Tennessee offense vs. Jacksonville defense

	TITANS OFFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	Run	24
	Pass	1
	Tot. Yds.	3
	Scoring	6
	Int's allowed	24
	Sacks allowed	28
	JAGUARS DEFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	vs. Run	11
	vs. Pass	8
	Total yds. allowed	5
	Ints.	9
	Sacks	5
	Turnover differential	+5

With back-up QB Neil O'Donnell at the helm, the Titans didn't miss a beat last week against the Cleveland Browns. O'Donnell threw for 310 yards and RB Eddie George rushed for 97 yards and scored two touchdowns as the Titans cruised to a 26-9 win. Tennessee faces off against a better defensive football team this Sunday in Jacksonville, and its offense will have to be firing on all pistons to give the team a chance to win.

George will have to play a big role in this game and should expect to see a lot of carries -- Tennessee needs him to carry the load. O'Donnell will look for WRs Kevin Dyson and Yancy Thigpen downfield. Dyson is a promising player whose breakaway speed and soft hands make him the deep threat in the Titans attack. With Dyson stretching the field, O'Donnell will look to TE Frank Wychek (9 catches for 80 yards last week) on drag and seam patterns, as well as George out of the backfield.

LOT Brad Hopkins and LOG Bruce Matthews will have their hands full with Titans' RDE Tony Brackens and RDT Gary Walker, one of the better end/tackle tandems in the league. Brackens has been particularly impressive, so expect either George or FB Lorenzo Neal to help out in passing situations.

The Jaguars defense is finally living up to expectations this season after underachieving for the last few years. Key to the unit's success are RDE Brackens and ROLB Kevin Hardy. Both had sacks in Week 1 against the 49ers, and Hardy terrorized Carolina QB Steve Buerlein during much of their contest last weekend.

Hardy is an outstanding athlete who pursues extremely well from the backside, chasing down quarterbacks and running backs alike. To neutralize Hardy's speed, look for Tennessee to try and run the ball between the tackle/guard and guard/center gaps when they run left. LDE Bryce Paup is without a sack after two contests this season, and if he returns to his Pro-Bowl form, the Jaguars front seven could make it a long day for Neil O'Donnell.

Jacksonville's secondary has been bolstered by the addition of FS Carnell Lake, who is also a capable cornerback when called upon. Lake should be useful against a big running back like Eddie George, because he can come up and support the run and is as good a tackler as some linebackers.

After two games, the Titans have surrendered only two sacks -- both to speed rushing Cincinnati linebackers during Week 1 -- so the Jaguars need to pressure O'Donnell early and prevent Tennessee from establishing a rhythm in the passing game.

Jacksonville offense vs. Tennessee defense

	JAGUARS OFFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	Run	4
	Pass	10
	Tot. Yds.	7
	Scoring	5
	Int's allowed	28
	Sacks allowed	18
	TITANS DEFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	vs. Run	26
	vs. Pass	5
	Total yds. allowed	10
	Ints.	18
	Sacks	4
	Turnover differential	-3

Surprisingly, Jacksonville QB Mark Brunell did not feast on the Carolina secondary last weekend as most expected he would. Brunell went 20-for-32 for 210 yards, respectable numbers to be sure. But he was unable to establish the vertical passing game that generally makes the Jaguars such a dangerous offensive team.

Aside from WR Jimmy Smith, who had half of the teams' receptions, no one was really able to get open downfield. TE Kyle Brady plays like a third tackle, but is not a vertical passing threat. Brady is a solid receiver in short yardage situations, but don't expect him to open up the underneath for the likes of WRs Keenan Mcardell or Smith.

A big question mark going into this weekend's games is RB Fred Taylor. Taylor was suffering from a minor ankle twist but started last Sunday's game. After Taylor suffered a minor hamstring pull, back-up RBs James Stewart and Tavian Banks got the majority of the carries. Stewart was particularly impressive, amassing 124 yards and two touchdowns on only 27 carries. Banks was solid as well, averaging over 5-yards per carry. If Taylor can't go this Sunday, Banks and Stewart are as good a back-up tandem as a team could hope for.

Much of the Jags success running the ball will depend upon how well LOG Rich Tylski, OC John Wade and ROG Zach Wiegert control Titans middle linebacker Barron Wortham, an improving run-stopper. Wade, in particular, is a bit green, and it will be interesting to see how he handles Wortham.

Tennessee LDE Jevon Kearse recorded three sacks against the Browns last week in only the second game of his NFL career. Kearse is undersized but used his speed to victimize Cleveland ROT Orlando Brown. Kearse will have a much tougher time getting to the passer this week, as Brunell is more mobile than Browns' QB Tim Couch, and he will be lining up against Jaguars' veteran ROT Leon Searcy.

Kearse and company will also face a bigger challenge against the run this week, as the Jaguars bring three capable backs, all with breakaway speed, to the table. LDT Mike Jones and RDE Kenny Holmes need to cut down the Jag's running lanes, and should use a lot of stunts to frustrate the Jacksonville blocking schemes. Holmes will face his toughest test of the year against Jaguars LDT Tony Boselli -- probably the best all-around LOT in the league. If Holmes can battle Boselli to a stalemate, the Titans have won this battle.

The Jaguars secondary will be tested in this contest and will need to not look into the backfield too often, as Brunell can find WRs Smith and McCardell for a big play in the blink of an eye. Brunell's excellent scrambling abilities will make it tough on LDC Denard Walker and RDC Darryl Lewis -- if either breaks out of coverage too early, they could get burned deep.

Expect safeties Blaine Bishop and Marcus Robertson to help on downfield coverage. This will force the Titan's LBs to have a good game covering Jaguar TE Kyle Brady.

Special teams

	NFL RANK
	Category	TEN	JAC
	Punt return avg.	3	13
	Kickoff return avg.	28	17
	Opp. punt return avg.	3	13
	Opp. kickoff ret. avg.	13	23
	Time of possession	7	3

Titans punter Craig Hentrich had a monster day, dropping three punts inside the Browns' 6-yard line, two inside the 3. Those three kicks helped the Titans control field position for much of the game. WR/RS Roell Preston showed he will have some impact as well, with some good efforts despite having only been with the team for two days before the game. He did field one punt at the Titans' 5-yard line, however. PK Al Del Greco missed a 44-yard field goal attempt.

The loss of returner Mike Logan (fractured ankle) will hurt the Jags. PK Mike Hollis was 3-of-4 on field goal attempts, and looks to be on top of his game.

Key matchups