Titans vs. Packers preview: Three Green Bay players to watch

The Tennessee Titans are on the road on a short week this week, as they prepare for a Thursday night matchup with the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.

The Titans and Packers are each coming off big wins Sunday. The Titans took down the Denver Broncos 17-10 at Nissan Stadium to move to 6-3 on the season, while the Packers snapped a 5-game losing streak with a 31-28 win in overtime over the Dallas Cowboys.

Despite sitting at 4-6, the Packers aren’t out of playoff contention, and a win over the Titans could give Green Bay some momentum heading into the final stretch of the season.

As the Titans head up north for a cold night in Green Bay, here are three Packers to watch on Thursday night.

Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

#1. Christian Watson

The second round rookie out of North Dakota State is coming off the best performance of his rookie season by far, as Watson caught four passes for 107 yards and 3 touchdowns in Green Bay’s 31-28 OT win over the Dallas Cowboys.

Before that performance, Watson’s best performance was a 4 reception, 34 yard performance in the season opener.

So, was Watson’s big night a breakthrough performance or a one-time standout performance?

It’s no secret the Green Bay receiving corp has struggled this season (sound familiar?) but the Titans will have to keep a special eye on Watson to make sure he doesn’t put together another big performance.

Watson is a big target (6’5, 208 lbs) and hopefully the Titans secondary can keep him in check.

Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

#2. Aaron Rodgers

It’s hard to talk about a matchup with the Packers without mentioning the back-to-back league MVP.

On the surface, Rodgers’ numbers aren’t too bad, with 17 touchdowns and 2,315 yartds, both of which are top 10 in the league.

But looking a little deeper, Rodgers has struggled this year, with a QBR that ranks 25th in the league at 39.6, which would be the worst in his career, and the 7 interceptions already is the highest number of INTs Rodgers has throw since 2016.

A lot of the struggles are due to turnover at the wide receiver position and a lack of experience.

Rodgers put together a pretty strong performance last week, completing 14-20 passes for 224 yards and 3 touchdowns.

If the Titans can continue their impressive pass rush, they likely can force Rodgers into a few mistakes that could be key points in the game.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

#3. Rudy Ford

While Watson was a difference-maker for Green Bay on the offensive side, Ford was the difference-maker for the Packers on defense.

Ford picked off Dak Prescott twice, including one at the goal line, with each setting up a Green Bay touchdown.

Ford found his way into the game due to injury and played 63 snaps on the day.

The big performance gave the Packers a shot in the arm defensively, and he’ll be a guy to keep an eye on when the Titans throw the ball.