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St. Louis offense vs. Tennessee defense
This is the marquee matchup of Week 8. St. Louis has caught everyone in the league's eyes with its high-powered offense -- an attack that seems to adapt to every defensive set and scheme thrown at it.

	RAMS OFFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	Run	2
	Pass	6
	Tot. Yds.	1
	Scoring	1
	Int's allowed	3
	Sacks allowed	10
	TITANS DEFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	vs. Run	18
	vs. Pass	17
	Total yds. allowed	18
	No. of INTs	7
	No. of Sacks	12
	Turnover differential	-1

Early in the season, teams tried to play balanced against the Rams to stay honest against the run and pass, but quarterback Kurt Warner proved that he could sit in the pocket and pick apart secondaries with his speedy receiving corps. Over the last two weeks, the Falcons and the Browns decided to double-team the receivers to take away Warner's outside options, and running back Marshall Faulk exploded for a combined total of 413 yards of total offense, exposing the underneath area that was vacated.

When studying film on Warner in the first six game of the season, it becomes evident that he has had time to throw each week. He does an excellent job of letting his receivers' routes develop, and he has put the ball on the money as they come out of their breaks. The interesting thing to note is that defenses have been so concerned with all the Rams' weapons, they have been unable to get pressure on Warner. Such will not be the case Sunday.

The Titans run a very aggressive "46" defense (designed by Buddy Ryan) that features a heavy blitz concentrated to one side. This defense is a huge risk against a team like the Rams, because it leaves the cornerbacks alone on an island. The key to the 46 defense is to get to the quarterback before his receivers get out of their routes, disrupting the timing and rhythm of the passing game. Tennessee will load up its linebackers and even its safeties to one side, blitzing two players to split the offensive tackle and tight end. The interesting thing about the 46 is that the Titans will drop the defensive end into coverage on occasion to diversify the read and cover the flat.

Everyone has seen Warner sit in the pocket and make the throws, but on Sunday, he will be challenged to beat the blitz by using his tight ends and running backs in the short passing game. The scary thing about the St. Louis offense is how adaptable it has been so far. If Warner is able to make the hot reads and beat the Titans blitz, it will leave defensive coordinators around the league scratching their heads as to how to stop this Rams offensive unit.

Tennessee offense vs. St. Louis defense
The game plan for the Titans offense is simple: run the ball, eat up the clock and allow the defense to rest as much as possible. The decision to bring back quarterback Steve McNair this week comes as a complete surprise. Granted, the offense has been struggling to move the ball with Neil O'Donnell behind center, and every one knows the Titans are going to have to score points Sunday to stay with the Rams. But as far as strategy is concerned, McNair does not fit the mold of what Tennessee is going to have to do to win.

	TITANS OFFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	Run	25
	Pass	8
	Tot. Yds.	12
	Scoring	6
	Int's allowed	5
	Sacks allowed	8
	RAMS DEFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	vs. Run	2
	vs. Pass	13
	Total yds. allowed	7
	No. of INTs	11
	No. of Sacks	15
	Turnover differential	0

The Titans cannot afford to commit turnovers or play in a lot of third-and-long situations. Running back Eddie George is going to have to pound it out between the tackles and work diligently to wear out the Rams' front seven.

St. Louis' front averages just 276 pounds per man, but it has done an excellent job of stopping the run. No team has rushed for more than 94 yards against the Rams, and no opposing runner has gained more than 52 yards. These stats and the play of this unit have been deceiving. The Rams have jumped out to an early lead in each of the first six games of the season, forcing opponents to abort the run game and play catch up football through the air. St. Louis has upgraded the unit from a year ago, and the defensive line is making very few mistakes. Still, the Rams defense has yet to be fully challenged for four quarters.

When the Titans do open it up, other than George's 20 receptions, Yancey Thigpen, Kevin Dyson and Frank Wycheck have accounted for 77 of the other 98 catches by the team's wideouts and tight ends. The Rams will run a basic man-to-man coverage scheme that features Todd Lyght and Dexter McCleon in press coverage against the Titan receivers, keeping them close to the line of scrimmage and available in run support off the edges.

Free safety Keith Lyle will play a lot of center field for the Rams. Lyle will help in the deep third, while strong safety Billy Jenkins will walk up closer to the line of scrimmage and provide a presence in the box against the run. The Rams know that the Titans are going to run the ball to control the clock, and they will look to neutralize that game plan by clogging up the middle of the field and daring McNair to exploit the one-on-one matchups. The Rams are able to gamble on defense because of the confidence in their offense to put points on the board.

Special teams
The Rams had a new set of return men last week, with Ron Carpenter replacing Tony Horne (drug suspension), and Torry Holt replacing Az-Zahir Hakim (injury).

	NFL RANK
	Category	STL	TEN
	Punt return avg.	2	14
	Kickoff return avg.	14	31
	Opp. punt return avg.	1	14
	Opp. kickoff ret. avg.	23	10
	Time of possession	5	18

Neither Carpenter nor Holt did anything spectacular, but Horne and Hakim weren't really missed. Rick Tuten did a tremendous job with directional punts, kicking two 51-yarders out of bounds. Jeff Wilkins is perfect this season: 28-for-28 on PATs, and 7-for-7 on field goals.

Titans kicker Al Del Greco is off to an impressive start, connecting on nine of 11 field-goal attempts with a long of 50 yards. Punter Craig Hentrich has also been solid with a 42.4-yard per punt average, landing 14 of 31 attempts inside the opponent's 20-yard line. Tennessee's cover units have been outstanding, allowing just 8.7-yards per punt return and 19.8-yards per kickoff return.

Key matchups