Titans at Texans
THE STORY: The Tennessee Titans are a long shot at best to make the playoffs, but if they pull off a post-Christmas miracle, they will get a valuable sneak preview of the team they would meet. The Titans on Sunday visit the AFC South champion Houston Texans, who are locked in as the No. 3 seed. The Titans need a victory and a Bengals’ loss, plus one of the following scenarios to occur: 1. Jets win and Raiders lose; 2. Jets win and Broncos lose; 3. Jets lose and Raiders and Broncos win. If Tennessee somehow tip-toes through that minefield, it would return to Houston next week for a wild card playoff game. Houston rolled at Tennessee 41-7 in Week 7 behind Arian Foster’s 234 yards from scrimmage, but that was with Matt Schaub at quarterback. He is out for the season with a foot injury, so the Texans will head to the playoffs with up-and-down rookie T.J. Yates.
TV: CBS, 1 p.m. ET. LINE: Titans -3, O/U 40.5
ABOUT THE TITANS (8-7): Chris Johnson needs 14 yards to reach 1,000 for the fourth time in his four-year NFL career, but it is a far cry from the 1,364 he gained last year or especially the 2,006 in 2009. If Johnson fails to reach 1,000, his 2012 salary would be reduced by $300,000. Johnson’s off season is part of the reason Tennessee is out of playoff position. Inconsistent play from quarterback Matt Hasselbeck (16 touchdowns, 14 interceptions) hasn’t helped and neither did a Week 15 loss at then-winless Indianapolis.
ABOUT THE TEXANS (10-5): Yates won his first two starts but has lost his last two. He has completed 60 percent of his passes with three touchdowns and three interceptions, but needs to take his game to a higher level for Houston to advance deep in the playoffs. Two key components are expected to return Sunday: wide receiver Andre Johnson and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. Johnson has missed nine games with injuries to both hamstrings while Phillips is recovering from kidney and gall bladder surgery.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. Houston is No. 2 in the NFL in yards allowed (280.7) and fourth in points allowed (17.0). It also has a team-record 41 sacks, sixth in the NFL.
2. Hasselbeck needs 147 passing yards to become the 25th player in NFL history to reach 33,000.
3. Johnson would join Earl Campbell (five) and Eddie George as the only players in club history with four straight 1,000-yard seasons.