It’s another Derrick Henry-less game for Tennessee in the week 10 Saints at Titans matchup, but that didn’t seem to cause the team any problems last week in a 28-16 win over the Rams. New Orleans on the other hand played their first full game without starting QB Jameis Winston last week and ended up losing 27-25 to Atlanta.
Oddsmakers have the Titans as just -3 point favorites here as they still don’t fully trust the Titans without the dominant Henry. About 65% of public wagers are on the home team in a play that looks way too easy. The senses are tingling in this possible trap game.
QB Solidified for New Orleans?
Sean Payton will still probably use the versatile Taysom Hill in the backfield at times in the week 10 Saints at Titans matchup, but Trevor Siemian has shown the last two weeks that he is capable of stepping up and taking over the reins of this offense.
Siemian went 16/29 for 149 yards and a TD to help preserve the 36-27 win over the Bucs in week 8 after Winston went down. Last week the former Denver and Jets QB helped rally the Saints from a 24-6 deficit with under 10 minutes left in the 4th quarter before ultimately falling 27-25 to the Falcons. Siemian finished 25/41 for 249 yards with 2 TD and 0 INT in his first start since the 2019/20 season.
The big problem ahead of Sunday’s game is that the Saints are up against a Titans defense that held the Rams explosive offense in check in their 28-16 win on Sunday night. Matthew Stafford was just 31/48 passing and also had 2 INTs, his worst game as a member of the Rams.
Titans Moving Forward
Tennessee was a +7 point underdog on the road in a nationally televised game on Sunday night but still managed to pull out 12 point win over the Rams, handing L.A just their second loss of the season. That being said they did get a little lucky in scoring 14 points in a matter of :11 seconds thanks to a Stafford INT that was returned 24 yards for a score by Kevin Byard.
The stat sheet wasn’t all that astounding in the Titans first game without Henry, as they managed just 69 yards rushing on 25 carries while Ryan Tannehill was a mere 19/27 for 143 with 1 TD and 1 INT. Maybe that’s about as much production as you can ask for though considering the Rams have the #12 total yard defense in the NFL and are 7th best vs. the run (99.6 yards/game).
The New Orleans defense is very underrated, and in fact they have the best run defense in the league (73.8) and allow the 5th fewest points (19.4). The Saints gave up 343 yards on 23/30 passing day to Matt Ryan last week, who also threw 2 TDs and ran one in. That should provide a big opportunity for Tannehill and A.J. Brown to connect through the air against New Orleans #27 ranked pass defense (273.3 ypg).
Week 10 Saints at Titans Pick
The matchup against a weak Saints pass defense would’ve been a good one for Julio Jones to be active for, but the Titans WR is out indefinitely with a hamstring injury. Adrian Peterson scored a TD last week in his first game with Tennessee, but he also had just 21 yards on 10 carries. This game has push written all over decided by a FG, but the points look good as well.
Saints 23 – Titans 24
Free Pick: Saints +3
