I believe that this will be the game that the shine begins to come off for Tomlin and crew. So far he hasn’t lost to teams that he should beat, so baby steps I guess, but this stretch coming up will really show who and what this team is.
He’s going up against another Belichick alumn, who has a history of using obscure rules to his advantage and win games. He has a beast at RB, a more than capable QB with weapons, and a solid O line. Might me a little weak on D but more than capable.
This is the type of game where Mikey T overthinks it and tries to outsmart the opposing coach. Instead of playing to his strengths and minimizing weaknesses, I wouldn’t be shocked if he pulls another headscratcher move, thinking he’s “tricking” the other team.
Look for him to empty the box against Henry because in his mind, the Titans will never see it coming. Once Henry gashes them repeatedly and Tennessee goes on multiple long, clock eating drives for scores, it’ll be too late. On offense, look for more conservative playcalling, and instead of attacking the Titans’ weakness in defense, he’ll once again try to “trick” then by playing right to their strengths, hamstringing the offense until they are too far behind to catch up.
The key to beating Tennessee will be to getting ahead early and building on that lead. Make Tannehill best you through the air and bit let Henry take over the game.
But hey, we do what we do...