Tennessee (3-14) at Denver (10-8)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. EDT, Fox.
BetMGM NFL odds: Broncos by 8.
Series record: Titans lead 24-16-1.
Last meeting: Titans beat Broncos 17-10 on Nov. 13, 2022, in Nashville.
Titans offense: overall (26), rush (T-19), pass (26), scoring (27).
Titans defense: overall (2), rush (26), pass (2), scoring (30).
Broncos offense: overall (19), rush (16), pass (20), scoring (10).
Broncos defense: overall (7), rush (3), pass (19), scoring (3).
Turnover differential: Broncos plus-6, Titans minus-16.
Titans player to watch
QB Cam Ward. The Titans used the No. 1 overall draft pick on the game's premier position. If he's going to be their franchise player, what better way to kick things off than with a win at Denver?
Broncos player to watch
OLB Nik Bonitto is fresh off signing a four-year extension worth up to $120 million. He had a career year in 2024 in his first season as a full-time starter and had 13 1/2 sacks.
Key matchup
QB Cam Ward vs. Denver's defense that led the league last season with a franchise-record 63 sacks. Ward is the first rookie quarterback the Broncos have faced in a season opener since the 1970 merger. Since 2000, the Broncos are 15-10 against rookie quarterbacks. The Broncos lost twice to rookie QBs in Sean Payton's first season in 2023 (C.J. Stroud and Aidan O'Connell). Last season they beat New Orleans rookie Spencer Rattler.
Key injuries
Titans: LT Dan Moore Jr. did not practice Wednesday with an ankle injury. The bigger concern is CB L’Jarius Sneed, who was limited by a knee injury that put him on the physically unable to perform list to start training camp. He didn’t return until Aug. 20. Sneed only played in five games last season. Rookie S Kevin Winston Jr. is dealing with a hamstring injury.
Broncos: Free agent acquisition and ILB Dre Greenlaw (quad) has been bothered all offseason and didn't participate in Wednesday's installation practice. The Broncos are going to keep an eye on his snaps, especially early on. TE Nate Adkins is out after undergoing ankle surgery this summer.
Series notes
The teams met three times in the playoffs when the Titans were based in Houston and known as the Oilers. The Broncos won two of those games. The most noteworthy matchup between the Broncos and Titans occurred on Dec. 11, 2016, which Tennessee won 13-10. Titans WR Harry Douglas had a questionable block Broncos CB Chris Harris Jr., prompting CB Aqib Talib to go on a rant in the locker room afterward, when he quipped, “It was a dirty play. By a sorry player. He don't do nothing. He come to the game, don't catch no passes. He come to the game and chop guys from the back. And he done got the same agent as me, so when I see (him) in Atlanta, I'm gonna beat (him up).”
Stats and stuff
QB Cam Ward is the third No. 1 overall draft pick in the Oilers/Titans franchise history, joining John Matuszak in 1973 and Pro Football Hall of Famer Earl Campbell in 1978. ... The only rookie QB to win a season opener since 2019 is Chicago's Caleb Williams last season. ... RB Tony Pollard is the only NFL running back besides Baltimore's Derrick Henry with at least 1,300 scrimmage yards and at least five touchdown runs in each of the past three seasons. ... WR Calvin Ridley is coming off his third 1,000-yard season. WR Tyler Lockett joined the Titans after a decade in Seattle. ... DT Jeffery Simmons had 11 tackles for loss and five sacks last season. He recovered a fumble in his only game against Denver in 2020. ... Former Broncos returning Sunday with the Titans are: LB Dre'mont Jones, LB Cody Barton and C Lloyd Cushenberry. ... Broncos QB Bo Nix threw for 29 touchdowns his rookie year, two shy of Justin Herbert's rookie record. His 376 completions were the third most by a rookie in NFL history. ... RB J.K. Dobbins will make his Denver debut after setting a career high with 1,058 scrimmage yards last season with the Chargers. ... WR Courtland Sutton led the Broncos with 1,081 yards and eight TDs in 2024. ... TE Evan Engram makes his Denver debut after spending the past three seasons in Jacksonville. ... LB Jonathon Cooper set a career high with 10 1/2 sacks last season. ... DE Zach Allen is coming off a breakout season in which he had 15 tackles for loss and 8 1/2 sacks. ... DE John Franklin-Myers had a career-best seven sacks in his first season in Denver last year. ... CB Patrick Surtain II gets to wear the NFL's new gold patch after earning the AP Defensive Player of the Year award in 2024 when he had four interceptions and 11 pass breakups. ... S Talanoa Hufanga, who makes his Denver debut after four seasons in San Francisco, was elected a captain this week.
Fantasy tip
Broncos WR Troy Franklin has had a spectacular summer is cementing himself as a quality receiver entering his second season. He played with Nix at Oregon and plays multiple positions in Denver's scheme. Franklin could be a value pickup in fantasy leagues if he has the breakout season the Broncos expect.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
