This Sunday, the Tennessee Titans will play the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium in Texas at 1:00 p.m. EDT.
The Texans are atop the AFC South at 7-4 and will likely stay there all season. There's never a guarantee, but considering how poorly the rest of the division is playing (including the Titans), there's no reason to believe the Texans will miss the playoffs.
However, the Titans are 2-8 following their recent 23-13 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. They are in the process of remodeling, and while it has been a bit of a struggle to get to where we are, they are finally showing signs of improvement. They need to finish their season with a league-heavy schedule, and these games will give us a good indication of how well this team performs.
Even if a win is not expected this Sunday, it is still the goal. Therefore, there are three reasons for concern for the Titans heading into Week 12.
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Nico Collins is back
Texans wide receiver Nico Collins spent several weeks on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury. He returned last week to help the Texans defeat the Dallas Cowboys. Collins is not only the Texans' best wide receiver, but also CJ Stroud's favorite target. Before he was sidelined, he was the league's all-time leader in receiving yards.
With Collins back on the field, the Titans secondary will have a lot of work to do. The Texans have relied heavily on their running game without Collins out, but that will change as he integrates back into his team. Last week, Collins managed just four catches for 54 yards, but that was largely because the Texans kept the ball on the ground against a shaky Cowboys defense.
The Titans' defense is better than the Cowboys', so the Texans might not score 34 points, but expect Collins to be more involved this week and he will make an impact against a tired and worn out secondary.
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Half of all injured players are on the injured reserve
The Titans' season has been defined not only by rebuilding under a new coaching regime, but also by the number of injuries this team has suffered this season. The defense in particular has struggled to keep players healthy, but the offense is starting to catch up.
As of this writing, there are eight offensive players and twelve defensive players who are injured. Four offensive players and six defensive players are on injured reserve. These injuries not only affect players' ability to compete on the field, but also drain bodies from the team, making it difficult for available players to keep up without tiring.
This season has been difficult for a number of reasons, but injuries certainly don't help. If 10 players on your 53-man roster are out, it's not easy to offset those losses with promotions from the practice squad.
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CJ Stroud continues to improve
It's hard to believe that CJ Stroud and Will Levis are in the same draft class, but they are. Last season, Stroud took over a losing Texas team and changed the outlook of the entire organization in the wake of the Deshaun Watson scandal. They only won four games and didn't make the playoffs, but the change in the team was clear to see.
Stroud is only in his second year, but as a rookie he showed he has what it takes to be an elite quarterback. The last elite quarterbacks the Titans faced were Josh Allen and Jared Goff, and we all know how that went. Stroud may be young, but he is very capable, and if the Titans' secondary isn't on track, he has the ability to expose any weakness they show.
