12-12-2019, 07:38 AM
(SportsNetwork.com) - As bad a time as the Tennessee Titans defense might be in for this weekend during a visit to Houston, the offense might even enjoy the road trip a little bit less. The Titans sit 28th in a 32-team league when it comes to running the football. Their premier rookie ball-carrier - second-round pick Bishop Sankey - is averaging less than four yards per carry and hasnt bettered 61 yards in any one game, and newbie quarterback Zach Mettenberger has got issues, too. The sixth-round pick from LSU is winless in four games as a starter, though he did throw for 345 yards and a pair of scores in a loss last week against Philadelphia. Hes averaged 271.5 aerial yards per game in the four starts and has seven touchdowns, and still has support from his coach, Ken Whisenhunt. I remember Peyton Manning being 3-13 his first year, Whisenhunt said. Not that Im saying that its OK not to win games. We need to win a game as a football team, and that would certainly help with Zach, but hes making progress in areas that you like to see from a young quarterback. The youngsters first start also came against the Texans and resulted in a memorable moment when Houstons J.J. Watt registered a pair of sacks and mocked Mettenberger with a fake selfie after the quarterback had posted pictures of himself on social media prior to the game. Mettenberger completed 27-of-41 passes for 299 yards and two TDs in a 30-16 loss. Its just kind of a reminder, this is the National Football League, not high school, Watt said. Welcome to the show. The October loss to the Texans was the second in a stretch thats since reached five in a row and is the teams longest since a six-game slide four years ago. Tennessee, in fact, has dropped nine of 10 games since an impressive 26-10 defeat of Kansas City in Week 1. Its not a lot of fun, Whisenhunt said. I enjoy working with these guys. I enjoy being here. The fans have been good with me, but its not fun. I love doing this job, but you still feel sick when you dont do what youre supposed to do. As for Houston, any playoff run made will be with a QB who was passed over just two weeks back. Veteran journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick has been penciled in as the starter for the rest of the season after the man who replaced him last week - Ryan Mallett - suffered a torn right pectoral muscle last week against Cincinnati, in his second start since Texans coach Bill OBrien had made the switch. Houston trails Indianapolis by two games in the AFC South with five remaining, but one of the final quintet is against the Colts and two are against last- place Jacksonville. Fitzpatrick was a winner in two starts to begin the season, but then went 2-5 in the next seven while throwing eight interceptions and being sacked 20 times. Mallett defeated Cleveland in his initial outing in Week 11, then was hurt against the Bengals. Still, the starter-turned-backup-turned-starter doesnt anticipate issues with a return to No. 1 status. I dont think so, Fitzpatrick said. Its like riding a bike. Thats what being a quarterback is. Thats what kind of my whole career has been. He was indeed a winner in the aforementioned first meeting with Tennessee, completing 19-of-35 passes for 227 yards and a touchdown, while not committing a turnover for the only time in his last seven games. And that game, too, was a return for Harvard University product, who made nine starts while playing for the Titans last season. Fitzpatrick has a pair of high-end receivers in Andre Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins, but the Texans are languishing in 28th place in the league in passing yardage, averaging just 207.5 per game. Instead, running backs Arian Foster and Alfred Blue have been carrying the load, literally, in recent weeks. Foster is averaging 102.8 yards per game and better than five yards per carry, but hes missed the last two games with a groin injury and remains questionable for Sunday. Blue has run the ball 52 times for 202 yards in the last two games in Fosters absence. Overall, Houston leads the AFC with 137.3 rushing yards per game and is up against a Tennessee defense thats allowed better than 150 yards on the ground in four straight. There is a potential that (Foster) could play, OBrien said. Hopefully thats something that hell be able to help us on game day. WHAT TO WATCH FOR Making a Run at Defense The Titans, to be kind, were not terribly effective in stopping the run when the teams meet in Nashville in October. Houston crossed the 200-yard barrier and wound up with 212 in that game - including 151 from Foster - and theyve subsequently allowed at least 150 to Baltimore (151), Pittsburgh (206) and Philadelphia (164). The Eagles game featured 19 missed tackles, which simply cannot occur again. Fitz of Unpredictability Just how much influence the inconsistent Fitzpatrick has on the game will be determined by how well the Texans can run the ball. But if Foster and/or Blue are bottled up, itll be incumbent on the returning starter to limit the mistakes that have been the signature element of his career. He was error-free in that game, but has been picked off in five of nine games this season. Houston is 3-1 when hes pick-free. OVERALL ANALYSIS Fitzpatrick is inconsistent and Foster is dinged-up, but even with those qualifications this is a game Houston should win. The Texans are home, they have better players on offense and they have perhaps the leagues best player on defense in Watt, who could make an impact if he remains successful in getting to and disrupting Mettenberger. If they want to be contenders, this a no less than a must-win. Sports Network predicted outcome: Texans 27, Titans 17 Blues Jerseys China .C. -- The Bobcats announced theyve signed centre Justin Hamilton to a 10-day contract. Stitched Blues Jerseys . - Hitting was supposed to be the Pittsburgh Pirates weakness coming into the season yet they lead the major leagues in home runs through the first 16 games of the season. https://www.cheapblues.com/ . Yoenis Cespedes proved he can play through a hurting right heel, giving Scott Kazmir and the As a spark with a pair of RBIs that helped spoil the Minnesota Twins home opener with an 8-3 victory on Monday. Wholesale Blues Jerseys . The whole deflation of New England Patriots footballs is like a murder mystery without the violence or significance. On one side, this is a ridiculous issue. Fake Blues Jerseys . PETERSBURG, Fla.OXFORD, Miss. -- Mississippis Marshall Henderson unleashed a first-half scoring spree that put No. 2 Floridas school-record winning streak in danger. The Gators were impressed. And then they made sure it didnt happen again. Jolted awake by Hendersons 22 points in the first half, Florida clamped down to keep him scoreless in the second half and then fought its way to a 75-71 victory on Saturday afternoon. Scottie Wilbekin scored 18 points and Michael Frazier II added 17 as the Gators (25-2, 14-0 Southeastern Conference) extended their winning streak to 19 games. "We had a heightened sense of urgency to start the second half, especially on (Henderson)," Frazier said. "We did a better job of staying locked in on him and staying locked in as a whole." Ole Miss (16-11, 7-7) has lost four in a row. Jarvis Summers added 20 points for the Rebels. The game was tied at 59 with eight minutes left, but Florida scored the next seven points to take control. Henderson missed all six of his shots in the second half. The Gators could very well be the No. 1 team in the country when the new polls are released on Monday. The current No. 1 Syracuse lost on Wednesday to Boston College. But Frazier and Florida coach Billy Donovan said that wont mean much. "This team understands that the whole is greater than its parts," Donovan said. "But we need to play better and Im talking about that from an effort standpoint." Ole Miss badly needed a quality win for its mediocre NCAA tournament resume and played like a desperate team for much of the afternoon. But the Gators steadily put the Rebels away with quality offensive possessions late in the second half. "We gave a winning effort," Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said. "But weve got to make plays and we didnt make plays." Florida had to survive Hendersons impressive barrage in the first half just to have a chance. Its not the first time Henderson has had a big moments against the Gators. He scored 221 points against Florida last season in the SEC tournament championship -- adding a memorable Gator Chomp motion as the Rebels ended up winning 66-63.dddddddddddd And it was quickly apparent on Saturday that the 6-foot-2 senior was feeling good again. He shot 7 of 14 from the field -- including 5 of 11 from 3-point range -- as the two teams fought to an entertaining 42-all tie by halftime. The Gators vaunted defence, which is easily the best statistically in the SEC, had few answers for Henderson early. He made several difficult shots with a hand in his face. It didnt last. Henderson cooled off in the second half -- missing those tough looks that had gone in during the first half -- and Florida did enough offensively to win. "Youre not going to prevent (Henderson) from shooting and in the first half it was a wash -- him versus our team," Donovan said. "In the second half, it just didnt go in." The Rebels stayed in the game thanks to a big second half from Anthony Perez and Summers. Perez made a layup to tie it at 59. But Florida responded quickly. Wilbekin stole the ball and passed down the court to Patric Young, who finished with a dunk. Casey Prather made a 10-foot jumper on the next possession and the Gators never trailed again. Florida was relentlessly efficient down the stretch, scoring on nearly every possession in the final minutes. "All I can say is were focused more (late in the game), were more together and more connected," Frazier said. "Thats something we pride ourselves on. We want to become stronger when the adversity becomes stronger." Young added 12 points and five rebounds for the Gators. He made four straight crucial free throws in the final minutes to help Florida keep its lead. Henderson finished 7 of 20 from the field, including 5 of 16 from 3-point range. He tied Pat Bradleys SEC record by hitting a 3-pointer in a 60th consecutive game. The Gators havent lost since a 65-64 setback to UConn on Dec. 2. ' ' '