The Tennessee Titans will host the Detroit Lions in inter-conference play Sunday afternoon from Nissan Stadium. The Lions’ slim playoff hopes completely evaporated in a hard-fought 31-24 home loss to the Packers last week. The loss came at a price as well as Stafford is dealing with a rib injury to put his status in doubt for this game

The Titans enter this one in first place in the AFC South with three games remaining. The offense continues to shine and had no problems defeating the Jaguars last week. These foes last met in 2016 in a game the Titans won by a 16-15 score.

Lions Fall to Packers, Stafford Injured

The Detroit Lions enter this one having lost three out of their last four games. They have been competitive in their two games since the firing of head coach Matt Patricia. Detroit rallied to beat the Bears in Chicago two weeks ago and was competitive in a 31-24 home loss to the Packers last week to cover the eight-point spread. The Lions have covered in two straight games.

Matt Stafford exited Sunday’s game against the Packers early with a rib injury after posting 244 passing yards. The 32-year old QB is having another productive season, registering 3522 passing yards along with a 22:9 TD to INT ratio. Stafford has not practiced all week due to a ribs injury, but is now listed as probable. If he is unable to play it will be back up Chase Daniel under center. Daniel has completed 11 of 19 passes for 123 yards this season.

Rookie D’Andre Swift finally returned from a long absence last week, rushing for 24 yards and adding 26 receiving yards. The rookie RB has 355 receiving yards and 301 receiving yards, while Adrian Peterson leads the team with 508 rushing yards. Lions #1 WR Kenny Golladay has been out for most of the season and isn’t expect to play. Marvin Jones is having a strong year, collecting 667 receiving yards and continues to be targeted heavily. The Detroit offense relies on their strong passing game which ranks ninth in the NFL.

The Lions’ defense continues to stumble each game. They have surrendered over 30 points in three consecutive games and also have CB’s Jeff Okudah and Desmond Trufant out with injury. Detroit stands 27th against the pass and 29th against the run. The Lions are averaging 23.8 points, placing them 19th overall. They are squandering an average of 29.9 points, pegging them 29th in the NFL.

Titans Clobber Jags, Eye First Place

The Tennessee Titans continue to battle for the AFC South division title. They rebounded from a rough home loss to the Browns with a 31-10 road win against the Jaguars last week to cover the 7.5 point spread. The Titans have won three out of their last four clashes and also covered in all three wins.

Ryan Tannehill continues to thrive and connected on 79% of his pass attempts in Jacksonville last week. The veteran QB has consistently produced all season and has now accumulated 3209 passing yards accompanied by a sharp 28:5 TD to INT ratio. Derrick Henry should have another big game against a poor Lions’ rush defense. The 26-year old RB rushed for a whopping 215 yards against the Jags’ last week and leads the entire NFL with 1532 rushing yards on an average of 5.2 yards per attempt. A.J. Brown has tallied over 80 receiving yards in three consecutive games and has taken the team lead with 837 yards. The Titans’ offense is among the best in the NFL and ranks third with 394 total yards per game.

The Tennessee defense can be solved and has sometimes been an issue. They were very sharp against Jacksonville last week but gave up 41 to the Browns earlier this month. The Titans rank 29th against the pass and 15th against the run. Tennessee is averaging 30 points, good for fourth in the NFL. They are allowing an average of 25.8 points, placing them 21st overall.