We wrote a similar article for Saturday and we hope you enjoyed that one, although our hopes went 0-2. The Cincinnati Bengals looked dangerous in their win over the Las Vegas Raiders. The Buffalo Bills absolutely embarrassed and dismantled Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots. The Tennessee Titans are inching closer to finding out their divisional opponent. As of now, the Titans are set to play the Bengals, but it’s all riding on Sunday night’s game (more on that below). While we don’t yet know who they’ll play yet, we do know a couple of important things. As the No. 1 seed, the Titans know they will face the lowest-remaining playoff seed. They also know that they’ll face that team at Nissan Stadium in Nashville next weekend.
Let’s get right into it.
Eagles (No. 7) over Buccaneers (No. 2)
When: Sunday at 12:00 PM C.T.
Why: We’re not going to spend too much time pondering the outcome of this contest, as it’s far too early to worry or wonder about potential Super Bowl opponents. With that said, the weaker the field becomes, the better Tennessee’s chances become. With all due respect to the Eagles, just about every team in the NFL would prefer to meet them at SoFi Stadium on February 13th as opposed to a date with Tom Brady and the defending Super Bowl champion Buccaneers.
The Buccaneers are heavy favorites heading into this one and it’s easy to understand why. The Eagles are a young football team that’s championed forward by first-year head coach Nick Sirianni and second-year quarterback Jalen Hurts. You shouldn’t spend any time screaming at the television during this one, but feel free to root for the Eagles.
49ers (No. 6) over Cowboys (No. 3)
When: Saturday at 3:30 PM C.T.
Why: This was another extremely difficult game to choose between although it’s another NFC contest we should ultimately pay little attention too. The Titans have already met the 49ers once this season, in Week 16’s primetime come-from-behind thriller. The Titans trailed by 10 points at the half, but rallied to win 20-17. Tennessee began that game in horrid fashion offensively, but found their mojo in the second half as A.J. Brown recorded a career-high 11 receptions for 145 yards and a touchdown. San Francisco had absolutely no answer for Brown in their below-average secondary, and a metaphorical Super Bowl rematch would favor the Titans.
The Cowboys also possess the better starting quarterback in Dak Prescott. George Kittle and Deebo Samuel are excellent playmakers, but Tennessee handled Kittle well in Week 16, limiting him to just two catches for 21 yards. The Cowboys have the better overall supporting cast with the likes of Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott. Although it’s incredibly difficult to beat a team twice in the same season. We’re slightly rooting for San Francisco here.
Steelers (No. 7) over Chiefs (No. 2)
When: Saturday at 7:15 PM C.T.
Why: Alas, we’ve arrived at the lone AFC contest scheduled for Sunday. Tennessee’s divisional opponent rides on this contest. Should this result come to fruition, the Titans will meet the Steelers in the divisional round next weekend. Could this one be any more obvious? The Kansas City Chiefs are legitimate Super Bowl contenders and the Steelers have absolutely no business being in the playoffs. It’s really that simple.
I know, I know, the Titans dismantled the Chiefs in Week 7 (27-3) and lost to the Steelers (19-13) in Week 15. The Titans were however without the services of Derrick Henry and A.J. Brown in that loss to the Steelers, and Julio Jones made a quick exit. Tennessee turned the ball over an embarrassing four times in that contest and still only lost by six points. The Steelers are a bad football team. The Chiefs are also playing a much better brand of football since losing to the Titans and are looking to make their third consecutive trip to the Super Bowl. Tennessee shouldn’t fear anybody, and they’ve already proven they can beat the Chiefs this year, but avoiding the Chiefs in a potential AFC Championship Game rematch of 2019 would set up more favorably for the Titans.
Enjoy the Titans-less Sunday and Monday!
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