AFC South Sunday Preview
Tennessee Titans versus Miami Dolphins
How far have the Tennessee Titans fallen?
The Titans are the 7 point underdogs against the 4-4 Miami Dolphins. Granted, the Dolphins have been playing better in their last string of games, but it does not change the fact that the Dolphins are team that is rebuilding. The Titans on the other hand should be a solid team if we look only at their depth charts. Unfortunately, all that talent is not translating to success on the field.
The Titans could take their embarrassing shellacking last week against the Chicago Bears, 51-20, and bring a new found determination to Miami, but the sports books are predicting that Miami is going to take this game.
The Dolphins have had their momentum stifled as well, however. After winning a huge upset victory against the Jets 30-9, the Dolphins dropped a game to the young Indianapolis Colts, 20-23.
In order for the Titans to win against the spread a lot of things are going to have to come together. The Titans only shining spot on the offense is Chris Johnson, despite his naysayers. I imagine that he will be a huge factor in this game. The Titans are going to have to be more to win today than run the ball. They will need to establish a passing game offensively. Jake Locker will be starting as the Titans try to hit the reset button on their offense.
The game starts at 1 p.m. The money line for the Titans is at +245 and the Dolphins are at -290. The over/under is at 44 points.
Houston Texans versus Chicago Bears
This is going to be the game of the week. Both the Houston Texans and the Chicago Bears are 7-1, two of the best record in the NFL behind the Atlanta Falcons. Both these teams have top notch run games and defense. It is going to be entertaining to watch for sure.
The biggest criticism of the Chicago Bears is that they have yet to beat any team that are real contenders this season. The only team they have gone up against that are considered contenders is the Denver Broncos and they lost. The Bears will need to win this game to shut up their critics and prove they belong in their spot.
The Bears key to victory will be Jay Cutler. Cutler has transformed this offense with his improvements and he is no longer the butt of interceptions jokes. He must remain consistent in this huge game.  Also, the Bears need to utilize the talent of Matt Forte to its full potential. Do just have him pound the ball down the middle use screen and draw plays to throw the very good Texans defense off its game.
The Texans have been heavily relying on their defense to win games, perhaps even more than the Bears despite their astonishing forced turnover rate. Going up against the Bears defense, the Texans are going to have to really step up their offense. It will also be important for the Texans to focus on ball control. As previously mentioned, the Bears have become notorious for forcing turnovers. If the Texans can shutdown the Bears turnover rate their chances for winning will greatly increase.
The odds for this game are close with a 1 point spread favoring the Bears. The money line is +105 for the Texans and -125 for the Bears. The over/under is at 38 points.  This is a game that is risky to bet on, but for thrill seekers it will be hard to resist. This will close Sunday football at 8:20 p.m.
