Week 9 Preview: Ravens vs Titans

We are now past the midway point and rounding the corner to the home stretch of the NFL season. The Baltimore Ravens are coming off a convincing victory against the Miami Dolphins by throwing up 40 points and collecting a shutout in the process. The Tennessee Titans on the other hand are coming off a bye week and find themselves holding a tie for the AFC South division lead. Even though it is still only week nine, the results of this match-up could come into play when deciding wild card spots.

How the Titans Win:

The Titans only rank 26th in passing offense, but sport a top ten ranked rushing attack by averaging 124 yards per game. This could prove to be problematic for the Titans, as the Ravens recently held the Dolphins to 45 net rushing yards this past Thursday, so the Titans can’t allow themselves to become one dimensional.

Mariota will have to utilize his scrambling ability if he wants to keep the Ravens honest, and will have to connect on key big chunk plays to have the Ravens playing further back. In the Titans last game against the Cleveland Browns, they were only able to muster 12 points against one the worst teams this season. The Titans need to take what the defense will give them in this game.

How the Ravens Win:

Joe Flacco took a brutal shot to the head this past Thursday, and many wondered if he would play this Sunday and risk further injury to himself. Coach Harbaugh stated on Wednesday that Flacco will indeed be starting against the Titans this Sunday. The Ravens are to going to want to protect Flacco in this game, so expect the rushing attack to be featured, even though it appears that Maclin, Wallace and Perriman will be available.

The Ravens defense will need to be creative in containing Mariota and not allow him to get comfortable with extending plays. The most important thing for the Ravens is consistency; the win last week will be for naught if they throw up a dud on Sunday.

Prediction: Ravens 20, Titans 13

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