Tennessee Titans: 3 Takeaways from huge upset win over Ravens

The Tennessee Titans faced a road playoff game again and, behind Derrick Henry and an elite defensive showing, pulled off a huge upset of the Ravens.

All week leading up to Saturday’s AFC Divisional Round playoff game between the hosting Baltimore Ravens and No. 6 seed Tennessee Titans, many were adamant that the Titans had no chance of pulling off of the upset. Many Ravens defensive players, especially safety Earl Thomas, said they needed to do a better job tackling Derrick Henry than the Patriots did last week and also seemed confident they’d be able to.

Henry, complete with a solid stiff arm to Thomas in the open field, had other plans. And the NFL’s leading rusher made the Ravens pay as he reeled off another monster performance, becoming the first player in NFL history with three straight games of rushing for more than 180 yards. But it wasn’t all Henry guiding the Titans on Saturday night.

While Lamar Jackson ended with plenty of yardage, the defense made life impossible for him for much of the night. The likely MVP brought back thoughts of his playoff debut last year against the Chargers as the Titans defense turned him over three times and made life incredibly difficult as Tennessee rolled to a 28-12 victory and a berth in the AFC Championship Game.

On the heels of the big win, let’s dive into some big takeaways for the Titans from the game.

3. Tackling Derrick Henry: Harder than it seems

The Ravens defensive game plan was specifically designed to try and stop Derrick Henry. But as most teams have discovered this season, that’s not particularly easy to execute. Henry ended the game with 195 yards rushing.

Again, he also became the first player in NFL history with three consecutive games with 180 yards rushing. Oh, and he added a touchdown pass, doing his best Tim Tebow impression to find Corey Davis in the back of the end zone.

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2. Even the best aren’t perfect

MVP-frontrunner Lamar Jackson came out flat — and that’s putting it lightly. That can be blamed more on head coach John Harbaugh deciding to sit him out Week 17 and the rust developing with what essentially amounts to three weeks off of the field. And, it should also be noted, that his teammates also came out flat and didn’t do the quarterback any favors.

Ultimately though, once Jackson started showing any resemblance of his MVP-caliber play, it was too late as the Ravens were too far behind thanks to the Titans’ supreme effort.

1. Defense fears no one

The Titans defense impressed many, even the most loyal Titans fans and believers in this unit.

They shut down the best team, best offense and best quarterback in the league on Saturday and did so decisively. One week removed from their upset win over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, they sacked Jackson four times, forced him to lose one fumble on a sack and came up with two interceptions.

Tennessee’s defense also stopped Jackson on fourth-and-1 twice on Saturday. And if that’s not impressive enough, the Ravens were previously 8-of-8 on their fourth-and-1 attempts previously this year.

Head coach Mike Vrabel and this team are really hitting their stride at the most critical point of the NFL calendar. Led by Henry and a downright dominant defense, they have to feel pretty confident about their chances to end up in Miami as they await the winner of Texans vs. Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. No matter who they face one week from now, they are just one win away from the big one.