The Indianapolis Colts (2-2) and Tennessee Titans (2-2) are set to battle it out Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in what will be their first meeting of the season.
The Week 5 matchup is a big one for both teams. The entire division stands at 2-2 while the Colts haven’t beaten the Titans in any of their last five meetings. They also haven’t beaten the Titans at home since 2018.
Buy Colts TicketsBefore the divisional matchup gets underway, we caught up with Titans Wire editor Mike Moraitis to get the scoop on the big storylines surrounding Tennessee through the first month of the season.
We went behind enemy lines to ask Mike five questions about this Week 5 matchup:
1
What has led to the Titans' struggles on the road?
Mike Moraitis: I don’t think the Titans have a specific issue playing on the road. The Week 1 loss was one of the worst performances of Ryan Tannehill’s career, but he’s bounced back since then. In Week 3, Myles Garrett absolutely dominated left tackle Andre Dillard and blew up the game. Thankfully, Dillard was able to rebound in Week 4.
2
Outside of Derrick Henry, have any offensive players made an impact?
Mike Moraitis: Guys have made contributions in bits and pieces. DeAndre Hopkins has been the most consistent contributor but hasn’t put up big numbers by any stretch. Chris Moore, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Tyjae Spears have also been fairly consistent. Two players who breakout candidates, Treylon Burks and Chig Okonkwo, have been very disappointing, outside of Burks’ 70-yard catch in Week 2 that got the Titans’ offense going.
3
Which matchup will the Titans look to exploit?
Mike Moraitis: I think there are two in this game. First, the matchup with left tackle Blake Freeland will be one Tennessee zeroes in on. Look for Arden Key, and to a lesser extent, Trevis Gipson, to line up there and try to take advantage. Then, cornerback JuJu Brents will likely be a point of emphasis to attack, considering his inexperience.
4
With Teair Tart out, how big of an impact does it have on the Titans run defense?
Mike Moraitis: Tart is no doubt a very good run defender and he will be missed, but Tennessee’s run defense has been able to overcome a slew of injuries in recent years to still be elite, so I don’t think his absence makes a huge dent. As long as Jeffery Simmons is there to eat double teams, the unit should be fine.
5
Prediction, final score?
Mike Moraitis: I love the two matchups for the Titans against Freeland and Brents and I think those turn out to be game-changers for Tennessee. Richardson and his ability to escape will help stave-off the Titans’ pass-rush enough to allow the Colts’ offense to operate, but not enough to top what Tennessee does on offense in what will be big games for Henry and Hopkins.
Titans 28, Colts 20.
