Betsided

Could Titans Squander the AFC South Crown Down the Stretch?

By Matt De Saro

The Tennesee Titans just about had the division locked up but have lost three of four and are in danger of being relegated to a Wild-Card spot.
The Tennesee Titans just about had the division locked up but have lost three of four and are in danger of being relegated to a Wild-Card spot. / George Walker IV / Tennessean.com / USA
facebooktwitterreddit

One of the hardest parts of winning a division title is the ability to win consistently down the home stretch. Year after year we see teams firmly entrenched in first place lose it in the last few weeks and end up in a Wild Card game. Some fall out of playoff contention altogether.

This season we have already seen a few epic meltdowns from the Buffalo Bills and, to a lesser extent, the Arizona Cardinals. However, one team is in real danger of becoming the latest division leader to blow it in December. 

The Tennessee Titans are currently 9-5 on the year and lead the AFC South division with three games left on the schedule, Those games include tonight against the 49ers as 3-point underdogs at WynnBET followed by a home matchup against the Dolphins before they close the season in Houston against the Texans. 

Tonight’s game between the Titans and 49ers will probably be their hardest test of the last three games. However, the Texans already beat the Titans despite being an objectively worse team. In fact, Tennessee has lost three of their last four games to teams that they could have beat. 

Every one of these final three games is a must-win scenario for the Titans with the red-hot Colts nipping at their heels. After a big win over the New England Patriots in Week 15, the Colts are 8-6 and currently hold the No 5 seed in the AFC. The Colts have a tough game against the Cardinals but play the Raiders in Week 17. Both teams are beatable and even the Cardinals have looked below average in the last couple of weeks. Hell, they got beat up by the Lions so anything can happen here. 

Tennessee is coming off a tough-luck loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers that would have given them a chance to take over the No. 1 seed in the AFC for the first time since Derrick Henry got hurt. If the Titans manage to win tonight and the Colts get beat by the Cardinals, the Titans will clinch the AFC South. However, a Titans loss and Colts win would put the two into a dead heat atop the division with just two weeks remaining.

Ultimately, I think the Titans have a better shot at beating the 49ers than the Colts do at beating the Cardinals, but stranger things have happened.

Home/NFL Picks