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NFL Preview - N.Y. Jets at Tennessee
-> NFL Preview - N.Y. Jets at Tennessee: click to place YOUR prediction and grab the bonuses. The race to rebuild a moribund franchise into a respectable NFL competitor begins for two teams Sunday afternoon at LP Field in Nashville. The New York Jets, who sank from playoff participant to fourth on the draft board over the course of 16 injury-cursed weeks in 2005, return under the sideline leadership of new coach Eric Mangini and the on-field guidance of Tennessee native Chad Pennington. Meanwhile, the host Tennessee Titans open a new era of their own in 2006, though one that might take a while longer to begin as spring-time draft picks Vince Young and Lendale White work their way into the offensive system of veteran coach Jeff Fisher. Neither team is expected to contend in their difficult AFC division race this season, with the Jets widely forecasted as battling for the East basement with the Buffalo Bills. Meanwhile, the Titans toil in the South with defending champion Indianapolis and perennial contender Jacksonville. -> Your Bet? Place your wager and take the bonus into your pocket now SERIES HISTORY The Titans own a 20-14-1 lead in the all-time series with the Jets, but have lost the only two head-to-head matchups since relocating from Houston prior to the 1997 season. The Jets were 24-17 home winners when the teams last met, in 2003, and took a 24-3 decision in their only trip to Tennessee, in 1998. The last win for the Titans/Oilers franchise in the series came in 1996, when the Oilers won, 35-10, at Giants Stadium. The Jets lost their only all-time postseason matchup against the Titans/Oilers, losing 17-10 in a 1991 AFC First-Round Playoff from the Astrodome. Tennessee's Fisher is 3-2 in his career against the Jets, with his 24-10 win in the final week of the 1994 season marking his first victory as an NFL head coach. Mangini will be facing both Fisher and the Titans for the first time as a head coach. JETS OFFENSE VS. TITANS DEFENSE Pennington, who won a crowded four-way battle for the starting QB job in training camp, will make his first start since a Week 3 loss in Jacksonville last season, a game in which the Jets saw both he and backup Jay Fielder suffer season-ending injuries. Pennington threw for 530 yards and two touchdowns over the course of two-plus games in 2005, completing 49 of 83 passes with two interceptions. Lifetime for the Jets, Pennington has won 21 of 37 starts for a .568 win percentage with a 92.1 QB rating, both tops in franchise history. Favorite target Laveranues Coles returns to the fold after catching 73 passes for 845 yards and five touchdowns last season. He has 26 catches for 346 yards in his past three September road games. On the ground, and without long-time workhorse Curtis Martin - on the physically unable to perform list with a knee injury - the Jets will likely rely on preseason newcomer Kevan Barlow, who went for 3,614 yards and 24 touchdowns in 72 games over five seasons with San Francisco. Sharing the running load will be former University of Tennessee standout Cedric Houston, who led the Volunteers in rushing for two seasons. Up front on a reshuffled line will be rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson at left tackle and Nick Mangold at center. The two were selected fourth and 29th, respectively, in the first round of the 2006 draft. Linebacker Keith Bulluck led the Titans in tackles with 150 last season, spearheading a unit that allowed 319.4 yards per game. The Jets, meanwhile, churned out an average of 248.1 yards per game in 2005. Defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch was second in the AFC last season with 12.5 sacks, and became the team's first defensive lineman to record 100 tackles since 1986. Both teams were a minus-6 in 2005 turnover ratio. TITANS OFFENSE VS. JETS DEFENSE Veteran quarterback Kerry Collins joined the fold late in the preseason, and figures to make his first start in a Tennessee uniform. The former Penn State product has thrown for 33,637 yards in his career, making him the third- leading active passer behind Brett Favre and Drew Bledsoe. Collins passed for 3,759 yards in 2005 with the Oakland Raiders, including 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Longtime Titan Billy Volek, previously a spot starter and a backup behind the departed Steve McNair, threw for 474 yards and four touchdowns on a 50-for-88 performance last season. Running back Chris Brown (851 yards in 2005) has led the team in rushing for two straight seasons, and also recorded a career-high 25 receptions last season. Travis Henry has recorded three of his 13 career 100-yard games against the Jets, and is joined in the pass-catching ranks by tight end Ben Troupe (55 catches, 530 yards) and newcomer wideout David Givens (four seasons in New England). The Jets defense allowed 308.8 yards per game last season, compared to the 320.1 the Titans' offense generated. Pro Bowl linebacker Jonathan Vilma led the team in tackles with 157, and New York's co-leaders in sacks - lineman DeWayne Robertson and lineman/linebacker Bryan Thomas - are back after registering 3.5 apiece in 2005. Robertson is a Memphis native. Sunday will mark the first formal appearance for the Jets' newly-devised 3-4 scheme, which will see Thomas move to an outside linebacker role and Vilma share inside linebacker duties with Eric Barton. The scheme is similar to the one Mangini ran in New England under mentor Bill Belichick. OVERALL ANALYSIS A win in the opener would be a welcome arrival for both clubs trying to turn the page from 2005. However, Pennington and the Jets have been anemic offensively in the preseason, and the Titans encountered issues of their own with Volek's plea for a trade after the arrival of Collins to compete at QB. So, in the absence of a compelling reason on the field, go with the home team to get started in style. ->Predicted Outcome: Titans 17, Jets 14 click to bet Ecobika -> Free Sports Betting Picks NFL Capper -> Your Bet? Place your wager and take the bonus into your pocket now About the Author: -> NFL Preview - N.Y. Jets at Tennessee: click to place YOUR prediction and grab the bonuses.
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