Vikings at Titans | Key Personnel Battles
Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis (8) heads off the field after throwing a fourth quarter interception against the Indianapolis Colts during their game at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. Ā© Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images.
In Week 11, the Minnesota Vikings will travel to Tennessee to face the Tennessee Titans. Minnesota will look to complete a sweep of the AFC South division and move to an 8-2 record.
Vikings at Titans | Key Personnel Battles
The Vikings areĀ strong favoritesĀ to win this one, but as last week proved, if they arenāt at their best, it wonāt come easy. Minnesota needs a confidence-boosting performance, and for that to happen, the Vikings will need to win some key personnel battles.
Sam Darnold vs. Will Levis
Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images. The Vikings defeated the Jaguars 12-7, thanks to four field goals from new kicker Parker Romo, upping their record to 7-2.
Sam Darnold comes into this week on the back of a three-interception game that took him to the top of the interception thrown list for this season ā tied with Jordan Love and Geno Smith. Some called for Darnold to be dropped,Ā an idea I canāt get behind,Ā but he needs a solid outing this week.
The theory that Darnold was great at the start of the season and suddenly became bad doesnāt add up to me. All Darnoldās flaws ā there are plenty ā have always been evident. Kevin OāConnell needs to settle him down and make things simple to get the best out of him.
When it comes to QBs with a turnover problem, Will Levis might sit at the top of the tree. He has thrown seven interceptions this season but has only played in six games. The good news for Minnesota is that while Darnold leads the league in interceptions ā the Vikingsā defense leads the league in takeaways with 20. The Titans have only had six takeaways this season, with only the Cleveland Browns and Las Vegas Raiders managing less. If the Vikings donāt win the turnover battle in this game, something has gone horribly wrong.
Aaron Jones vs. Tony Pollard
Steve Roberts-Imagn Images.
One way to settle your QB and offense down is with a good run game. Both teams have a good running back to lean on in the shape of Aaron Jones and Tony Pollard, respectively. Jones has given the Vikingsā rushing attack the boost they desired when they signed him in the offseason. His 4.6 yards per attempt is way ahead of what the Vikings were getting from the position last year. He only has two touchdown runs through nine games, which Iād like to see improve.
Pollard moved to the Titans from the Dallas Cowboys in the offseason and has offered Tennessee a solid run game. He has 666 yards at 4.4 yards per attempt and 3 touchdowns. He is by far the most consistent threat in the Titansā offense. Both Jones (ribs) and Pollard (foot) were on the injury report this week, but both are good to go.
Jonathan Greenard vs. Nicholas Petit-Frere
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images.
The Titans started the season with Nicholas Petit-Frere at right tackle. They switched to Leroy Watson for a game, went back to Petit-Frere for a game, and then it was Watson for the last three. The short story is both have been bad, whichever one the Titans roll out there. This week, it will be Petit-Frere again after Watson was ruled out of the game with a back injury on Fridayās injury report. Jonathan Greenard should be licking his lips at the opportunity to completely wreck the game for the Vikings. He hasĀ been a pressure machineĀ this season and has seven sacks already. He should fancy his chances of adding to that tally on Sunday.
Petit-Frere has a pass-blocking grade of 34.9 for his efforts this season fromĀ Pro Football Focus. Giving up 23 pressures, 5 sacks, and 3 penalties is what lost Petit-Frere his place. Watson has only allowed 9 pressures and 1 sack in his four starts but has committed 8 penalties. That is an egregious number of penalties, so itās probably better for Tennesse that Petit-Frere is back out there. The Titans arenāt particularly strong anywhere else on the OL, so this should be a game for the Vikings pass rush to dominate.
