Week 1 Titans Steelers Preview
Added on Sep 09, 2009 by sbworld in
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The first thing that pops to mind when looking at Thursday night’s season opener between the Tennessee Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers is how the defending Super Bowl champion has covered the past eight seasons during its season opener. The question is whether that will change this time around.
Tennessee comes in as a team that rode aging quarterback Kerry Collins to a solid season of its own in 2008, using a ball control offense along with a defense full of quality playmakers to start the campaign 10-0 en route to a 13-3 finish. Unfortunately for the Titans, it all fell apart in the playoffs as they suffered a disappointing AFC Divisional round loss to Baltimore to end it all.
With the line starting at 4.5 for this game and rising to 6 in most places over the past few days, it appears that the Steelers are getting their due credit from the books and public as the returning champs.
For the most part, the Titans roster remains intact aside from one loss that could prove to hurt with the departure of all-pro defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth. While the rest of the defense will surely try to prove they are more than capable of playing shut down football without Haynesworth, not having his intimidating size and strength as the centerpiece of the defense is bound to have an effect. The Steelers are always at their best when they are using a strong running game to keep Ben Roethlisberger from having to feel as though he is solely responsible for getting the offense moving. Having Rashard Mendenhall back from injury will surely aide the Pittsburgh depth in the backfield, while Tennessee must show they can stop the run early or it could be a long night. Another thing to ponder heading into this game is Santonio Holmes. Will he have a Super Bowl hangover or is he ready to bust out for a superstar season?
On the flipside, the Titans possess much of the same playmakers it did last season while the addition of receiver Nate Washington (formerly of the Steelers) will certainly help as the year progresses. The problem for now is that Washington is dealing with a sore hamstring and it is uncertain just how much he can contribute in the opener, if he even dresses. What will certainly be on the field is the duo of Chris Johnson and Lendale White, who packed a speed and powerful one-two combination in the Titan backfield in 2008. Whether they will kickstart the season with an impressive performance against the Steelers is the question. Pittsburgh’s defense was dominant in 2008 as it led the NFL in total defense (237.2), pass defense (156.9), points per game (13.9), total yards per play (3.9), rushing yards per attempt (3.3), passing yards per attempt (4.7) and third down efficiency (31.4), and finished second in league rushing defense (80.3). The key will be balance, meaning Collins will have to make smart plays and continue to look as impressive as he did in the preseason.
With this matchup having seen its fair share of highly competitive games in the past, it perhaps got a little more heated last December when Tennessee Keith Bulluck in addition to White stomped on the patented Steeler Terrible towel in the aftermath of their victory. Will that incident carry over to the 2009 season? My guess is that while Jeff Fisher blew it off, the Steelers won’t let that moment go forgotten. Any extra motivation they can get after coming off their spectacular Super Bowl run is a positive.
Most of these games in the past have been higher scoring than the line suggested it would go, but this might be an exception. With it being week one and these two teams known for controlling the clock, the defenses might be a step ahead of the offenses in this one.
The Titans downed Pittsburgh 31-14 on their home field last season and now are looking to prove they can do the same at Heinz Field.
Prediction: Tennessee 17, Pittsburgh 13
