Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - TITANS SQUAD SHOW: Robert Saleh faces Jets in MUST-WIN game, regular season record predictions

Episode Date: September 9, 2026

It's officially game week in Music City! The Tennessee Titans open the 2026 season against the New York Jets at Nissan Stadium and all eyes are on head coach Robert Saleh as he faces his former team. Why is a week 1 victory crucial for Saleh? We break down the matchup, dive into the 2026 schedule, and make our win-loss predictions for the season.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!HomeChefFor a limited time, Home Chef is offering my listeners FIFTY PERCENT OFF and free shipping for your first box PLUS free dessert for life! Go to http://HomeChef.com/LOCKEDONNFL. QuoTry QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months when you go to http://Quo.com/LOCKEDONNFL. IndeedListeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/podcast.PrizePicksVisit https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFL and use code LOCKEDONNFL and get $150 if you win your first $5 lineup!OdooGreat organizations win because operations matter. And that’s why you should get Odoo. Try for free today at https://Odoo.com/lockedon.GustoTry Gusto today at http://gusto.com/LOCKEDONNFL, and get three months free when you run your first payroll.KALSHIFor a limited time,Download the Kalshi app and use code [LOCKEDON] to get $10 when you trade $10.GametimeToday's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase.FanDuelGet three hundred fifty dollars in Bonus Bets — GUARANTEED — when you bet five dollars every day for seven days. Join all the action at https://FANDUEL.COMFANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN)  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

I know a lot of people have been criticizing the Titans secondary, but I think against the Jets, they could be in line to have a bounce back week. And it's never too early for season predictions, right? We'll bring them all to you. Two teams that picked inside of the top five last year. We'll see which one of them actually did the most work in the offseason. It's time to talk Titans on the Titan Squad Show. Titan up.

It's the Titans squad. Everything Tennessee Titans every week. Covering all the big hits and game-changing plays from the heart of Music City, the way only the locked-on podcast network can. Squad up. The Titan Squad Show starts now. And welcome to the Titan Squad Show. I'm your host, Julian Minnesota, joined by Kayla Anderson, Brad Hopkins, and Tyler Rowland.

Today's episode is brought to you by Fan Duel. Get $350 in bonus. Bet's guaranteed when you bet $5 every day for seven days. Join all the action at fanduil.com. And we have a jam-pack show for you as guys, it's game week. We have made it. The Tennessee Titans play a regular season football game this Sunday at Nissan Stadium against the New York Jets.

And that's where I want to start when it comes to this matchup. The storylines, storylines galore on this one. You have players from both sides who have played for both organizations. You have Robert Sala playing his former team, and the Sala coaching era will officially, officially begin on Sunday. So I ask you guys not to get too ahead of ourselves when it comes to record predictions and things like that, because we will get to that.

But I'll start with Kayla. Kayla, is this a must-win game for the Titans on Sunday? Man, that's always the question that kind of, I'm like, really a must-win? But in a way, it's a big start to the season, where if they win this game, I think that it just gives a little bit of ease to the fan base and a little bit of room to breathe a bit.

Because, look, this schedule isn't the hardest. It's not the easiest. And we'll go through that in a minute. But I think if you are able to go up against a team, let's just be honest. Aaron Glenn, nothing against this man, but he is trying to probably coach for his job this season. And New York has kind of been one of those.

planes where or places where planes don't land very smoothly for people over there. And so I think with not a lot there to work with still and a quarterback that is aging and it's coming off of a really tough season in terms of interceptions over in Las Vegas. I'm interested to see what this team will look like. And I think this is one of the more getable games on the Titan's schedule. And so if they can kind of come out and get this victory, it can set somewhat of a good tone in Nashville. I'm not saying they're going to go on and rattle off four more wins after that. But I do believe there are games on this schedule that are crucial to win.

And the Jets are one of those games. Tyler? Well, Kayla, we're going to talk about, I do want to, when we do our record predictions, talk about what we think the must win. games on the schedule. But before I go, Julian, I got to ask Brad, because from a player's perspective, do you believe in must win games when it's not an elimination game? Do you believe that game one, we got to set the tone for the season, this really matters, we've been working hard,

do must win games exist in the locker room in non-elimination situations? Every single one of them is a must win. Is that always going to be the outcome? No. Of course, not. How many undefeated teams have there have been? Two and one didn't win the Super Bowl. Right. You know what I'm saying? So at the end of the day, it's a, it's a pipe dream. But your preparation tells you it's a must-win situation. We have to go out here and perform at the level that gives us a chance to win. In our mindset, we are going to win this ballgame. And like I just said, it doesn't always work out that way, especially for a team that has struggled in most recent years. Every loss just seems familiar. Ah, here we go.

again. You know, it sets the level of expectation, you know what I mean? Now, I will say, you can lose competitively and still, okay, go back to Pittsburgh, Will Levis, in Pittsburgh, and they lost the game, right? But you left, everybody, all Titans fans are like, ooh, I don't know, man, we got something going here.

You know what I mean? Yeah. Those kind of losses are palatable, all right? At the end of the day, you don't want to ever get your head caved in, but a loss is a loss. But us mentally answering the question, Tyler, every game, is a must-win situation because we expect no less than that. And unfortunately, stinking thinking, that was an old less deckels term,

stinking thinking kind of creeps into your mind when you lose too often, and it just becomes easy to accept. You know what I mean? Like, we're just not very good. You know, and when you get into that mindset, that's when you're picking in the top five of the draft. See, Brad, that's, it, obviously our football experiences were a little bit different. I just played high school football, you know what I mean?

But there was always a saying that if you don't go 100, 100% that's when you're going to get hurt. And I feel like similarly, if you're not preparing like, we have no choice but to win this game, then you're not going to prepare with the amount of hunger that you need to actually go out and win it. It's almost like admitting defeat already if you weren't fully focused on winning. And what you said there, Brad, I think is going to be the jump off point for me. I think this is 100% a must win game because the Titans have lost so much before. A loss here with all the momentum of the all season, the jerseys, the coaches, the coach,

change, the rebrand, all the new players, how they played in the joint practices, how they feel right now about how things are going to turn around, things are new, we're going to be different now to come out and lose to the Jets, a team that fired your head coach with their new head coach, which looked like, oh yeah, they did improve, right? They got the better coach, right? They just beat you guys. And it's just one game and they can turn it around. But there's so much just like momentum for the organization writing on this. You can lose to Philadelphia and week two and not kill all the momentum. It's Philadelphia. Like, it's just mentally different for how things are perceived.

And that may not matter in the locker room, but part of this is how things feel and how the community feels and the fan base. So I think they got to win this one. Salah being against his old team, all of the losing, all the momentum. It's just different than normal. It's different than the Patriots. People want to say the Patriots, they lost to the Raiders last year in week one and then went to the Super Bowl. So how can you say week one's ever a must win? Well, I'm sorry, the Tennessee Titans are not the New England Patriots. The fan base doesn't have the same confidence.

The organization doesn't have the internal confidence and stability like the Patriots. It's just different to me. So I think it's 100% a must win for Robert Salaf. Absolutely. And Tyler, you bring up a good point. The entire marketing and branding surrounding the franchise throughout the offseason has been a fresh start, right? The new coaching staff, the New Jersey's, the new stadium coming in.

it would kind of be counterproductive to that if you go out and lay an egg against the New York Jets. And I was thinking about- And again, I don't want to get too ahead of myself and we'll talk about the schedule. But I would say the term clunker, right? In sports is used a lot when you say like a game that you should win. You got to win your clunkers, right? I would absolutely positively say that the Jets are a clunker on this Titan schedule. The only problem is the Jets fans think the same thing about the Titans right now. And so they're probably going, the Jets squad show is probably saying, you know what?

This is absolutely a must win for the Jets against the Titans team, right? Beha. That is exactly what they're saying. They're saying, woo-hoo, we've got the Titans week one, whether it be on the road or not. And until we prove otherwise, it's valid, right? But both teams are saying that. And I don't want to get too far down the road because you might be. be creeping into my hop take. So I'm just going to just kind of pump the brakes a little bit

about how far we're down we go. But you're Julie, you hit the nail on the head, man. Both of these teams are thinking, this is a winnable game because in essence it's true. Okay, then Behop, let me ask you this then. And I'll go around the panel here. The Titans will win on Sunday because of what? That's a good question. Because they score one more point than the Jets. Ultimately, that's what comes down to, right? But you know what? To honestly answer your question, they'll win if they limit mistakes. Because at the end of the day, the team that is going to lose this ballgame is the team that makes the most mistakes.

The team that gives it away. Whenever you hear a coach say, they didn't beat us, we beat ourselves. That is 100% true. Because it always comes down to something, some intangible within that. game that you had control over, but somehow you let get away from you, which gave that team a little bit of an advantage. So the team that limits their mistakes and doesn't cost them teams with penalties and silly stuff, that'll be the team that wins. And that's what the Titans have to do to win this one. Tyler, I think it's all about the trenches. I think if the Titans

went up front, they're going to win the game. And here's why the Jets wide receivers are pretty solid. You have Don A. Mitchell, Garrett Wilson, of course, and Mason Taylor, Omar Cooper is maybe not had a great training camp, but he's in there. Breece Hall is a pretty good weapon if he's healthy and up to speed. If the Titans D-line dominates a good young offensive line with good young offensive tackles. If you don't know about Armand Membu, he's a very good player. Olu Fashion who was a guy I really liked in the draft over J.C. Latham for a good

portion of the process. He's a good pass protector. If the Titans D line dominates that matchup when it's supposed to be an advantage for the Jets week to week, they're going to get on Gino Smith, who's an older quarterback, he's going to make mistakes. He doesn't want to take hits early in the season, not used to it from this D-line, the ferociousness, and then the Titans get turnovers. It helps the secondary against those good weapons. And then on the flip side, if the Titans are able to neutralize like a guy like David Bailey, who I'm worried about, I'm worried about David Bailey against the offensive tackles

with how he looked in the preseason. They can limit that. The Jets' biggest weakness on their roster, in my opinion, is their secondary. So the Titans have the weapons that we've been talking about all all season, right? They should take advantage. So football is a game that has to be won in the trenches. So that's exactly where I'm going week one. That's where they invested.

Let's see it. Yeah, on the note of that, just to give you some statistics from last year, and it's hard to vastly improve them. Their defense gave up the most touchdowns in the league last year. their defense also did not have one interception throughout the entire season. And I know that they want to improve that, but it's hard to, you know, see that completely flip script in just a season. I would agree, I think we're coming into a new era of Titans football.

And what is it based upon, at least for the head coach you hired, Robert Sala, defense, right? and this team that is defensively tough, gritty, physical. And I think if they're going to win this game, guys, like Tyler said, they need to dominate up front, it starts up front, they need to show that they are the better, at least right now, defensive team. And it might be low scoring. We don't know yet. I don't expect this Titans offense, though, right now to be the reason why they win this game.

later down the road, I hope we can say that the Titans offense is the reason why they won the game. But I think in this game, you've got to see that defensive identity of Sala incorporated in the reason why they get the win. Sure. And to take both of your guys as points there, it's why I said I think this could be a bounce back win for the secondary. Because if you can get that pass rush, because if you could stop the run with Bree Saul, because the Titans did a pretty good job in the preseason when it came to the run defense, I thought. this needs to be a bounce back week for Alante Taylor and Cordell Flot. They got so much slack over the preseason, right? Like this secondary, there's so many holes.

These backup players are carving them up. And there's context to all of that, right? But when you have a guy like Gino Smith, who's led the league in interceptions that combined over the last two years, this feels like the one where Alante or Cordell, whoever it is Marcus Harris, you name it, to get that turnover that they need, get those extra possessions.

It could be the difference between a win and a loss. And I think that secondary just needs a win right now, given how the last couple of weeks have gone relative to what we thought they were going to be when they first signed on. And Alante Taylor is out there tweeting, we're going to be the top cornerback duo in the league by season end, mark my word. So this would be a good start for that team and that unit, I should say.

I don't know about that statement, Julian, but I got Alante Taylor getting an interception this week. I think there's going to be pressure. Gino Smith, and who's he going to want to force it to? Garrett Wilson. And when he does, Alante Taylor plays that physical coverage. He just happens to be in the way of some of these, and he'll get one of them. I think Alante Taylor gets an interception this week.

I really do. I just want them to be smart. I want them to stay disciplined in their rush lanes because regardless of how old you think Gino Smith is, he's still shifty with his feet. He can still get first downs with the aggressive nature that the Titans tend to have. We saw it in Seattle.

We saw it in Chicago. where the pass rush gets at almost quarterback level. Next thing you know, the guy sees open grass, he just takes off. You know what I mean? So backers got to be smart. Obviously, the defenders up front, the front four, have to be very smart and staying in those lanes. And therefore not giving Tino anywhere to escape,

especially as the coverage does what we expected to do and taking away some of his options. Yeah, 100%. And it's certainly all things to watch out for when the Titans kick off Sunday at Nissan Stadium against the New York Jets. After the break, we are going to talk about. about our record predictions. How many games do the Titans have in their back pocket

to win this year? And what are they must win games on the schedule? We'll break that down next year on the Titan Squad Show. Don't go anywhere. With schedules getting busier and everyone getting back into their normal routines, figuring out what's for dinner can become a daily headache. Home Chef makes cooking simple with fresh food delivered

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All right. Record prediction time. Tyler, I know you had a prediction on your Lockdown Titans podcast. Was it 6 and 11, correct? What led you to that 6 and 11 record? And I'll also have the schedule for our viewing audience here to kind of break down some of those games that you deem important that the Titans must have.

And you're on mute, Tyler. In new schemes with new coaches, it may just take a little time. They may just start a little slowly. And they got kind of a difficult schedule early on. Like, if they don't beat the Jets and the Giants, you know, they play against the Texans, the Colts, the Ravens, the Eagles. Those are difficult matchups, the Bengals as well.

They get the Browns in there. But again, if they don't beat both of the New York teams, you know, let's say they get one of them. That's one win. I think they're going to beat the Browns for sure. But, you know, outside of that, are they going to win at Indies? Houston is a great team at Baltimore is tough. Again, Philly, I just think it's tough. And then you get to the buy.

After the buy, I think they can have a lot more success. But I just think they start like two and six or something like that going into the buy week. Okay, gotcha. So you're hoping for maybe not just incremental improvement as the year goes on, but potentially a more favorable run at that back end of the season. Yeah, I think they win four out of their last nine games, which is near 500 football.

I think they'll find a way to win. out of the buy against Jacksonville. They'll find a way to beat Washington. They'll beat Indianapolis at home, and I think they'll beat Vegas. I would say we can get into the swing games. With that Pittsburgh game, the last game at Nissan Stadium, I'd love to see them find a way to buck up and win that

and get the seven wins on the season, which I think would be a really good outcome. But man, I got to tell you, as a Titans fan for 27, 28 years now, the amount of times we've beaten the Pittsburgh Steelers, especially recently, in any environment, just not very much. It's funny Brad brought up the Steelers game,

where Levis hit those whole shots against cover two and got us all hyped up. But yeah, I just have a hard time seeing us beat the Pittsburgh Steelers because I'm not used to it. So that's how I got to six. And we have to take everything at face value with these record predictions as of right now because obviously injuries happen, changes happen. Who knows if even Aaron Rogers is going to be quarterbacking this team by the end of that at that game at Nissan Stadium. So there is always other caveats to that.

But I don't think 6 and 11 would be anything to scoff that. that's doubling your win total from last year. That's combined amount of wins over the last two years. So I think six and 11 is certainly realistic. Kayla, what do you think? Yeah, I think mine was at six wins this season. So that would put me at six and 11 too. Now, would it surprise me if it was five?

No. But I don't think it can be any less than that without there being utter disappointment. and along the lines of what Tyler mentioned, because I'm going off of last season, and it was a disaster to start the year. And obviously, Brian Callahan was fired. And slowly but surely we saw this team improve, but more so towards the end.

I think that that improvement should happen earlier when it comes to this season, because you have more competent people running the show here, Robert Sala, who has had his chance before at being a head coach and knows this is another opportunity and making the most of it coming over from the 49ers organization where he probably learned some things from a Kyle Shanahan and how he, you know, does things and runs things. And then you've got an offensive coordinator who has plenty of experience, not only being an OC, but also at one time a head coach. And so I think you need to see more improvement earlier on, but I do agree

Tyler, I think that the first half of the schedule is tough. Like the Jets game to me is a must win situation. Yes. Yes. It just, it frankly is. It's kind of yelling at you at the schedule of you better win this. It's the first game. You better win this. And I understand Philadelphia, even the Giants, which I think is still an interesting game.

I'm not completely just going to give all the flowers just because they have Harbaugh now as their head coach. there's still a younger team, but they probably should lose that game against the Giants, Baltimore. I'd say the first game with Houston at least, they'll probably going to lose. Now, I could see them possibly, you know, possibly splitting the Indianapolis series this year, whether it be the one at Indy or the one in Nashville. But Cleveland, there's another one that sticks out to me. First of all, it's at home. Cleveland is not a good team.

who knows who their quarterback's going to be at that point. It just has so much drama within the organization. It's somebody you have to take advantage of, especially when they're at home. And then Cincinnati, I think that's going to be a tough one. Then you got the buy, like Tyler mentioned. This is where I think you have to kick it into gear. And this is where I want to see really Cam Ward in this offense

starting to come together, really starting to see the identity of this defense. I think you should be able to win, Jackson. at home. You go to Dallas, probably a loss at Jacksonville. That'll be a loss. But Washington, that is not a team right now I'm confident in. Who knows if Jaden Daniels will be healthy at that point? I know right now there's a lot of injuries with that team, at least to start the season. It's not looking great there. And then at Detroit, that's a loss. Indianapolis, like I said, one of them at home or at Indy will be a win in my opinion.

Vegas, who knows who will be starting at that point. But regardless, if it is Fernando, that is a rookie quarterback who's still going to probably just be getting in the group because he's not starting the season. So that's a win. And then Pittsburgh, I'm with you, Tyler. Who is to say that with this team and it's in Tennessee and we don't know what the status of that quarterback will be like or that offense, might I add, that's been stanky? in the past couple of years.

Who's to say if the Titans are in a stride of their own that they cannot beat the Steelers? And then at Houston, Houston's just a good team, guys. Their defense scares the hell out of me. Who knows, I believe CJ is going to get back to his ways. So probably a loss right there. Okay, gotcha, gotcha. B. Hop, what do you think?

Are you sticking with your record prediction? I think you had told me at the early part of the off season, seven and ten, are you sticking with that? Yeah, I'm sticking with seven and ten. Well, first off, what's up with the free dessert, you know, for life? I want to get back to that. Hey, home chef right now. I'm talking about it.

But I listen, I have them two and three, the first five games. I've got them kind of going back and forth in the middle of the season, four and four the last eight games. But for me, they split with the division, meaning that they win their home games against the division, but they don't win on the road. I obviously saw a team last year that didn't win any divisional games. So I think that they have to show improvement there.

And that's where you really have to show improvement is by winning those best of two matchups, right? Especially the ones that you have in your backyard. As far as, you know, like the possibilities, yeah, they're playing some really good teams. But I think that you're going to see a bunch of back and forth. I think that this year they do draw the NFC East, which may or may not work out in our favor because you've got the Cowboys. You've got Philadelphia. We're really not sure what Washington team is going to show up. Like Kayla said, New York is a winnable matchup, I think.

We've got Cleveland at home like we've seen on the schedule there. Baltimore on the road could be tough, definitely. Pittsburgh at home. Last game in the old Nissan Stadium. If you don't come to play, man, you must be a corpse. You know what I mean?

So there's that that you're contending with. I do think that Vegas on the road is going to be a lot tougher than most people think because I don't think Fernando Mendoza is going to actually see the field this year. This is Kirk Cousins' team. And if we didn't see that in the preseason, then you haven't been watching much because this guy's a leader. you know, Kirk Cousins, he already got pissed off at Max

for trying to get after him during practice. He ain't playing around, man. And he's just been bounced around in the league just because a lot of the time, circumstances. You know what I mean? So it'll be an interesting year to say the least, but I think seven wins is doable for this roster. I do expect him to take full advantage of the emotion

that is tied with closing a stadium that has been on that Cumberland for 26, 27 years. And so to me, I think that that matters. And this team, I know the logo change and also the team, the regime changed. The logo change is interesting that you mentioned, Julian. That wasn't a Titans decision. That was a league decision.

If they didn't change the logo now, they would have had to change it. And they would have had to wait like three or four years before they were actually able to do it. I think that they wanted it in place before actually they opened the doors of the new Nissan. And also before the Super Bowl rose out here. Interesting. I also have the Titans at 6 and 11 this year. I know we talked about in the last segment a little bit about what games are the must-win ones

or the quote-unquote, I guess clunkers, if you will, that they need to snag them. I agree with you, Kayla, Jets, Cleveland, Raiders, and I think you could probably throw the giant. Yeah. I got, the commanders are in that bundle for me, Julie.

And I don't think the commanders are a very good football team. I don't believe in some of the changes and where they're at right now. So I had them and that's my four of, hey, they got to win all those games and be better than those teams. Sure. Yeah. And whether it be giants or commander, whatever one you want to put as that fourth,

like I think you can make an argument for either or or both. Now, of course, there are going to be games that they lose that they probably shouldn't. And then there might be a game here and there that they shouldn't win or they're underdogs and that they pull it out. So let me ask you guys this then. If there is a non-divisional game on this schedule, non-divisional game against the team that you know they're going to be underdogs against. Which one do you think is the most likely that the Titans pull out and say, wow, can't believe they won that one?

I will go. I think late in the year, so this comes back to an NFL take that I have, I am not high on the Detroit Lions. I think that they have some issues on their offensive line at center. They have a rookie at right tackle. They're not the offensive line that we think of when we think of the Detroit lines that went 15 and 2. They missed the playoffs last year and got last in their division. Their pass rush has nothing outside of Aden Hutchinson.

And their secondary is one of the worst in the league right now. Maybe they'll have both their starting safeties back. But who knows what level they'll play at their first year back from major injuries. I think the Lions take a big step back. And I know their offense is potent. But if the Titans defensive line can get some pressure on Jared Golf, he's not a super mobile quarterback. And I look at that secondary and that pass rush.

And I think that the Titans can have their way with both of them. And the Titans can go tip for Tatt in Detroit. And I think if the Titans surprise us, which is kind of something I want to ask you guys after we go through this, if the Titans surprise us and have a way better season than what we're expected, maybe make that playoff run, I think knocking off Detroit in Detroit in December would be a way to announce themselves to the NFL as,

hey, it may not be this year, but the Titans are coming. Solomon. Kayla. Yeah, that's a good one, Tyler. And it's, it's tough, right? Because I'm looking more at the second half of the season, too, because I do feel like that is when they can start to get in their groove as a team as a whole. So what I will say, and this is going out on a bit of a limb, but there's reasoning behind this. So let's say they come out of the buy week. They've kind of figured out some things in the first half of the schedule. They're rusted up. Let's say they get that win against Jacksonville, like I mentioned, at home at Nissan Stadium.

They got a little bit of a, you know, a little bit of confidence under their wings. And then they go to Dallas. And Dallas, we all know how much hype every single year, Dallas is. And it's like every single year is this is the year. But every single year, there's some sort of catastrophe that happens at some point of the season. where they either shoot themselves in the foot or somebody becomes injured who's a big factor in terms of winning on their team, aka Dak Prescott or any of these other paid wide receivers, CD Lamb.

So I just feel that if there is a shocker that Dallas also allows some teams to come in there and they kind of let their guards down, I could see Dallas being one of those teams where that happens. Bhop? I don't have a shocker just because of all the wins that I have for the Tennessee Titans, they're actually winnable games.

You know, I do have them beating Washington, which I feel like everybody else. It's a winnable game. I do have them losing to Detroit simply because it's in Detroit. Fort Field is a hard place to play. You know what I mean? Maybe if that were game,

we're in Nissan Stadium, I might have a different outcome, but I just think for all the games that I have of the seven, you know, most of them are being at home. They are actually games that you wouldn't be surprised that the Titans did win. You know, like I said earlier, you know,

the four games that they have within the division at home, I think that they take those. Conversely, I don't think that they win one on the road in a division, which is a better record than they did last year, surprisingly to say, but it's the truth, you know what I mean? But I think Pittsburgh's a winnable game at home. I think obviously the Vegas

trip could be interesting. That might be one right there. I have them losing, but it could turn around and definitely be a game worth watching just because the Raiders Nation is just ridiculous to play in front of. And all the distractions that come along with going out two time zones. You know what I mean? Vegas is never an easy win just because of all the distraction. You know what I mean?

Just all the craziness that goes along with being out there in Sin City. I think that there is a possibility that, you know, maybe they win that final game at Houston. Here, here's one. if Houston the game to end the season is a win for the Titans, I think it's simply because the Houston Texans are into playoffs and they're sitting. You know what I mean? And that could be a situation. We'll take it regardless, right?

Because at the end of the day, when you start looking at wins and losses, that no one's going to look at the schedule. No one five years from now is going to go back, well, let's look at that 2026 season and what the record was. Well, how did they win those seven games? You know what I mean? It's going to be like looking at it like that. I think I'm like, oh, seven games, cool.

You know what I mean? so or seven games you know especially for a team that won four what three the year before that's a vast improvement but i don't think it's by any stretch to scale that the titans expect themselves to be you know as robert solvus tenure takes hold call me crazy guys you're crazy but just looking at the schedule from just like a you know surface level here if if you win that opener against the jet this weekend and you make some improvements and you have your mojo a little bit. Philadelphia, if you're going to face the Eagles anytime, might as well be early in the season. You know, they have a lot of pressures on Nick Siriani this year. Could be a hot target,

a hot seat candidate probably already is. They have a new offensive coordinator in Mannion. I don't think from what we've seen from Jalen Hertz so far, what more could he possibly show us or could a coach possibly do that we haven't already seen from Jalen Hurts? Now I know they have Seekoine Barkley, obviously. Like that's a tough, tough match. But I think if you're going to face any, one of the tougher teams, I guess on paper on your schedule,

it might as well be in like week one or two where that team is still kind of figuring some things out. So I'm not saying I'm picking the Titans to beat the Eagles. but I'm saying that there are things that you can point to and say, huh, maybe, just maybe in this topsy-turvy NFL, that something like that could happen, especially early on. So what about divisional games? I know Brad, you had them splitting the division.

Kayla, Tyler, how many divisional games do you have them winning this year? Splitting the division would be absolutely incredible. Most of my wins, I only have one divisional win. for me, and it's the home game against the Colts. Or I have them beating Jacksonville coming out of the by, too. So I have two divisional wins. I just don't see them beating the Texans. I think if they were to sweep the Colts,

if there's going to be a team that the Titans are better than in the division this year, I think it has the chance to be the Colts. So if the Titans are going to get three or four wins in the division, I think it would require beating Indianapolis twice, which I think is certainly possible. But it's just not like, it's not what I'm predicting. for my predictions and my six wins. But when we talk about like if they surprise us,

if it goes better than all of us are thinking, if they get 9, 10 wins and they're actually competing for the playoffs, what are some of the games I think are realistic they could steal? I think at Indianapolis is one that would be in it and sweep in indie would be something that would help the Titans get there. Kayla? Yeah, I've got two division wins. Look, they didn't win one last year, and that's unacceptable.

I mean, I know the AFC South is not. I'm not going to call it like a garbage division. It's not. It's an unpredictable division sometimes, certainly. But this year, they have got to figure out a way to get some wins. And I put them at two. I give them one against the Colts and I give them one against the Jags. I am with you, Brad. If Houston rests some of their players to end this season, maybe they can get that to three. But I do believe that that is doable. And they inside that locker room, Jeffrey Simmons, to name the first person, should be furious of the fact that they could not get a division win last year. Because I remember when I was in that locker room, ever talking about division games.

And they, they mean something to those guys. Like, it means something to beat their division rivals. And so I think that's a point of emphasis in there this year. And to get a couple of them, I think that that would be the least, you know, amount to get this two, maybe three. Yeah, one division win in the last two years combined. That's not going to get it done. You're going to have to compete in your division before you compete at the top of the league

first. And so I agree with you. I think they could split with Jacksonville and the Colts. Colts are a huge question mark. We don't know what the heck they're going to look like. Like are they going to be the team before Daniel Jones got hurt? They're going to be the team after Daniel Jones got hurt? Like, what's that going to be?

And Jacksonville, I think, takes a step back this year. They are playing a first place schedule. is going to be a little bit tougher. And I think, you know, get more tape on Leon Cohen and those guys too. So we'll see how that goes. So two and four for me for the division as well. All right. On the other side of the break, we have a hop take for us.

Bhop is ready. He's locked and loaded. Ready to go. That's next here on the Titan Squad Show. Support for today's episode comes from IndeedSponsor Jobs. When workplace chaos hits and you need the right hire, indeed sponsored jobs helps connect. with candidates who match specific needs like skills, certifications, and location.

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Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire. This is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs. I'm mad that I haven't made like a Bhop hop take jingle yet. But we're working on it, Bhop. Don't worry. The budgeting is in the mix. All right.

But here is your hop take this week from none other than Brad Hopkins. All you got to do is just have the sound of like bacon sizzling in the background. Oh, yeah. I mean, that's the hop take. Now, listen, you guys, we kind of touched on it at the very beginning of our show, talking about must-win situations. Now, you're at home. You've got plenty of motivation as far as the ties with Robert Sala

and the players that were there in New York that are now here in Nashville. Even the players that are there now have familiarity with some of the guys, like JFM and Joe Tipman. That's going to be a match-up. You know, I mean, I don't know that it's going to make him any better to handle Jeffrey Simmons, but we've got those kind of situations. You know, Brees Hall, not necessarily healthy at this point,

dealing with an injury or dealing with stuff. But I think that, you know, I'm not putting the entire season into one week, but we're going to discover a lot about this team in week one. Two teams that picked in the top five, you know, the past year, squaring off week one, who addressed those issues, who has more work to do. So my hot take is that this game all rolled up in the very beginning of the season, it means a lot more than just the opening game of the season, right?

I mean, let's just look at it like Philadelphia is playing the commanders week one. It's a divisional matchup. He's starting out the season on the end of the division, but here it is, right? If the Philadelphia Eagles lose to watching the commanders, are we also going to just bounce them out of the conversation about teams that can do it in the NFC? I doubt it. Is it going to probably put more wind into the conversation or the sales of the team that wins? Sure, it will, especially when you get that matchup.

I think that this week one against the Jets, with all the hyperbole that's come along with it, it really is a must-win situation because you just don't want any of that negative stinking thinking to start creeping back into people's minds, especially if they lose in the fashion that I say that they could lose. In other words, the team that makes the most mistakes ends up losing this game.

That can be the only thing that costs this team the ball game, especially with the crowd getting ready to show up week one. There's all kinds of reasons for the fan base to want to show up. You know why? Because the Titans are defeated. And Tyler, as a fan, just feel better about your team when they're 1 and 0, right? Like you could go on a multi-game losing streak.

We talked about maybe Philly they lose to them, maybe the Giants, the Ravens, whatever. But if you start 1-0, it feels pretty darn good, at least for a week. And you know what it also does? It gets the conversation whirlwind that would be with a loss out of the way, at least, for the time being. I think it gives them so much protection from a losing streak that may come after. they lose to Philadelphia at their one-in-one. Everybody says, oh, it's the Eagles, but we beat the Jets.

We beat somebody in our tax bracket. We know that we're not the Eagles, but we should be better than the Jets. That's what most Titans fans would tell you. Like, yeah, I'm not the Eagles, but we should be better than them, you know? So people would understand that. That Giants game, you're on the road.

They have John Harbaugh. You look like they're an ascending young team. You lose a close game there. You look competitive people are all right. You know what I mean? Baltimore is like, and Eagles, you know, but then you get to Indy, you get to Cleveland, you get a win on the board. Maybe you go three and five in the first eight weeks of the season before you go into the

buy, people would feel tremendously happy, in my opinion. So I think, Brad, you're 100% right. And this is kind of what I was saying at the beginning, too. It's just like, this game means more than a normal one opening season game. Any normal, like, there's just so much riding on it with the emotional stability. and we say fans. The people in that building that are not like

the football people, not the players, not the but like the medical people, the ticket sales people, the PR people, they're just fans who are living and dying and breathing and watching these shows and on Twitter want the team to win to. So it's like you can feel it in the building when the sales, when the wind

comes out of the sales. And they just can't they can't let it happen. It just means because if they lose that game, and we talk about the stretch that comes after that, When are they getting their next win? Cleveland, Indy. Like we're talking about week six. Like, we're talking about 0, 4, 0, and 5,

that would just totally murder any momentum this team has and the players in the locker room would feel it. They would have to. Kayla. I think, too, it's important for, you know, I'm not, like I said in the beginning, I think it's important that the defense really sets the tone in this game. And that's what Robert Sala, you know,

came in with an identity of a defensive guy who, you know, knows what he wants. It's just putting it together and making it come together. But right now I do feel like I'm more comfortable with what they're going to look like defensively out of the gates. But I do feel, guys, it is important for Cam to have a clean game. I'm not saying that Cam has to go out there and he has to throw for exaggerated numbers. But I do feel like Cam has to show something from what this offseason and this training camp was. I know we didn't look great in preseason games, but we saw moments throughout camp and joint practices where we saw that progression.

We saw he was picking up the offense. He was getting more comfortable with his receivers. I do think because this is one of those games that you're not as intimidated by what you're going up against. I'm not saying that they're going to be turning over and just allowing the Titans to do whatever they want. But I think it's important for Cam to also kind of start the year just being decent, right?

not doing anything to distract everything and making it all on him. Like, oh, my God, he threw for two interceptions. Oh, my gosh, he was sacked six times. You know, just play a clean game and do just be responsible is all I'm asking from Cam. You know what? You know what? If Cam Ward goes out there and throws to 350 yards, Carnell Tate is in the end zone twice, this fan, Blaze Base will lose his damn mind.

Yes, I will. Yes, I will. I will be first in line. But, but, Tyler, and you know this is true. It's so much easier to expect losing. You don't get your feelings hurt when it happens. It's the way it is. People want to be quietly surprised.

You know, it's a great feeling when you're quietly surprised. But if you go into their thinking and hoping, we're going to win, we're going to win. And I'll say, you don't win. Now you're just, now you're going to break your big toe kicking something close that's hard. That's what happened. Yeah. Yeah. Brad,

Can I tell you the honest truth, though? Wait, hold on saying. How'd you break your foot kicking something? By the way, worst story ever, guys. I kicked someone. I will not name who that is. Yeah, I'm a little crazy. Kick someone in the leg on the first day of our cruise.

And busted, literally broke my toe. You know you can't do anything about a broken toe. So walking around with, you know, sandals all trip long, working out, by the way, as well, with a broken toe. Wow. Sorry, Tyler. I just had to find out

out of him. No, it's totally worth it. No, we needed the story. And now we know to be careful and to not upset Kayla. So if Joey Slice starts missing some field goals, we know who to call for a workout. You'll have to battle Xavier Restrepo, Kayla,

but I am in your corner for that one. I was just going to say, Brad, you know what I've learned in life as a pessimist? with the exact same mentality that you just describe the mentality if you go in with low expectations, you can't be disappointed. But I've realized with the Titans,

yes, I can. It doesn't matter how low my expectations are when they lose games, it still hurts. I can't run from it. No matter what I say, oh, I don't think they're going to win. They're going to go 6 and 11. If they go 6 and 11, they lose those 11 games,

I'm going to be pissed when they're losing those 11 games. it's going to suck when they're losing those 11 games because I want them to win. I just want them to win so I can tell myself they're going to lose. I'm always going to be mad when they lose, even if I expected it. There's no running from the sadness. That's my moral of the story, kids. You can't run. So just be happy, be excited, be optimistic because it's better to live that life,

live life that way. Disappointment's going to hurt whether you expect it or not. Something we didn't also talk about was the amount of former players from each squad on the respective teams. Revenge. J.F.M. You got Jarvis Brownlee and Devandre sweat over there. You know they got chips. Yeah, like, that's, I, I'm going to speak it out in the earth, in the ether, just so reverse

psychology, it doesn't happen. We can't have a Jarvis Brownlee interception in this game. No. No, please, no. What I would you say that? I can't take it. And Austin Schlotman has to do a number on Tavondre's sweat up front.

Right. Like he can't, we can't have the meatloaf celebration. I wasn't even thinking about a Jarvis Brownlow pick until you just said something. What's wrong with you? What's Julian? Hey, I'm just putting it in the ether

because I reverse psychotic, reverse jinx in a way. Yeah, we'll see that. On the other side of the break, have some questions and comments from the viewers. We'll do our best to give our expertise. That's next year on the Titan Squad Show. Welcome to your most rewarding NFL season ever, only on FanDuel. How rewarding are we talking? Well, more rewarding than a touchdown with time expiring, more rewarding than an 18-point comeback, maybe even more rewarding than an O. Lyman

catching a touchdown. This season, FanDuel is making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field with the all-new Fan Duel Rewards Club, featuring exclusive offers, surprises, and more. This season, FanDuel is making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field every week. Check the FanDuel app to see what's waiting for you. For example, the Titans are one and a half point favorites right now against the Jets. Maybe you want a little bit of that action. Make sure your most rewarding season ever with FanDuel. Visit fandual.com right now to get started. All right, guys. We have one question from Awaken to the Eternal. Can the Titans stay afloat if it comes down to them running the ball.

Obviously, the Titans have run the ball pretty well so far through the preseason and the training camp and all of that. But can they stay afloat if that is indeed the recipe? Well, honestly, it's what they do best. And usually that's the case because if a team actually are better pass protectors than they are run blockers, then they're set in scoring records, you know, because obviously they're giving a quarterback time. in the pocket and he's able to dice up a defense.

Anytime you give any average quarterback some time in the pocket, you're just going to start seeing him look like John Elway or something. You know what I mean? So at the end of the day, winning up front is easier than protecting the pocket itself. And I would expect that the Titans had to lean on that and basically, which honestly, what they call that is a non-sexy way of winning a ball game. Three yards in a cloud of dust. That's what they call that.

It says boring. Well, you know what? I'll take boring if it gives me third and one every time to convert for first down. I'll take that every single time. Because what happens when you have incompletions, second and 10? What happens if you get a sack? Third and 15. Now you're talking about some bad juju happening because you try to throw the football.

Especially in those early downs, down one and two set up down three. And if they're effectively running the football in those first two downs and can continue to do it, then guess what else happens? Play action happens. The defense starts creeping up. to the line of scrimmage because they're trying to slow down the run game, which exposes the back end. So you want them to be able to run the football effectively because that's what opens up everything else in your offensive playbook. Yeah, I feel like with Tony Pollard,

I know he is severely underrated. And I truly do think he is. This is a guy who's had how many straight thousand yard seasons? And I know sometimes, yeah, three, four? Yeah. No, he's heading into before. Right. It's one of those things that because he's not on the Cowboys and he's on the Titans, this is why. And I think the slow start last year is something that will probably not happen this year for him. I do believe that Tony's going to come out. They need to run the ball. They've got Tony Pauler. They've got Tosje Spears. And as long as he can stay healthy, I think that he can be honestly productive for them. So I do think that they have enough right now.

And the way that day ball, you know, sets up his offenses, he does have a way with, you know, being able to run the ball and do it successfully. So I do think that is part of we maybe didn't see a ton of it during the preseason because you can't, you can only do so much with what you have and what you put out there. And you don't want to give everything away. But I do think I'm comfortable with saying I'd be okay if they need to do that.

Tyler, does Tony Pollard get over a thousand yards this year? No, but it's not because he's not good. It's just Brian Dable will rotate the committee more. And I truly do believe that later in the season, Nick Singleton will have some big plays. He's kind of a best of both worlds back for them. And I think he'll do like wildcat stuff. Maybe give the ball to Wondale Robinson.

Maybe give the ball to Calvin Ridley. Like he'll be creative in the backfield with some of the things that they do. So I don't think that it means Tony Pollard's a worse player. But no, I don't. I do think they'll run on the, they'll lean on the run game. Like you're saying, Kayla, throughout Brian Dable's career, his offenses have been way better at running the football than passing the football. Other than his years with Buffalo, every offense he's ever had has been 18th or lower in passing yards.

So he doesn't have good passing offenses unless he has Josh Allen. So he's good at having good rushing offenses, though, which is something he's had success with without Josh Allen. But yeah, I wouldn't look to the Titans to be. common people in the air early on when they figure out their chemistry and timing. They're going to have to lean on the run game. And I think their offensive line is built for that now with Carmona in the lineup. Yeah, given the different coaching staff, I know different playbook from last year,

but just look how much better and much more efficient offensively they were when they ran the football, the backstretch of the season last year. They were scoring points regularly. Cam Ward, his completion percentage was up because it opened a lot of things for the past game. again, different coaching staff, different system, but it proves running game. The running back is the quarterback's best friend.

And so it could help Cam Ward in that way too. I also wanted to ask you guys this. You know, Kayla, you mentioned and Tyler, you mentioned it too. If Tage Spears stays healthy, it could be more of a committee situation, along with Nicholas Singleton too. More Spears early on, of course. Sure, sure. But I know he hasn't given us a reason for him

for us to trust him that he will stay healthy. But what gives you guys that confidence that he will this year? Man, well, first of all, I mean, isn't he kind of playing for an extension? And isn't he kind of playing to prove that he wants to at least not, whether it be staying here in Tennessee or getting a good job somewhere else, I think he's got a lot to prove. I know that Tosje can be a guy, and I know his first hand, he's one of my favorite people.

I talked to him a lot when I covered him in the locker room. like he is one to get in his head. So I think the biggest worry for me is if there is an injury early on, Tosje is one of those I worry about getting out of, even if it's a short-term injury, getting out of that thunk and getting back on the playing field. So I do believe mentally he's coming into the season prepared. It's just can his body, can it hold up?

And I'm probably guessing he did everything he can in the offseason to stay that way. but we all know how this game works and sometimes it's just a freak in nature situation. But I do. I feel like we could see him stay healthy and to the point too where, you know, he's not going to be doing heavy, heavy loads of running the ball, but, you know, enough to kind of get him in a groove. You know what I agree with 100% Kayla.

Like you, he is probably one of my favorite Titans. I know. I remember a moment when we sat down in the grass during training camp, He was just sitting there just taking the day, and he was one of the first guys out there on the football field. And I wanted him to remember my face, you know, whenever he saw me on the sideline. So I just went, sat down next to him. And we just chopped it up for just a few minutes, and it was cool. I like that.

But unfortunately for Tadje, he has to stay healthy. That running back room is too cluttered. It'll be easy for Nick Singleton to take that momentum. It'll be easy for, you know, Julius Chestnut. If you're able to actually get an opportunity to get in there to spell Tony Pollard for any sort of time. it'll just be harder for him to gain that momentum back if somebody were then step in instead of him and then start making some plays.

You know what I mean? So as much as I obviously, I think he's the clear out and out number two, but if there was something happened to where he was spending more time in the infirmary than he was on the field, just not going to be a good situation. He came into the league without an ACL,

so I guess we can't be surprised that maybe his body, Brad, I have a theory, and you would know better than me. I have a theory that like just not everybody, not every body is made to be an NFL player. And some guys, it's not like they don't have the talent. Their bodies just break down on them because they just can't handle the load of being a professional athlete. You know what I mean?

It just seems like Taj, again, already coming into the league without an ACL. His body may just not be able to handle the beating of the league, you know? Yeah, that's the quarterback from Andrew Luck. That's him. Yeah. Andrew Luck, been, he could have been a Hall of Famer, we're going to say.

And thank God he left. The Titans never beat Andrew Luck. If he didn't leave, we never get that Ryan Tannahill, Derek Henry, A.J. Brown run. We don't get that if Andrew Luck is still grim reap in this division. So we are lucky he left. Yep. One other thing real quick, guys. You know, we have, we've never won if when we had a Justin Jefferson or if we have,

when we've never had a Justin Jefferson. We've had a Bejan Robinson. We've had some of the best backs in the league. And that was the foundation of our offense when we won ball games, right? They play off of each other. Stout defense, run game. That's how you win games in the NFL, right? At the end of the day, we've never had this, like, pinnacle wide receiver that was labeled the best in the league.

We've just never had that guy. You know what I mean? And conversely, we've never had a quarterback, you know, that would just take over a ball game with his arm exclusively. Even Mac would take off and run you over if he needed to. to get that tough yard. I mean, there's a question in the chat about Cam getting 10 rushing yards over under. I'll take the over. Yeah, over.

I'll take the over. You know what I mean? Because at some point in time, he's going to take what the defense gives him. And if that's getting out and getting gone, getting vertical, because the defense has expanded itself and made available for him to run, he will take off because he'll get cussed out on the sideline if he don't. There's that. Last thing for you guys, do you guys have a score prediction for this weekend?

Titans 100. Ah. Get zero. What am I thinking on this? I'll say 17, 13. Okay, I was going to go with 17. I don't know why I always go with 17 a lot when it comes to a week. Kayla, you've been going 17 for years.

You've been picking 17 for years. I really have, haven't I? Okay. For that fact, I'm going to go with 20. I'm going to go with 20 to 13. Okay. I like it.

20 to 13. 20 to 13. Gotcha. Okay. I'll go 20 to 17. How about a Joey slide game winner? Oh. I'm in for that.

There you go. We're going to win 1613 because the Titans are going to get a safety. They're going to get two touchdowns and a safety because they're beating the hell out of G&O. There we go. There we go. Titans fans would be happy. That's for sure. Sure. Okay. Well, we wanted to thank you for joining us here on the Titans Squad show.

Make sure to like, comment, subscribe, all of that fun stuff, and catch the Locked-on Titans podcast every single day with our very own Tyler Rowland here. But for now, I'm Julian Minnesone. That's Kayla Anderson, Brad Hopkins, and Tyler Rowland. We're almost there. We'll see you on Game Day.