Houston Texans @ Tennessee Titans

These two teams are coming off completely opposite performances, and that dynamic could make for an intriguing matchup on Sunday.

The Texans have been one of the buzziest teams all season long thanks to their superstar rookie QB C.J. Stroud, but they were dominated from start to finish by the Jets in Week 14. To make matters worse, Stroud is in the concussion protocol and is truly questionable for this game. 

On the other hand, the Titans mounted a remarkable comeback against the Dolphins on Monday Night Football thanks to the growing chemistry between Will Levis and DeAndre Hopkins. This would have been nearly impossible to predict just a week or two ago, but somehow, the Titans are the team with more momentum coming into this matchup.

Almost as surprising is the fact that Tennessee’s offense actually ranks one spot ahead of Houston in EPA per play for the season. 

The Stroud injury isn’t the only one hurting the Houston offense, as they could potentially be without their top two WRs after Nico Collins suffered a calf injury last week. We haven’t gotten much news from the team, but even if he plays, we have to assume it will be at less than 100%.

If Stroud and Nico sit, we could be in line for Davis Mills throwing to Noah Brown, John Metchie, and Robert Woods. While that isn’t what anyone wants, it would be fitting for a 2023 season plagued by injuries. It’s possible Dalton Schultz could return for this game, but there hasn’t been much reporting on that topic, so fantasy managers should operate under the assumption he won’t be available until we hear otherwise. 

Vegas certainly thinks the Texans will be without multiple key starters, as Tennessee is a 2.5-point favorite as I write this. Of course, nobody knows for sure this early in the week, but it is another negative indicator to take into account.

For Tennessee, this season is all about gaining experience and building confidence for their young QB. Last week’s victory was certainly a signature performance, but now they will be looking to follow that up with another strong outing.

The matchup is favorable as they’ll be at home and get to face off against a Texans defense that allowed Zach Wilson to put up a career day last week. 

Of course, the Titans want to be a run-first team, and they have the sixth-lowest neutral pass rate since Week 11 to prove it. If they can establish the ground game, that should result in plenty of touches for both Derrick Henry and Tyjae Spears. The rookie actually out-snapped King Henry in each of the Titans’ past two games, but that was largely a result of negative game scripts. 

If the Titans can get out to a lead, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Henry surpass 20 carries for just the second time since Week 8.

In the passing game, Levis has kept things pretty concentrated, with Hopkins seeing a 30+% target share in three of his last four games. TE Chig Okonkwo has also managed to string together some solid games and feels due for his first TD of the season here soon.