Hours Before Kickoff: Week 6

I’m not buyin’ it. Tennessee is 0-5, but they are the best 0-5 team in the NFL. Usually that’s a tongue-in-cheek jab at a bad team, but I mean it this time. I wasn’t a true believer in Tennessee’s 13-3 record last year, but I’m positive they are not as bad as 0-5.

The Titans have been decimated by injuries. What was the best secondary in football last year with Pro Bowlers CB Cortland Finnegan and S Chris Hope is being held together with tape.

Finnegan is out, which means both starting corners won’t play as Nick Harper is sidelined with a broken arm. That’s just the start of the injury problems as six other defenders have a 50 percent or less chance of playing. The list includes S Michael Griffin who is questionable with a neck injury. The secondary could be very ripe for the picking if all three are out.

Until the losses to Jacksonville and Indianapolis, Tennessee lost three games by a combined 13 points. That includes an overtime loss to defending Champion Pittsburgh and a seven-point loss to the AFC East-leading New York Jets.

Kerry Collins doesn’t have a lot of tread left on his tires, but he has enough to spread the ball around to his group of tall receivers. That will be a challenge within itself as Nate Washington, Justin Gage, and Kenny Britt are all 6-1 or taller.

Say what you want about the Titans record, but you know what you’re gonna get from a Jeff Fisher-coached team. They will run the ball down you throat with RBs Chris Johnson and the slimmed down LenDale White. The defense will be physical, relentless, and opportunistic. LB Keith Bullock is still one of the league’s underrated defenders. And even without DT Albert Haynesworth, the rotation at the position is difficult to handle with Tony Brown and Jovan Haye. Jason Jones, the interior pass rusher, is questionable.

When I think of Tennessee, I think back to the Divisional game played against Baltimore in January. It was painful to watch, as the cold didn’t keep two physical teams from hitting each other with everything they had. Tennessee’s style of play hasn’t changed eight months later, just the results.

A few things I’m looking for:

Thunder and Frightening: This isn’t the Titans’ backfield duo of White and Johnson. I’m talking about Sammy Morris and Laurence Maroney going against the third-ranked run defense. Maroney can’t fear being hit if the ground game is to be productive.

Red Rover, Red Rover: RB Johnson is averaging six yards per carry! Keep the ball out of his hands or spy Johnson all game long.

Tight Coverage: Tennessee’s offense features the tight end. They combined for 33 receptions so far. S Brandon McGowan and friends might have to repeat the coverage that worked so well against Atlanta’s Tony Gonzalez.

As much as the Titans need this win, the Patriots are hungry to recover from the pathetic second half last week. New England plays well in the throwback unis for the first time for a solid win.