The Tennessee Titans hit the East Coast on Sunday when they travel to Landover, Maryland to take on the Washington Commanders.
Since returning from his shoulder injury, Will Levis has looked like a different quarterback. He makes better decisions, turns the ball over less and appears confident, relaxed and confident in the pocket. He doesn't force plays and trusts his receivers, and the Titans appear to be a much better team.
If these two teams had met earlier this season, the game would look very different than it did this Sunday. Jayden Daniels took the league by storm earlier this season, while Levis looked lost and confused. But the Commanders have now lost three in a row but insist Daniels' rib injury is not a problem and the Titans are starting to come together.
It will be a fun game to watch, but the Titans still have a lot of work to do and playing on the road isn't easy. There are six keys to the Titans' victory on Sunday.
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Brain Robinson Jr. has an ankle injury and Austin Ekeler is suffering from a concussion, leaving Jayden Daniels and Jeremy McNichols to play ball. Daniels has four complete receivers to work with, but Terry McLaurin is his favorite target. If the Titans can take the receivers away from Daniels, the Commanders will become one-dimensional. Daniels is the Commanders' leading rusher this season with 556 yards, but he tried to beat the Dallas Cowboys on his own and that didn't go well. Against a much stronger Titans defense, the rookie quarterback will need his weapons.
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Jayden Daniels is quarterback for a reason. He's better at throwing the ball than running it, he's just good at running it too. However, he is more dangerous in the air. So if the Titans' defensive front can force him to make decisions quicker, and if the secondary takes away his weapons, he's more likely to make a mistake. He's still a freshman, and while he's only thrown five interceptions this season, he's not immune to turnovers. The Titans need to apply pressure early and often to keep Daniels uncomfortable in the pocket.
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Tony Pollard carried the Titans' offense on his back last week, turning in his best performance of the season en route to his third consecutive 1,000-yard rushing season. The Commanders have the sixth-ranked pass defense and the 28th-ranked defense and also allow the eighth-most fantasy points to running backs. Pollard will have to step in early and often to get the Titans on the field and on the scoreboard.
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Coming into the season, the Titans' special teams unit was reliable and ranked near the top of the league in most metrics. However, after the bye, the special teams unit was terrible and now ranks in the bottom half of the league in most metrics, if not at the bottom. That can't happen if the Titans want to win. Field position is important. It doesn't matter that Ryan Stonehouse placed a punt inside the 5-yard line if the returner takes it back to midfield. And if Jha'Quan Jackson can't block adequately, he won't get his return yards either. This unit needs to get back to where it started the season, stop returns and start blocking again. Special teams can make or break a team, and the Titans need them to be the former.
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The Titans' turnover percentage is currently -12. Will Levis isn't the only one responsible for turnovers, although his nine interceptions don't help. The Titans have largely won possession time in their games, but this is often completely wiped out by multiple turnovers. They had three turnovers against the Houston Texans last week, but the defense helped by getting two interceptions of their own. It would be a lot easier if they just didn't turn the ball over, especially against a team like the Commanders that has a pretty dynamic offense that can capitalize on those turnovers.
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The Titans rank 28th in the NFL in red zone efficiency. So even if they are in the scoring area, they don't put any points on the board. This can't continue if they want to win any games, let alone this week's matchup with the Commanders. It's not just about finding the red zone; It's about keeping the ball when you're there and putting points on the board. The Titans can win time of possession, they can avoid turnovers, they can do everything right on the field and none of it matters if they don't score. Now, their ability to score has increased over the last few weeks thanks to the improved play of Will Levis, and that needs to continue this week if they want to win.