I kinda like them thinking they are gonna pound us. It will be that much more fun to read their reactions after they go home with their horns between their legs.

So far, the teams you’ve faced are placing 26th, 28th, and 29th in total scoring offense. I know it’s week 3, but really, that doesn’t say much for the amount of points these teams are putting up.

And no, the Vikings do not have a powerhouse offense (ranked 23rd in points scored), but we do have a defense that’s gone up against significantly better teams (Green Bay, Carolina, and Indianapolis) and performed well against all of them.

Yes, we did lose to Indy two weeks ago. Mainly because we didn’t call any pass plays in the game. We added pass plays into the mix and hey! We can actually score a touchdown! Funny that.

And, really, who do you think you’re going to face later this year that has a better run offense than the Vikings? Our running game is currently ranked 5th in the league, and this is when opponents regularly stack eight men in the box. And when AD isn’t on the field, Chester Taylor is, and that’s not really making matters much easier.

Glad to hear you’re fueled up, but I’d really suggest you don’t start drinking this early in the week. I haven’t seen any smack talk about Collins’ ability, and I don’t expect to. I’d expect smack talk about VY, but that’s because he’s a head case. The smack talk was relating to how much he’s going to get sacked, and that’s more a product of our front four against your O-line. So far, the only way to avoid it has been to roll out regularly, and I don’t think Collins has that kind of mobility.

This isn’t going to be a high-scoring game, and you know it. I’ll be surprised if either team scores above twenty points. This is going to be a matter of who’s defense wears out first. I’m betting it’ll be yours, but that’s because I’m a homer.

Looking forward to watching you cry in your beer,
 - RR

love it! continue!

i haven’t watched the vikes much but it sounds like their current incarnation is jags/titans like – run it and stop run are the strengths. should be a bruising game. i think the titans have a lot more experience at fisherball, though, which sounds like what the vikes are trying to play this year. my money would be on titans even if i was neutral (which i isn’t).

I’m really tired of hearing about how great Tennessee’s D from all the talking heads out there (and some of the commentors on this site.) Yes they’re good, but so are we. But let me set something straight: Tennessee, in no way, shape, or form is going to walk all over us this game, defensively or offensively. Because I’m most annoyed with the coverage their D is getting, and how they’re going to shut down our running game, let’s start there.

Titans rushing defense:

The rushing offenses the Titans have faced have totaled 848 yards this year. For us that number is 841 yards (essentially equal). The difference is that we’ve given up almost 20 yards less per game rushing than the Titans. What gives?

If we just look at rushing, they’ve played against the 13th, 24th, and 29th best rushing attacks. Of all those rankings, only Jacksonville’s 13th best rushing attack stands out as noteworthy. That’s also the closest game for Tennessee all year (a 17-10 win).

I think, at this point, it’s safe to say that AD + Chester > Fred and MJD.
According to the stats:
Through 3 games, AD + Chester = 421 yds, 85 carries, 4.95 ave.

For the other two, Fred and MJD = 325 yds, 80 carries, 4.06 ave.

Thus, we are the best rushing attack they have seen yet, and don’t be fooled into thinking that they have the second coming of Sam Adams and Tony Siragusa waiting for our boys.

Titans Pass defense:
Where Tennessee really excels is defending the pass (3rd in the NFL). So far this year they’ve only given up 454 yards through the air—all year. We’ve allowed 631 yards through the air (good for 20th.)

A little further analysis paints a slightly different picture, though.

If we look at the total passing yards of the three teams the Titans and the Vikings have faced this year, we discover that the Titans haven’t played many—if any—good passing attacks, while the Vikes have already faced two:

Titan’s opponents total passing = 1254 yards.
Viking’s opponents total passing = 2004 yards
Those numbers tell us, again, that the Vikings have faced much better overall passing attacks this year than the Titans have. So how did each team fair against the quality of passing they faced?

The Vikings allowed 680 of those 2004 cumulative passing yards, or 33.9% of the total.
The Titans, interestingly, allowed 537 of their opponents’ 1254 passing yards, or 42.8% of the total. So when viewed this way, while the Vikings have allowed more yards through air, they’ve been more effective at limiting the pass against better competition.

In the final analysis, Tennessee has a very solid defense, one which will, believe it or not, receive its greatest challenge of the season this Sunday. But to say that the Titan’s D is outstanding is to jump the gun prematurely. So far the only thing they’ve proven is that they have done what they should have done against inferior competition. How they would fare against a Green Bay or an Indy is anyone’s guess.

So far the numbers have shown that we’ve done an even better job defensively against much better competition than Tennessee, so don’t be swayed by the hype. Our defense is for real, and the Titans have more to worry about offensively this Sunday than we do.