Coming off back-to-back 21-point losses, the Miami Dolphins are reeling and need a win. Monday night gives them the opportunity to do just that, going up against the Tennessee Titans, one of only three 0-3 teams left in the league. The offense has been highly uninspiring since Tua went down, and the quarterback situation is far from resolved, but if the Dolphins were to hand-pick which team they would want to play at the moment, the Titans would be near the top of the list.
Will Levis has been extremely sloppy, having been sacked 15 times in three games and throwing five interceptions. Most of the interceptions have come from abysmal decisions from Levis, including two pick-sixes. This has already led to speculation about whether Levis will remain the starter, with fans calling for him to be benched. At the moment, it appears that Levis is the Titans' man, but don't be surprised to see a change in the coming weeks if his poor decisions continue to lead to losses.
This looks to be a low-scoring affair, as both teams are more assertive on the defensive side of the ball. Despite their 0-3 record, the Titans' defense has performed well and will present a challenging task for a Dolphins offense that can't get anything going at the moment. Can the Dolphins get their first win without Tua, or will the Tennessee defense prove too firm?
Game Info
Date: Monday, September 30
Start Time: 7:30 PM EDT
Location: Miami Gardens, Florida
Stadium: Hard Rock Stadium
TV Info: ESPN (Chris Fowler, Louis Riddick, Dan Orlovsky on the call)
Dolphins uniform info: Blue Jersey, White Pants
2024 Tennessee Titans Stats
Points Per Game: 16.0 (28th)
Points Allowed Per Game: 26.0 (T-24th)
Offensive Yards Per Game: 260.3 (29th)
Passing/Rushing Yards Per Game: 159.3 Yards Per Game (28th) and 101.0 Yards Per Game (20th)
Defensive Yards Allowed Per Game: 263.7 (5th)
Passing/Rushing Yards Allowed Per Game: 139.3 Yards Per Game (3rd) and 124.3 Yards Per Game (20th)
Third Down Offensive/Defensive Conversion Rate: 31.43% (27th) and 30.77% (9th)
Red Zone Offensive/Defensive Conversion Rate: 50% (T-15th) and 33.33% (T-7th)
Penalties: 15 (T-29th)
Penalty Yardage: 110 Yards (29th)
Tennessee Titans
Defense
Looking at the Titans' numbers on defense, they rank well in quite a few metrics. They've defended well against the pass and have done an excellent job of stopping their opponents both in the red zone and on third downs. However, take these numbers with a grain of salt, as it is only a three-game sample size. One of those games came against Caleb Williams in his NFL debut with a dreadful offensive line protecting him, and another game against a Packers team that shifted its focus to a more run-heavy offense with Jordan Love out injured.
One massive addition to the Titans' defense has been L'Jarius Sneed, who is fresh off consecutive Super Bowl wins as the shutdown corner for the Chiefs. Add Roger McCreary, Chidobe Awuzie (who was just placed on IR), and Quandre Diggs, and this definitely isn't a secondary to scoff at. Sneed will likely follow Tyreek Hill around, freeing up Jaylen Waddle more.
The Titans have struggled to get pressure on the quarterback, which will be a relief for the Dolphins, who will be without LT Terron Armstead due to a concussion. The one standout on the defensive line has been Harold Landry, who has three sacks and a third of the team's QB pressures so far. Rookie T'Vondre Sweat is a mountain of a man at 6'4", 362 pounds, and he will anchor the Titans' run defense, who will have their hands full with De'Von Achane and Raheem Mostert.
Offense
I've already briefly gone over Will Levis' struggles, but he will hope that this is the game that can get him out of his funk. Levis showed at the end of last season that he could play better than he is right now, and he had a decent game when these two teams last met on MNF. He was 23/38 for 327 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. It's not the cleanest stat line, but he did rally the Titans from a 14-27 deficit to come back and win the game 28-27.
Coming into the season, most people expected the Titans' backfield to be somewhat of a committee, but that hasn't been the case. Tony Pollard has seen significantly more volume than Tyjae Spears, garnering a 64% snap share to Spears' 39%. Spears provided a different dimension to Derrick Henry last season with his pass-catching, but Pollard is also a proven pass-catcher and has 14 targets this season to Spears' 10. Add his 39 carries to Spears' 12, and it's clear who the RB1 is.
The Titans have a solid wide receiver core, with DeAndre Hopkins slowly returning to full fitness and the offseason acquisitions of Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd. Ridley provides Will Levis with a legit deep threat, and while Hopkins is past his peak, he still crossed the 1,000-yard threshold last season and continues to show people that he's one the best receivers of the past decade. Kendall Fuller has been ruled out, which could give the Titans' receivers more joy in this game.
Miami Dolphins
Defense
The Dolphins' defense will be happy to face a struggling offense like Tennessee's after facing Buffalo and Seattle in consecutive weeks. Looking at the numbers, the Dolphins' defense has been solid. They're 11th in yards allowed and 5th in opponent third-down conversion percentage, which are decent marks considering how the season has started.
However, the defense has been atrocious in the red zone, allowing opposing teams to score a touchdown at the second-highest rate in the league once they reach the red zone. They'll hope Tennessee doesn't get that far and keep this a low-scoring game.
Kendall Fuller will be a big miss in the secondary, with Kader Kohou and Storm Duck stepping up in his absence. Jalen Ramsey, meanwhile, will be busy keeping pace with Hopkins and Ridley. Jaelan Phillips, Zach Sieler, and the rest of the pass rush will go after a porous Titans O-line that has given up the league's second-most sacks. Mike McDaniel will want to exploit this to rush Levis into making decisions.
Offense
After waiting for confirmation all week, it's finally official that Tyler "Snoop" Huntley will start on Monday night. Huntley is 3-6 in his career as a starter, all coming with the Ravens. It will be interesting to see how Huntley's involvement forces McDaniel to switch up the offense, if at all. The Dolphins run a lot of pre-snap motion (by far the most in the NFL in 2023), which can be challenging to learn so quickly.
Still, after scoring a total of 13 points in their last two games, I'd like to think that McDaniel has something up his sleeve. He's too good of an offensive coach for it to continue to go this badly, even if Huntley isn't the answer. Tua Tagovailoa has been traveling with the team, and reports are that he is in good spirits, so even though there is still no official timetable for his return, Week 7, right after the Dolphins' bye week, seems like the target date.
For now, the Dolphins will roll with Huntley, who is much more of a dual-threat quarterback than Skylar Thompson or Tim Boyle, so expect some designed QB runs. As always, De'Von Achane will be heavily involved in the screen and check-down game, which will only assist Huntley. Raheem Mostert is listed as questionable, but there is optimism that he'll be ready to play for the first time since Week 1. With the Titans' secondary being their strong suit and Huntley being the quarterback, look for Miami to run the ball more than usual.
Betting Info
Points Spread: TEN +2.5 (-118) | MIA -2.5 (-104)
Moneyline: TEN (+110) | MIA (-130)
Over/Under: O 37.5 (-110) | U 37.5 (-110)
Lines via Fanduel as of Sunday, September 29th
This line has seen some movement, opening at MIA -1 and seemingly moving to -2.5, partially due to the Huntley news. I'm going to pick Miami -2.5, but only just. Prop-wise, nothing stands out to me, and with the uncertainty about both offenses, I'm staying away.
Prediction
This will be an ugly, hard-fought, defensive battle, with both teams struggling to get in the end zone. I give Miami the slight edge simply down to home-field advantage.
Final Score: Dolphins 16, Titans 13
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