My Chris Johnson Blog

In a case of extremes, the 4-0 Colts step into Tennessee to face the disappointing 0-4 Titans. For Indianapolis, Peyton & co. are making winning look easy. The Titans, on the other hand, have already surpassed their loss total from last season as they try to keep their season alive against an explosive Colts squad.

Colts on Offense

As always, the Indy offensive attack starts with Peyton Manning, who has completed 71% of his passes and is playing near-perfect football. Peyton is making everyone around him better, including rookie receiver Austin Collie and 2nd year man Pierre Garcon. Peyton Manning should look to feed them early and keep their confidence going. Then there's veterans Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark, who have the potential to make big plays anytime they get the ball. Peyton should have a field day with this group against Tennessee's league-worst pass defense and a beaten-up secondary. On the ground, Joseph Addai can wear down the Titans and rookie Donald Brown is versatile enough to catch the ball and make plays out of the backfield. Indy's high-powered offense can overwhelm the Titans and demoralize them in the 1st half. Defensively, Tennessee has to use their pride and the crowd's energy to their advantage and just play like they have nothing to lose. That could take pressure off the daunting task of defending Peyton and the Colts.  

Titans on Offense

Unlike Indy, the Titans haven't had the same QB leadership from Kerry Collins, who has thrown 6 picks in 4 games this season. Still, it looks like Jeff Fisher is sticking with his veteran for now. Plenty of people within the Titans organization may be questioning Fisher's decision and wondering when Vince Young will get another chance. But as for this week, Collins or Young, it really doesn't matter because neither one will outscore Peyton. To be fair, the 36 year-old Collins is not all to blame. The rushing duo of Chris Johnson and LenDale White has underachieved so far, especially in the past 2 games. Johnson can give the Titans a spark if he breaks a few runs for big gains, and he is also a safe receiving option. Collins will look to rookie Kenny Britt, who has become a top receiver for the Titans. Nate Washington has shown that he can be a good redzone option by catching a touchdown in each of his last 3 games. The Titans need to capitalize on those situations as well as 3rd down conversions if they want to make this game interesting. The Tennessee O-line also has to deal with Indy's front 4 on defense, including Dwight Freeney's dizzying spin moves. This will make it that much tougher for the immobile Collins to get rid of the football.

The Titans have another chance to win their first game of the season, but unfortunately for them they'll be running into the wrong team this week. Peyton and the Colts will keep their streak going, as Tennessee keeps their's going too.
 
Prediction

Indianapolis    30

Tennessee     17

The Tennessee Titans started the 2009 season by going 0-6 and turned their season around once Vince Young got the start to finish the season 8-2 just missing the playoffs. Although the tide changed for the Titans when Young was named the starter, the most significant impact player on the team and maybe in the entire NFL other than Peyton Manning was running back Chris Johnson.

Johnson is one of the most dynamic runners the NFL has seen in a long time and became the NFL's best running back by rushing for 2,006 yards and an amazing 49 carries of over 10 yards or more last season. With Johnson's unique talents and unmatched speed by anyone in the NFL, the Titans are now a run first offense that brings a lethal combination with Young at the quarterback position who had an 82.8 passer rating but is also a dynamic runner.

The Titans will pose an offensive threat with these two skilled players but they will need to improve their receiving core as they will count on a 2nd year player in Kenny Britt who will be their number one receiver going into the season. Britt produced big numbers in his first year catching 42 balls for 701 yards which was fifth in Titans history for a rookie while he scored three touchdowns averaging 16.7 yards per reception. If Britt can step up and improve this year bringing a third dimension to this offense, the Titans who were 12th in total offense last year will be hard for any NFL defense to stop.

The Tennessee defense that was considered to be aging cleared house and added 10 new defenders to a roster that was ranked 28th in total yards and scoring last season. The most noted players that are gone on defense are Kyle Varden, Jevon Kearse and Keith Bullock who played 10 years for the Titans and was the defensive captain. They have added players who will make an impact this season in linebacker Will Witherspoon and a rookie pass rusher Derrick Morgan who was ranked 10th in the draft overall amongst NFL experts although the leadership of the defense will be in question.

Jeff Fisher has been one of the NFL's top coaches for years but he will be faced with the challenge of putting all the new pieces together coming into this season. The Titans have brought in a lot of talent and will improve from 2009 but someone will have to take over the leadership role and form an identity for this team. The Titans will have to gain some confidence and win early especially playing in the tough AFC South Conference with the Colts and Texans. Our NFL experts for NFL Picks report that Chris Johnson has a chance to be the first running back in NFL history to gain 2000 yards in consecutive years and if he does complete that feat, the Titans will have a chance to make some noise in the playoffs.