Ravens at Titans
THE STORY: A letdown in Week 2? As far-fetched as it might seem, that’s what the Baltimore Ravens must guard against when they visit the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. The Ravens sent a loud message to the rest of the league by beating up bitter division rival Pittsburgh 35-7 in their season opener – a game every bit as close as the score indicates. The Titans, on the other hand, fell into a 13-point hole and never could catch up in a 16-14 home loss to Jacksonville.
TV: CBS, 1 p.m. ET. Line: Ravens -5.5. O/U 38
ABOUT THE TITANS (0-1): Star running back Chris Johnson missed all of training camp in a contract dispute and his rustiness showed with a paltry 24 yards on nine carries. Tennessee will need Johnson to resemble the back who has put up 20 100-yard games in the past two seasons against Baltimore’s ferocious defense. Matt Hasselback threw for 234 yards and two touchdowns – both to Kenny Britt – in his Titans debut. Britt had five catches for 136 yards, including an 80-yard scoring pass. The defense needs to tighten up after allowing 163 rushing yards to Jacksonville.
ABOUT THE RAVENS (1-0): There wasn’t much not to like about Baltimore’s opener. The defense turned in a dominant performance by forcing seven turnovers and was complemented by an efficient offense. Ray Rice had 149 yards of total offense and posted his eighth 100-yard rushing game while Joe Flacco threw three TD passes and zero interceptions. Tight ends Ed Dickson (five catches, 59 yards, one TD) and Dennis Pitta combined for seven catches and 104 yards. Ed Reed made the right decision not to retire, accounting for two of the Ravens’ three interceptions.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. Ravens LB Terrell Suggs had three sacks against Pittsburgh to give him a franchise-record 71.5. He was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.
2. Hasselback, in his first season with the Titans, needs 158 yards passing to reach the 30,000-yard mark for his career.
3. “Letdown ... those are professionals over there. We’ve got to prepare this week for them. We’re not thinking about (a letdown).” – Ravens safety Reed, who had his 12th career game with multiple interceptions last week.