In mid-November, the Tennessee Titans were 8-2 and were the top seed in the AFC. They looked to be on their way to earning that spot, despite having lost running back Derrick Henry in late October.
But then things went bad. They lost three of four games, including a bad home loss to the Houston Texans and a blowout at the hands of the New England Patriots. Things looked bleak as their playoff hopes were being jeopardized and the No. 1 seed seemed like a real long shot.
Fast forward to today. The Titans are currently the top seed in the AFC and need only to beat the Texans this week in Houston to claim that and get the first-round playoff bye. If they do get the extra week, there is a great chance they could have Henry back for the playoffs. (He returned to practice Wednesday.)
The Titans regrouped the past two weeks to beat the San Francisco 49ers at home and the Miami Dolphins this past Sunday. Their toughness was on display in both games, which we’ve come to expect from this team.
They’ve taken on the mentality of coach Mike Vrabel, who just might be the Coach of the Year. They will play tough, physical defense and pound the football. They’ve navigated through the Henry injury, several others on the offensive line and their receiving group has been in and out all year. They’ve played so many players this year you can hardly keep track.
There are still doubts as to whether the Titans can pass the football well enough in the playoffs to win it all. Ryan Tannehill can be streaky, but if the run game works he is more than capable of leading them to a Super Bowl.
The Titans are sixth in