If you are looking for Sunday’s game to be the one where the Titans go out and put up a bunch of points and put a team away early, I think you are going to be disappointed. The Cardinals aren’t a very good team, but they are very good on defense. They are 6th overall in defensive DVOA....11th against the pass and 4th against the run.
They are 13th in yards allowed per game, 18th in passing yards allowed per game, 9th in rushing yards allowed per game but 29th in points allowed per game. That is a result of some bad turnovers by their offense and a few really lopsided games.
Patrick Peterson is the star of the defense. He has shadowed the opposing team’s #1 wide receiver in every game he has played this season according to PFF’s shadow matrix. He has only allowed 10 catches for 197 yards on the season. In case you didn’t know, that is really good.
My guess is that Peterson will shadow Rishard Matthews if he plays. While Corey Davis is the more talented receiver, Matthews is probably viewed as the Titans #1 right now, as he should be.
This will provide an excellent opportunity for Davis because the combination of Tramon Williams and Justin Bethel on the other side has been pretty bad. Is this the game we finally see Davis breakout?