The Titans rebounded from a rough 0-6 start last season to finish at 8-8 after winning eight of their last 10 games behind rejuvenated quarterback Vince Young, who took over for struggling veteran Kerry Collins. The Raiders also made a quarterback change in the offseason, replacing draft bust JaMarcus Russell with Washington castoff Jason Campbell.
Young fortunately has the NFL’s top rusher from a year ago on his side in Chris Johnson, who totaled 2,006 yards on the ground and has publicly stated that he wants to run for a league-record 2,500 this season. Johnson broke Marshall Faulk’s NFL mark of 2,509 total yards from scrimmage and seems intent on breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record.
Oakland got shredded on the ground last season, surrendering 155.5 yards per game and tying for a league high by allowing 24 rushing touchdowns. However, the Raiders did address that problem by signing former Pro Bowl defensive tackle John Henderson and acquiring linebackers Kamerion Wimbley and Quentin Groves in trades. Henderson knows all about Tennessee from his days in Jacksonville and should help plug the middle for the defense. Rookie linebacker Rolando McClain is also expected to make a major impact for the team this season.
Offensively, Campbell is recovering from a neck injury suffered in the third preseason game but is expected to play. He is 6-4 as a starter in September over his career and was brought in to give Oakland some stability under center following the Russell debacle. Another key injury in the offensive backfield revolves around running back Michael Bush, who showed signs of being a bruiser in the preseason but had to undergo surgery to repair a broken thumb on August 30.
Tennessee gave up 25.1 points per game last season and will be facing an Oakland team that averaged just 12.3. The Raiders also ranked near the bottom of the NFL by giving up 23.7 points per game and should be able to stay in the game as long as they can contain Johnson and Campbell can manage the game. Young is not much of a passing threat but will need to test a good Oakland secondary in order to keep the Raiders from loading up against the run.
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