Rams vs. Titans: 7 things to know about Week 9 game

The Tennessee Titans are in a difficult spot for a Week 9 matchup against arguably the best team in the NFC, the Los Angeles Rams.

Tennessee was already up against it facing an elite Rams squad, but now the Titans will be without their best player, running back Derrick Henry, who is out anywhere from six to 10 weeks after having foot surgery.

While the loss of Henry is devastating news, the Titans come into this game in great shape overall.

Tennessee has won four straight, is 6-2 and alone atop the AFC, and it owns a commanding lead in the AFC South over the Indianapolis Colts. The Titans have a three-game lead and the head-to-head tie-breaker wrapped up.

Meanwhile, the Rams have also won their last four, are tied for first place in the NFC West, and are in position to grab the conference’s No. 1 seed as they sit in a three-way tie atop the NFC with the Cardinals and Packers.

And, thanks to a deal at the NFL trade deadline (more on that shortly), the rich have gotten richer in Los Angeles.

With all that said, here’s a look at seven things to know ahead of Tennessee and Los Angeles’ “Sunday Night Football” matchup.

The history

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A Week 9 meeting between the Rams and Titans means that Tennessee’s fans will have to be reminded of Super Bowl XXXIV, when the then-St. Louis Rams beat the Titans, 23-16.

What made that loss even worse was the fact that the Titans were just one yard shy of tying the game up and sending it to overtime, but linebacker Mike Jones stopped wide receiver Derrick Mason just short of the goal line.

The Oilers/Titans have met the Rams 12 times in the regular season over the course of their respective histories, with Los Angeles winning seven of those matchups.

Their only playoff meetings was the aforementioned Super Bowl. Since that game, the Titans and Rams have met four times, with both teams coming away with two wins apiece.

Rams are heavily favored

With the Titans missing Henry, it comes as no surprise that the Rams, who are tied for the best record in the NFC, are heavy favorites.

According to Tipico Sportsbook, the Rams are 7.5-point favorites over the Titans, with the over/under set at 53.5. That is the highest over/under of any Week 8 game.

So far this season, the Titans are 6-2 against the spread, while the Rams are 4-4. Tennessee and Los Angeles have both hit the over in five of eight games.

Titans' first game without Derrick Henry

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For the Titans, life without Derrick Henry officially begins on “Sunday Night Football” against the Rams.

With Henry out anywhere from six to 10 weeks, the Titans have brought in veteran back and future Hall of Famer, Adrian Peterson, and will combine him with Jeremy McNichols to try and pick up the slack.

The expectation is that Peterson will handle the lion’s share of carries, while McNichols will see a slight uptick and continue to work as the team’s passing-down back.

The Titans are hoping to get Julio Jones back for this game to help bolster their Henry-less offense. The star wide receiver has missed three contests with a hamstring injury this season.

Don't count the Titans out just yet

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We’ve seen this story before: the Titans are completely counted out in a game against a good team, only to come through with a win anyway, defying the odds.

We saw it in Week 6 against the Buffalo Bills, and then again in Week 7 against the Kansas City Chiefs — and those are just two of the many examples of Tennessee shocking the world since 2019.

Granted, the Titans have notched those kinds of wins with Henry suiting up, but if there’s resilient enough to overcome the loss of one of the best players in the NFL, it’s Tennessee.

Rams' huge deadline deal

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Peterson won’t be the only future Hall of Famer suiting up for a new team in Week 9, as Denver Broncos great Von Miller is expected to make his Rams debut on Sunday night after being traded to Los Angeles this week.

As if a defense starring Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey wasn’t enough for the Titans to deal with, the Rams will now be sporting another elite pass-rusher for Tennessee’s offensive line to deal with.

Miller, who has been a bit banged up recently and sat out in Week 8, has notched 4.5 sacks this season, although he hasn’t tallied one since Week 4.

Whatever the case may be, another elite pass-rusher is bad news for a Titans team that has surrendered the fourth-most sacks in the NFL.

Matthew Stafford proving to be a big upgrade

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There’s no question that the Rams are a better offensive team with Stafford at the helm, as Los Angeles’ passing attack currently ranks fourth in the NFL, as compared to last season when it ranked 14th with Jared Goff under center.

Stafford is putting together an MVP-caliber campaign in Sean McVay’s offense. He ranks top five in passing yards (2nd), yards per attempt (9.1), yards per game (3rd), touchdowns (2nd), QBR (1st), and passer rating (4th).

The biggest beneficiary of the veteran coming to Los Angeles is wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who is having a career year with a league-leading 924 receiving yards, a little over 200 less than his career-high.

The Titans’ secondary will have its hands full against Stafford and Co. on Sunday night.

Rodger Saffold's first game against former team

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The Titans have two notable former Rams on their team in Saffold and Reynolds, although the latter is no certainty to suit up after being a healthy scratch multiple times this season.

Reynolds has played in each of the last two games, but has tallied just 35 snaps, including five in Week 8. He could see an uptick in usage if Julio Jones doesn’t suit up, though.

Saffold says this is the most important game he has played this year, but not because it’s against his former team, who he has not faced since coming to Tennessee.

Saffold, who remains one of the most underrated interior offensive linemen of this generation, put together a great career with the Rams that included a Super Bowl appearance during the 2019 season.

He signed a four-year, $44 million deal with the Titans the following season and has been a stalwart upfront for Tennessee ever since. He has one more year on his contract after 2021.

Reynolds, a former fourth-round pick of the Rams in 2017, signed a one-year, $1.75 million deal this past offseason but has been a major disappointment thus far, with 10 receptions for 90 score-less yards.

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