I am not a Tennessee Titans expert, if you can believe that. I don’t get a chance to watch many Titans games this season so I’m familiarizing myself with them this week as we prepare for the Chiefs to host the Titans at Arrowhead on Sunday for the AFC Wild Card game.
“They have a good defense,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said of the Titans. “We had a chance when we were able to play them last year and they’ve got a couple new people there, but it’s an active defense.”
Looking at the Titans defensive stats, a couple things jump out. The Titans defense is ranked very well against the run and not so good against the pass.
Titans defense 4th against the run
The Titans run defense is ranked fourth in rushing yards allowed and first in rushing touchdowns allowed. That should mean tough sledding for Chiefs RB Kareem Hunt this week.
The Titans have allowed 100 rushing yards just twice since October while the Chiefs have run for 100 yards in five straight games.
The thing that worries me here is the Chiefs offense doesn’t quite run at 100 percent efficiency if the running game isn’t going.
Titans defense 25th against the pass
The Titans pass defense is ranked 25th in passing yards allowed. No team has been passed on more this year than the Titans. Football Outsiders’ DVOA ranks them 24th against the pass -- one spot below the Chiefs in the same ranking.
The Chiefs passing offense hasn’t had a dud since the Bills game at the end of November. Obviously, I like this matchup for the Chiefs.