Previewing the Titans at Houston matchup

The offense is about the same as it was when the teams met in Week Three. Matt Schaub returned from a four-game absence with a torn MCL to pass for 414 yards last week.

 

Add Steve Slaton to the list of rookie running backs having a good year. He gained 116 yards rushing in Week Three, the only running back in the league to go over the century mark against the Titans this year.

 

Andre Johnson is the best receiver in the AFC South. Imagine how much better he’d be if he had decent quarterbacks throwing to him for the last several years.

 

TE Owen Daniels always seems to have good games against the Titans.

 

The Texans have proven this year they can really move the ball, currently ranking third in the league in total yards. That hasn’t been reflected on the scoreboard, though, as Houston is just 15th in scoring. The reason? The Texans has given up the ball eleven times more than they’ve taken it away. The Houston Chronicle’s John McClain called them “Team Turnover”.

 

DeMeco Ryans leads Houston’s defense with 94 tackles and Mario Williams has 11 sacks. The matchup between Michael Roos and Williams should be a good one to watch. 

 

The rest of the defense will be considerably different than the first game, with six new starters: CB Dunta Robinson, FS Eugene Wilson, SS Nick Ferguson or Brandon Harrison, WLB Xavier Adibi, SLB Kevin Bentley and DT Travis Johnson.

The Texans are ranked 26th in the league in scoring defense, so expect the Titans to put some points on the board. I imagine the team that runs the ball best should win on Sunday. One other thing I can’t help but thinking about is the Texans’ minus-11 turnover margin. The Titans, on the other hand, are plus-11.

Prediction:

Titans 31, Texans 20