemingly vulnerable opponent.
Not a single one of the Bengals’ starting offensive linemen currently has an overall grade higher than 59, per PFF. The average grade between the five of them presently sits at 50.62
Cordell Volson is especially struggling at the moment, receiving an overall grade of 28.4 through the first three games.
There’s a strong chance that Volson will be tasked with trying to hold his own against Jeffery Simmons, so that’s a matchup that Tennessee should be able to exploit whenever they face off in the trenches.
As a whole, the Titans’ front five has an average grade of 64.12. However, the grade is being brought down a significant amount due to Harold Landry’s current grade of 47.0.
If you just get the average grade of Simmons, Denico Autry and Teair Tart, it goes up to 70.7. Throw in Arden Key’s grade of 61.5, and the average drops a little under 70 to a respectable 68.4.
Despite the Bengals’ struggles upfront, they’re entering this game having only allowed an average of 1.7 sacks per game, largely due to Joe Burrow’s ability to get the ball out quickly, which has been a point of emphasis for Cincinnati as he’s dealt with a calf injury.
Arden Key says that #Browns QB Deshaun Watson did a great job of getting the ball out quick to minimize impact of #Titans pass rush.
Adds that Joe Burrow is the best at getting rid of the ball quickly, and Tennessee’s pass rushers need to bat balls down this week. pic.twitter.com/bJeGiv7uUs
— Sam Phalen (@Sam_Phalen) September 28, 2023
If the Titans want to help their struggling secondary out against an elite trio of receivers, pressure must come early and often, and the pass-rushers need to finish, something that was an issue last week.
However, that might be a problem if the Bengals’ game plan once again consists of Burrow letting it go in a hurry, which will help neutralize Tennessee’s advantage upfront.
Bengals' defensive front vs. Derrick Henry
As much as the Titans might want to air it out more, they still need to be able to run the football. Unfortunately, it has been tough sledding in that regard, as Henry is averaging 3.2 yards per carry and is coming off a game in which he had just 20 yards on 11 carries.
The biggest problem is the run-blocking upfront, but it also needs to be said that offensive coordinator Tim Kelly’s play-calling has been predictable when it comes to his star back getting the rock.
On the surface, this is a bounce-back spot, as the Bengals are tied for the third-most rushing yards allowed per game. However, Cincinnati has also had success limiting Henry in the three matchups with him, with The King totaling just 67.3 yards per contest.
Getting Henry going will be a huge boost for this offense, and especially Ryan Tannehill, who is at his best when utilizing play-action.
-Mike Moraitis
