As I sat and watch Florida beat Miami in one of the ugliest fashions I’ve ever seen, I was hit with news that will change the NFL for the foreseeable future.
Andrew Luck suddenly retired from football last night, while the Colts were finishing up their 3rd preseason game against the Chicago Bears.
It was news that no one expected on the outside, even me, as I screamed “oh my gosh” throughout my house for 5 minutes due to absolute shock.
But within the news of his retirement, air surrounding the competitive AFC South suddenly changed. There was going to be a new favorite in the AFC South, and it could be the boys in two tone blue.
The Titans won’t be viewed as everyone’s favorite to win the division, but they should be on plenty of betting tickets and talking points of analysts around the country.
Sure, the Texans employ one of the game’s most exciting QBs and a WR in Deandre Hopkins that has hands so good that you’d swear he has stickum on.
But their offensive line is a trainwreck at the moment, with Watson going down time and time again each and every game. The defense is on the verge of losing Jadaveon Clowney due to a contract dispute and their secondary lost Kareem Jackson & Tyrann Mathieu.
While I do see why the Texans would be viewed as the favorite, I’m here to tell you to slow your roll.
Only four NFL teams are above 0.500 against opponents that finished the season with a winning record since 2016 per @pfref:#Patriots 16-5#Titans 14-9#Steelers 11-9#Chiefs 12-11
The NFL as a whole is 260-504-4 (0.341) against teams with a winning record.
— Mike Herndon (@MikeMiracles) August 19, 2019
A couple interesting teams at the other end of this. The #Browns have just 1 win against a team with a winning record since 2016 and the #Lions only have 3 out of their 24 total wins against winning teams. The other three AFCS teams?#Colts 7-19#Texans 7-18#Jags 7-20
— Mike Herndon (@MikeMiracles) August 19, 2019
Only two teams — the Patriots 13-3 and Titans 11-9 — have winning records against playoff teams since 2016.
— Mike Herndon (@MikeMiracles) August 19, 2019
The Titans have very few question marks on their roster. With their starting QB being one of them. As many have said all offseason, Mariota will have to step up this season. Him not doing so with the vast amount of talent surrounding him now is unacceptable.
Even if Mariota can’t get the job done, they have arguably the best backup in the league ready to play if things don’t go as planned.
The Titans aren’t some doormat and will be one of the more competitive teams in the NFL.
In fact they have been over the last 3 seasons, going 9-7 and missing out on the playoffs twice due to only 1 loss in the last 4 games of the season. They’re ready to take the next level into the conversation of daily AFC playoff contenders.
With the Colts seemingly out on the division race, and the other 2 AFC South teams handling some serious questions on both sides of the ball, the Titans could be in for a very successful season.
Keep a watch on those Titans, they could just take the AFC South from right under your noses.
If they do, don’t say I didn’t tell you so.
Flip the page for 3 things to watch for tonight in the Titans vs. Steelers tune up game.
