After playing five of their last six games at home, the Packers pack their bags for three straight road games, starting in Week 10 in Nashville against the feisty Titans.
Considering how much they've enjoyed home cooking lately, you'd figure the Packers could have expected to roll into the second half of their season in first place, especially with the NFC North rival Vikings losing three straight. But that's not the case, as the Packers have struggled to find any consistency, and they limp into this week's matchup with the Titans as losers of two straight games themselves.
It's hard to pin the Packers' recent slide on the offense. They've scored at least three touchdowns in each of their last three games, despite not having much of a traditional running game and despite Randall Cobb being banged up during that stretch. Credit Aaron Rodgers for once again playing at a high level after early-season struggles prompted whispers around the league that his best football may be behind him.
Unfortunately for Green Bay, a defense that had played largely well early in the season couldn't slow down the Colts or the Falcons over the last two weeks. It's easy to chalk their struggles up on the fact that they've played tough offenses and to expect them to rebound this week, but that would be doing a disservice to a suddenly multifaceted Titans attack.
The Titans have had no trouble running the ball all year, and they just saw their seven-game streak of 100-yard rushing performances end last week against the Chargers. Despite losing in San Diego, Marcus Mariota put together a strong performance, passing for 313 yards and three touchdowns. He wasn't perfect, throwing a back-breaking pick-six in the fourth quarter to effectively end his team's chances of winning, but he's shown vast improvement over the last few weeks.
The Titans were held to 16 points or fewer in their first three games before scoring 20 points in Week 4. Since then, it's been five straight weeks with 26 points or more, with the offense racking up 20 touchdowns in that span. Mariota himself has completed 67.1 percent of his passes for 1,282 yards with 13 touchdowns against just three interceptions during that stretch. Throw in the value he provides on the ground -- he rushed for at least 60 yards twice in the last five games and has scored twice with his legs during the same period -- and Mariota could prove too much for the Packers defense to handle, especially with pass-rusher extraordinaire Clay Matthews remaining sidelined.
On one side: a much-improved Titans offense that can beat you in different ways. On the other side: a heating-up Aaron Rodgers and a Packers team desperate to get back on track and reclaim first place in the NFC North. Let the fireworks begin.
How to Watch
- What: Green Bay Packers vs. Tennessee Titans
- When: Sunday, Nov. 13, 1 p.m. ET
- Where: Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tenn.
- TV: FOX
- Streaming: Verizon NFL Mobile App
- Sunday Ticket: DirecTV
- Online: NFL Game Pass (available to watch online after midnight)
- Odds: The Packers are 3-point favorites, according to SportsLine.
Injury report
Packers
- LB Clay Matthews (Hamstring) -- Out
- CB Damarious Randall (Groin) -- Out
- OL JC Tretter (Knee) -- Out
- TE Jared Cook (Ankle) -- Doubtful
- DB Micah Hyde (Shoulder) -- Questionable
- RB James Starks (Knee) -- Questionable
Titans
- LB Aaron Wallace (Shoulder) -- Questionable
Prisco's Pick
The Packers didn't play well in a loss to the Colts on Sunday, and Aaron Rodgers called out the team for lack of effort. The Titans didn't run the ball well at San Diego, and will try and get it back going here to keep Rodgers off the field. I don't think that works. Rodgers gets back on track.
Pick: Packers 31, Titans 24
