Super Bowl Domination

Chapter 335: First Battle
Before the start of the 2017 season, if someone predicted that the Tennessee Titans would be able to secure a place in the playoffs, they would probably be met with a wave of "you must be a fool" eye rolls.

The Tennessee Titans have not made the playoffs since the 2008 season and have not won a playoff game since the 2003 season.

The Tennessee Titans were formerly the Houston Oilers, which were founded in 1960 and were one of the original founding teams of the American Football League. They won the American Football League championship in 1960 and 1961. It is a strong team with history and tradition; this is no exception in the Super Bowl era.

But unfortunately, after entering the millennium, the Tennessee Titans have never found their rhythm in the fierce competition that has been fully upgraded in the league.

In 2015, the Tennessee Titans used the second pick to select quarterback Marcos Mariota, expecting the 2014 Heisman Trophy winner to become the cornerstone of the team and lead the Tennessee Titans out of the trough.

After the disappointment of his rookie season, Mariota finally brought some surprises in the 2016 season. The team achieved a record of nine wins and seven losses, and unfortunately missed the playoffs by a hair's breadth.

Head coach Mike Mularkey became the target of criticism. Senior management generally believed that Mularkey failed to realize the team's talent. They had a team with excellent strength on paper, but they could never transform into a truly strong team. Professionals generally agreed with this.

In this team, both the offensive and defensive teams have a lot of excellent players——

On the offensive team, in addition to quarterback Mariota, the running backs include two generals, DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry, and the wide receivers include Pro Bowl level players such as Eric Decker, Harry Douglas, and Eric Weems.

On the defensive team, the front line has outstanding players at the Pro Bowl and All-American first team level such as Jurrell Casey, Sylvester Williams, Brian Orakpo, etc.

Perhaps the only relatively weak part is the secondary defense, so in the past two years the team manager has been trying to improve the team's roster through the draft and free market.

Everything seems to be on the right track, but why are the results always unsatisfactory?
After the 2016 season, professionals still believed that the Tennessee Titans' slump and pain might continue, and the team still had not found a solution.

However, Murakai took over the coaching position in a hurry in the middle of the 2015 season, and the 2017 season was only his second full season. It was generally believed that he should be given some time to build the team according to his ideas.

It is under such pressure that the Tennessee Titans enter the new season.

Nine wins and seven losses.

For the second consecutive season, the Tennessee Titans delivered the same answer, but this time they squeezed into the playoffs at the last minute.

Surprise, absolutely surprise!
In fact, if we calm down and look at the data, the performance of the Tennessee Titans is still worrying. Their offense ranks 19th in the league and their defense ranks 13th in the league. Both statistics are in the lower middle of the league. Logically speaking, they should not enter the playoffs. So, what happened?
Key battle.

Looking back at the entire season, the Tennessee Titans lost a series of games that they shouldn't have lost; however, they performed at the top level in the head-on collision with their playoff rivals.

Facing direct opponents competing for playoff spots such as the Seattle Seahawks, Baltimore Ravens, and Cincinnati Bengals, the Tennessee Titans won all of them.

More importantly, facing the Jacksonville Jaguars, their arch-rival in the same division who have risen comprehensively and shown a different look this season, the Tennessee Titans won both home and away games. Of the five losses of the Jacksonville Jaguars this season, the Tennessee Titans won two.

Especially in the life-and-death battle in the last week of the regular season, the Tennessee Titans gritted their teeth and defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars, winning a playoff spot through head-on competition.

Accident, undoubtedly an accident!

It is precisely because of this that even though the Tennessee Titans' season record is only nine wins and seven losses, it is generally considered a tough nut to crack.

In Barth's view -

"The Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans are only one win apart, and the difference in regular season performance is not that significant."

"The Kansas City Chiefs tend to be weak in critical moments and have lost the lead many times this season; the Tennessee Titans are just the opposite and are always able to stand up in critical moments."

"One plus one minus." "In the tight situation of the single-elimination playoffs, the Tennessee Titans' prospects are slightly more promising."

This time, Bart didn't want to be slapped in the face, he really didn't want to, every cell in his body was rejecting it.

It is for this reason that Bart came to the conclusion after careful consideration.

Of course, he did not forget a key figure, the guy who emerged out of nowhere this season and caused him to suffer repeated setbacks.

"In my opinion, there should be two groups of focus in this game."

"First, 'Smith vs. Mariota.'"

"Both quarterbacks have played their best games of their careers this season. Their performances will definitely influence the course of the game. The matchup between the passing offense and the passing defense will also be very interesting."

"Second, 'ground vs ground'."

"Kansas has Levi and Hunter, while Tennessee has Murray and Henry, both of which are running backs. The Chiefs focus on lightness and speed, while the Titans focus on strength and confrontation. These two completely different ground attack styles will play a crucial role in the game."

"It is worth mentioning that this is the first time Levi and Henry have met."

"Therefore, the on-the-spot performance of these two groups will determine the outcome of the match."

This time, Bart's analysis and judgment were affirmed by "within the alliance", and the analysis on paper was indeed true; but the final outcome of the show was slightly different.

——“6:4”.

In the analysis of ten professionals "Inside the League", six chose the Kansas City Chiefs and four chose the Tennessee Titans. The opinions were very close and it can be said that it is difficult to tell who is better.

Believers in the Tennessee Titans, like Butt, believe that the toughness and momentum they have shown in key battles this season may be the key to breaking the balance.

Those who believed in the Kansas City Chiefs, represented by Lawson, stood behind Levi.

"After a six-game losing streak, the Kansas City Chiefs are still the same team, but they have a different playing style."

"Especially the ground offense with Levi as the core, it's in incredible form. The current Kansas City Chiefs are completely different from what we thought."

"In the playoffs, the ground attack will be the backing of the Kansas City Chiefs, allowing Smith to make more attempts in the passing attack. Therefore, we have reason to believe that the Kansas City Chiefs can reverse their habitual weakness in the playoffs."

Lawson said so.

"More importantly, Levi is a player who gets better when facing stronger opponents. I personally think that him and Henry playing together could be a positive motivation."

"We'll see."

Lawson remained objective, but the confidence and excitement revealed in his words could still be seen. After just one season, Levi already had a different aura in his eyes -

"Levi VS Henry"!
This long-awaited matchup is finally about to take place; and it will be on the playoff stage!

(End of this chapter)