Another national sports media outlet predicts bad news for the Titans in 2022
The national media is down on the Tennessee Titans entering the 2022 season. Earlier this week, CBS Sports predicted that Tennessee will miss the playoffs this season for the first time since 2018. NFL.com's Cynthia Frelund sees it the same way. She released her 2022 AFC playoff seeding predictions this week and she also has […]
The national media is down on the Tennessee Titans entering the 2022 season.
Earlier this week, CBS Sports predicted that Tennessee will miss the playoffs this season for the first time since 2018.
NFL.com's Cynthia Frelund sees it the same way. She released her 2022 AFC playoff seeding predictions this week and she also has the Titans missing the playoffs this upcoming season.
A year ago, Frelund gave the Titans a 65 percent chance of making the playoffs ahead of the 2021 season.
CBS Sports and NFL.com, by the way, both have the Matt Ryan-led Indianapolis Colts winning the AFC South in 2022.
There are two obvious reasons why the national media is down on the Titans: Ryan Tannehill's bad game in the playoffs last season against the Cincinnati Bengals and the trade that sent star wide receiver AJ Brown to the Philadelphia Eagles.
It's fair to question Tennessee after the way the 2022 season ended (Tannehill's brutal interception on the Titans' would-be game-winning drive). And it's fair to be concerned about the offense after losing Brown.
But it's important to remember that Tannehill, despite not having his best season, played well enough during the 2021 regular season to lead the Titans to the No. 1 seed in the AFC. And he did it without running back Derrick Henry for a large chunk of the season.
The Titans' offense runs through Henry. Having him back healthy for a full season will offset the loss of Brown. Plus, let's not forget that Tennessee made an incredibly underrated move this offseason by acquiring wide receiver Robert Woods from the Los Angeles Rams. Woods probably won't be a routine fixture on Sportscenter this fall, but he's a solid player who is only a couple of years removed from a season that was better than any season Brown's had so far in the NFL.
There's no doubt the Colts are an improved team with Matt Ryan under center, but the Titans should still be viewed as the favorites in the AFC South. The division runs through Nashville until it doesn't.
Featured image via Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports
