Chiefs vs. Titans 2021: game time, TV schedule, odds and how to watch live online

The Game

For Week 7 of the NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs travel to Nashville to face the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for noon Arrowhead Time on Sunday. The game will be broadcast on CBS-TV — locally on KCTV/5.

Even though these two teams met in the 2019 AFC championship game, few might have made a preseason prediction that both would be considered AFC contenders in Week 7.

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Kansas City’s case for being a conference contender is less solid. With a 3-3 record, the team currently trails both the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders in the AFC West — the division it has dominated in each of the last five seasons — but arrives in Nashville fresh from a 31-13 defeat of the Washington Football Team. Meanwhile, the 4-2 Titans — with a two-game lead in the AFC South — come into the game following a 34-31 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football.

The eventual narratives for this game will revolve around two players: Titans running back Derrick Henry and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

Henry has averaged more than 130 rushing yards per game in 2021, leading the league in rushes, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. Under quarterback Ryan Tannehill, the Tennessee offense essentially operates in two ways: by handing off to Henry or faking a handoff to Henry to begin a play-action passing play.

Mahomes — the NFL’s 2018 MVP as well as the MVP of Super Bowl LIV — has made a lot of mistakes in 2021. He’s thrown eight interceptions — just one fewer than New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson, who currently has the league-worst mark — but nonetheless leads the league in passing touchdowns and still has a passer rating of 103.1 on the season. Mahomes has had three 2021 games with ratings above 130 — and is averaging more than 314 passing yards per game.

So the matchup’s outcome might well depend on whether the Kansas City defense can limit Henry’s impact — and whether the Tennessee defense can hold off Mahomes. It’s entirely possible that neither defense will succeed. The Chiefs have allowed an average of 5.2 yards per rushing attempt — tied for the league’s second-worst mark — while the Titans’ defense has allowed an opponent passer rating of 101.9, which is the NFL’s tenth-worst this season.

The last two times these teams have met are examples of each team’s worst-case scenario. In Week 10 of 2019, Henry ran for 188 yards and two touchdowns to lead his team to a 35-32 win in Nashville. 10 weeks later, the Kansas City defense held Henry to just 69 yards — while Mahomes threw for 294 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions — as Kansas City advanced to the Super Bowl with a 35-24 victory.

Nuts and bolts

• Location: Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tennessee
• Playing surface: Natural grass
• Game time: Noon Arrowhead Time, Sunday, October 24, 2021
• Weather forecast: Mostly sunny and 75, winds SSW at 13 mph
• Matchup history: 27-23 Chiefs (regular season)
• Odds: Chiefs -4, per Draftkings sportsbook
• Officials: Referee Brad Allen (122), umpire Bruce Stritesky (102), down judge Danny Short (113), line judge Daniel Gallagher (85), field judge Rick Patterson (15), side judge Boris Cheek (41), back judge Greg Yette (38), replay official Carl Madsen and replay assistant Larry Hanson.
• Television broadcast: with Ian Eagle, Charles Davis and Evan Washburn on KCTV (CBS/5-Kansas City, Chiefs Mobile App, WTVF (CBS/5-Nashville) and CBS affiliates nationwide — see coverage map
• Online Stream: Fubo.TV, Paramount+
• Chiefs radio broadcast: with Mitch Holthus, Danan Hughes and Josh Klingler on WDAF (106.5 FM-Kansas City) and Chiefs Radio Network affiliates
• SiriusXM broadcast: Channel 386
• Chiefs Spanish radio broadcast: with Enrique Morales, Oscar Monterroso and Hannah Bassham on KPRS (103.3 FM-Kansas City)
• Titans radio broadcast: with Mike Keith, Dave McGinnis and Amie Wells on WGFX (104.5 FM -Nashville) and Titans Radio Network affiliates
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