Tennessee Titans Look To Crush Visiting Houston Texans in Week 2

NFL News - September 17th, 2009 - Written by John

Houston at Tennessee -- The last time these two teams met, it was the "Andre Johnson Show". Tennessee just couldn't match up against the 225-lb. receiver, allowing 207 yards through the air, and Houston tagged them with one of their three losses in '08. Johnson was the difference in that game and if you're looking for a spoiler, at least against the spread, this may be it.

The Tennessee Titans are seven-point favorites against the Texans after a physical Thursday night game against the Steelers. Tennessee pushed the Super Bowl champs to the brink, forcing overtime before Jeff Reed ended it with a field goal. They are favored to get back on track against a Texan team that sputtered in the home opener against the Jets, scoring no offensive touchdowns.

Not insinuating that the Titans are a phony, but don't consider their week one battle to be an indication that their defense is as good as it was last year. Remember that Albert Haynesworth was essential to a run defense that ranked sixth in '08 and, now that he's gone, is vulnerable to a good rushing attack. The Texans are begging to put together a ground game and could expose it.

I know what you're thinking. Tennessee has an all-time lead of 11-3 in the series, and Houston was awful in the opener, especially on the ground. Steve Slaton only ran for 17 yards and the team as a whole only had 38. But the Texans still have a lot of weapons and, when they pull it together, can play with anyone. Slaton has a way of bouncing back, too. Upon his three lowest rushing games last year, Slaton rebounded with at least 93 yards and one score the following week. The highlight came against the Colts in Week 11 when he went off for 156 yards after only seven the week before. Oh, and running for over 100 yards in both meetings against the Titans last year is probably something of note.

The Texans will also have to get more production from quarterback Matt Schaub after a meager start.

For Tennessee, a key match-up will be on the wings when the new receiving corps will try to take advantage of a rocky secondary. Kenny Britt had a good debut against one of the best in the league in Pittsburgh, accounting for 85 yards on four receptions.

Oddsmakers really don't see this one going the Texans' way, especially after last weeks' performance against the Jets. Bodog Sportsbook currently has the Texans getting 6 1/2 points from the Titans, in this AFC South divisional matchup. 40 1/2 points is where the game total has been set, though there are sure to be different lines available for quarters, and halves. Be sure to check into those later this week. By the way, taking the Texans to win straight up will earn bettors a payout of +240 compared to the -290 of the Tennessee Titans.

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