Tennessee Titans, Los Angeles Chargers both looking to avoid starting 0-2
Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, left, and quarterback Ryan Tannehill, center, talk to a referee in the first half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints in New Orleans, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023. Credit: AP/Butch Dill
LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (0-1) at TENNESSEE (0-1)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, CBS
OPENING LINE: Chargers by 3, according to FanDuel SportsBook.
AGAINST THE SPREAD: Chargers 0-1; Tennessee 1-0.
SERIES RECORD: Chargers lead 29-18-1.
LAST MEETING: Chargers beat Titans 17-14 on Dec. 18, 2022, in Los Angeles.
LAST WEEK: Chargers lost to Dolphins 36-34; Titans lost to Saints 16-15.
Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, bottom, is sacked by Miami Dolphins cornerback Kader Kohou during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023, in Inglewood, Calif. Credit: AP/Ashley Landis
CHARGERS OFFENSE: OVERALL (2), RUSH (1), PASS (13), SCORING (4).
CHARGERS DEFENSE: OVERALL (30), RUSH (6), PASS (30), SCORING (t-28).
TITANS OFFENSE: OVERALL (14), RUSH (12), PASS (17), SCORING (24).
TITANS DEFENSE: OVERALL (23), RUSH (5), PASS (26), SCORING (t-8).
Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) rushes for a first down past New Orleans Saints defenders in the first half of an NFL football game in New Orleans, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023. Credit: AP/Butch Dill
TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Chargers plus-2; Titans minus-1.
CHARGERS PLAYER TO WATCH: RB Joshua Kelley. The fourth-year back will get the start with Austin Ekeler sidelined. Kelley had 91 yards rushing on 16 carries in Week 1.
TITANS PLAYER TO WATCH: QB Ryan Tannehill is coming off his worst game since perhaps his rookie season. He had a career-low 28.8 passer rating in the opening loss in New Orleans with three interceptions and no touchdown passes. He also overthrew a couple of wide-open receivers and underthrew a pass into double coverage for an interception.
KEY MATCHUP: Titans defense against the Chargers rushing attack. Tennessee had the NFL's stingiest defense against the run last season and gave up just 69 yards in its opener. Ekeler led a Chargers' backfield that piled up a league-best 234 yards in the opener and scored three touchdowns.
KEY INJURIES: Ekeler and LB Eric Kendricks have been ruled out after not practicing all week. Ekeler is sidelined due to an ankle sprain and Kendricks has a hamstring issue. OLB Joey Bosa is questionable with a hamstring injury. The Titans will be without two starters in the defensive secondary with S Amani Hooker in the concussion protocol and CB Kristian Fulton dealing with an injured hamstring. LG Peter Skoronski was ruled out Saturday after being added to the injury report Friday with an illness. WR DeAndre Hopkins is questionable with an injured ankle.
SERIES NOTES: The Chargers have won three of the past four games in this series, but have lost the past two visits to Nashville. … Coach Brandon Staley is 1-0 vs. the Titans and 3-2 in the regular season against the AFC South. ... The Titans are 13-9 against the Chargers at home. ... Titans coach Mike Vrabel is 1-2 against the Chargers.
STATS AND STUFF: The Chargers had a four-game winning streak in openers snapped last week against Miami. … The Chargers had a pair of players run for at least 90 yards for the first time since 2008. … QB Justin Herbert threw for 313 yards in last season's game between these teams. He has 29 straight games with at least 20 completions, the third-longest streak in league history. … Chargers WR Keenan Allen has nine straight regular-season games with at least five catches. … WR Mike Williams needs six catches to reach 300. … The Chargers allowed a league-high 536 yards last week, including 466 passing. … LB Joey Bosa had two sacks and a forced fumble the previous time he faced the Titans in 2019. … CB J.C. Jackson had his first interception with the Chargers last week. ... The Titans have lost eight straight going back to last season, a skid that includes a road loss to the Chargers. They are trying to avoid a second straight 0-2 start to a season. ... This will be the 200th game all time the Titans start their 25th season at Nissan Stadium. ... Hopkins led the Titans with seven catches for 65 yards last week. The three-time All-Pro leads all active receivers with 58 games with at least seven receptions, and he has had at least 65 yards receiving in each of four games against the Chargers. ... WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine had 58 yards receiving in the opener. ... S Kevin Byard led Tennessee with nine tackles last week and had an interception in the most recent game of this series.
FANTASY TIP: Titans RB Derrick Henry. He led Tennessee with 119 yards from scrimmage last week in his fifth straight such game. That's the longest active streak in the NFL, and he had 163 yards from scrimmage the previous time these teams met. He averaged 118.3 yards from scrimmage in seven home games last season.
