Folks, it feels pretty damn good to be back. After one hell of a fireworks show on Thursday night between the Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the rest of the NFL slate is loaded up for an encore. That includes those boys in two-tone blue here in Nashville. The Tennessee Titans will serve host to the Arizona Cardinals inside the confines of Nissan Stadium. Kickoff is set for high noon, with a whopping humid temperature of 90 degrees in the forecast. I’m no meteorologist, but I’m calling for some major swampass in the Music City on Sunday. The Titans are three-point favorites at the time of this writing, with a point total set at O/U 52. With these two offenses, I like the over there, and I also like the Titans by three. Now, let’s dig into the why of all that.
Titans Keys to Victory vs. Arizona Cardinals (9/12/21)
*Test the middle of that defensive line: To the surprise of no one, this should be a big Derrick Henry game. As Walter Mitchell pointed out in the Titans-Cardinals preview we recorded earlier this week (embedded below), the Cardinals have some untested youth along the interior of their defensive line. The Titans have a solid interior offensive line. You can negate the Cardinals pass rush by running right at it. It makes way too much sense to just line it up and pound the ball right up the middle. If they’re successful in this endeavor, it could be a long afternoon for the Cardinals defense.
*Test the corners: This could be a game in which the vaunted Titans offense overwhelms the Cardinals defense. While unproven in the middle of the defensive line, the cornerback group has had to do some reshuffling with the retirement of Malcolm Butler. Todd Downing and company would be wise to test that group, as there may be big plays to be had against it. If the Titans can get a good push up the middle, and take a few stabs downfield, this game could be over quick. The goal should be to score early and overwhelm.
*Contain Kyler Murray: The quest to get this Titans defense back on track begins on Sunday. I asked Walter to put himself in Shane Bowen’s shoes – what’s the one thing about this Cardinals offense that scares you the most? His answer: “two words – Kyler. Murray.” The Titans will need to bottle that sonofagun up before he gets going. There’s no doubt that the Cardinals will want to test the revamped Titans secondary, and the Titans defense would do well to stop Murray before he can make plays downfield.
I talked to Walter Mitchell of the Red Rain Podcast and Revenge of the Birds earlier in the week about the Arizona Cardinals. We dive into the job Kliff Kingsbury has done so far, Kyler Murray’s development, Rondale Moore, Malcolm Butler, JJ Watt, Zaven Collins, Isaiah Simmons, and MUCH more! You can listen wherever you take in your podcasts, or just smash that play button on the embed below:
Listen to “Ep. 76: Previewing the Arizona Cardinals with Walter Mitchell” on Spreaker.Don’t forget to check out our friends at MANSCAPED, who just launched the new Refined Cologne. Get 20% off your entire order and free shipping with the promo code ‘SOBROSTITANS20’ at checkout.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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