This is a game with two teams heading in opposite directions as the Titans are 0-2 while the Jets are 2-0 on the year.  This is a prime game for a upset as the Jets could be in for a let down game after beating the Patriots last week.  The Jets’ defense has been outstanding so far this season but they have not seen a running back like Charles Johnson yet.  He has 352 yards from scrimmage this season on only 41 touches (8.6 avg) and he has scored 3 TDs.  He has freakish speed so the Jets will have to contain him on the edges.  If Johnson gets the running game going then Kerry Collins will attempt to attack the Jets downfield with play action passes to WRs Justin Gage, Nate Washington and Kenny Britt.

The Jets have been using the running game to set up the pass but that will be hard this week.  Thomas Jones (161 yards rushing) and Leon Washington (118 yards rushing) have been solid this season but they have not faced a front seven like the Titans have.  The Titans are only allowing 49.5 yards rushing per game and 1.9 yards per carry.  But, the Titans have allowed a stunning 339.0 yards passing per game this season.  If Mark Sanchez gets the time to throw the ball (and that is likely) then he will be looking for WRs Jerricho Cotchery and Chansi Stuckey deep.  He also likes throwing short passes to Dustin Keller and then watching him run.

PREDICTION:  TITANS 21, JETS 20

The Titans have signed 27-year old punter Reggie Hodges.  Hodges played in 12 games for the Jets last season and he averaged 42.8 yards per punt.  11.4% of his punts went for touchbacks last season and 31.8% of his punts landed inside the opposing 20 yard line.  He should do a good job filling in for the Titans until Craig Hentrich is ready to reclaim his job.

The Titans will be without starting punter Craig Hentrich with a calf injury this week against the Jets.  There is no timetable for his return to action.  He has punted the ball 9 times for 422 yards this season (46.9 avg).  Hentrich has no touchbacks this season and he has pinned the opposition inside the 20 yard line 3 times (33.3%).  Kicker Rob Bironas punted the ball 1 time for 40 yards last week against the Texans.  The Titans would be smart to bring in a free agent punter this week so that Bironas doesn’t wear out his leg.

UPDATE:  Craig Hentrich has been placed the on Injured Reserve List ending his season.

The Titans played a great game on offense but the defense just couldn’t stop the air attack of the Texans and it cost them in the end.  Kerry Collins was solid in this game completing 21 of 33 passes for 216 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 interception.  Charles Johnson had a game for the ages as he scored on a 57-yard run, a 91-yard run and he caught a 69 yard TD pass from Kerry Collins.  Johnson carried the ball 16 times for 197 yards (12.3 ypc) and he also caught 9 passes for 87 yards (9.7 avg).  LenDale White pitched in with 6 carries for 25 yards (4.2 ypc) in this game.  Nate Washington (4 rec, 36 yards, TD) and TE Alge Crumpler (4 rec, 44 yards) had solid games in the passing game for the Titans.  The Titans finished up with 449 total yards on offense (240 rushing, 209 passing) in this game.

The defensed keyed on Steve Slaton shutting him down in this game.  But, for some reason they forgot about Andre Johnson who torched them for 10 catches, 149 yards and 2 TDs.  The Titans’ D was led by LB Keith Bulluck (10 tackles) and CB Nick Harper (9 tackles).  The Texans finished up with 420 total yards in this game (63 rushing, 357 passing).  The Titans are now 0-2 on the season with this big division loss.

This game is always a hard hitting one as the Titans used to be the Houston Oilers a long time ago.  It will be interesting to see what gives when Steve Slaton lines up against a Titans’ D that only allowed the Steelers 36 yards on 23 carries (1.6 ypc) last week.  Still, the Texans will be feeding Slaton the football as he carried the ball 42 times in two games against the Titans last season for 216 yards (5.1 ypc).  The Texans need Slaton to have a good game running the ball or the Titans will be sending everyone after Matt Schaub when he drops back to throw the ball.  The Titans had 4 sacks against the Steelers last week.  If Schaub has time to throw the ball he will likely have some success getting the ball to WR Andre Johnson down the field.  The Texans really need to have WR Kevin Walter available for this game so that he and Owen Daniels can take some of the pressure off of Johnson.

The Titans will probably come out focused but ready to punch the Texans in the mouth due to the extra rest they got this week.  The Titans will likely go back to the running game this week with Chris Johnson and LenDale White against a Texans’ D that allowed 190 yards rushing and 4.5 ypc last week against the Jets.  Veteran QB Kerry Collins will also likely have a solid game for the Titans as long as they keep DE Mario Williams of the Texans away from him.  Rookie WR Kenny Britt and Justin Gage both are looking quite dependable and they could have big games if the Titans need them to.  The Titans beat the Texans 31-12 last year in Tennessee and this game could look a lot like last season.

PREDICTION:  TITANS 27, TEXANS 17