Sunday Night Football
A 7.5-point spread is an ugly number when betting on the NFL, but the Rams should have a chance to win this one big because of Derrick Henry’s injury, which figures to loom large for the Titans. After all, he had accounted for nearly 80 percent of Tennessee’s rushing yards and out-carried all other Titans running backs 219 to 11 before suffering a broken foot. But just how much of an impact will it make? It’s hard to know exactly, considering that he’s missed just one game since becoming the full-time starter in 2019. That said, if you look at the Titans’ performance when Henry hasn’t been effective, it paints a bleak picture for Tennessee Titans.
Since 2019, the Titans have posted a 4-8 record in games where Henry doesn’t run for at least 80 yards. That includes the 38-28 loss they suffered against the Saints in 2019 when Henry sat out with an injury. It would be one thing to trust the Titans if they had a capable replacement for Henry, but their backfield is in flux. Journeyman Jeremy McNichols and 36-year-old Adrian Peterson figure to be the leaders of the new-look backfield, but both pale in comparison to Henry, who is the NFL’s best running back when healthy.
Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that they’re taking on a Rams defense that ranks 11th against the run this year (103.4 yards allowed per game) and has just added three-time All-Pro Von Miller to their defense? The Rams should have a good chance to render the Titans’ rushing offense rudderless. Remember what happened last time a good NFC West team did that to the Titans? Henry had a season-low 58 rushing yards and the Titans were crushed 38-13 in Week 1 against the Cardinals.
Ryan Tannehill may be asked to do too much again versus the Rams. He has proven doubters wrong before, but I’m certainly not willing to trust him without Henry at his disposal. The Titans are a different team this week, a prime-time game, with newly acquired Von Miller making his Rams debut against a team they will force into throwing the ball? Don’t be surprised if this one is a double-digit victory. Los Angeles Rams have taken care of business vs weak teams such as Texans and Bears earlier this year. They meet a team as mentioned that has no RB1. The matchup also favors Rams when considering the big plays that Rams WR can make out of nothing. Jones and Brown is a talented WR group but look for the Rams to take a big win Sunday evening. The cherry on top is the fact that they play at home.