Teams coming back from the bye in Week Seven; who is best placed?
The first six weeks of the season have flown by, with the usual action-packed drama providing pulsating entertainment. With that, the first bye week allows some early readjustments and recovery for the Detroit Lions, Houston Texans, Las Vegas Raiders and Tennessee Titans. Let’s assess where they are at heading into Week 7.
Detroit Lions
Standards and expectations have dramatically increased since last season. Despite the 1-4 record many Lions fans will feel frustrated. The team has the polar opposites in their offense and defense.
An elite level attack when healthy has Detroit amongst the highest scorers in the league yet they unfortunately boast a historically bad defense. Improve the defense to average standards and keep the offense healthy then results will no doubt improve.
Yet, on the back of a 29-0 shutout to the Patriots, the Lions may have dug themselves into a hole that prevents them from reaching the playoffs. Aidan Hutchinson accounts for three of the teams seven sacks, but all three came against the Commanders. Beating an in-form Dallas Cowboys on the road could be a season changer, but putting everything together needs to happen quickly.
Houston Texans
The Texans currently sit at the bottom of the AFC South with a 1-3-1 record, their lone victory in Week 5 at the Jaguars, 13-6. As expected, they are playing hard despite being underdogs due to their inferior roster.
The Week One tie with Indianapolis is one they probably should have prevailed in, while their only loss by more than a single score was to the Chargers. Davis Mills has struggled to elevate one of the weakest offenses to score over 20 points, with the defense and rushing attack at least providing foundations to keep games close.
Running back Dameon Pierce has amassed 412 yards and is the star player on the attack, while Derick Stingley Jr. has settled in well with his first interception and stellar play. The organisation parted ways with former Executive VP of football operations Jack Easterby, a sign of distancing themselves from the Bill O’Brien era. This week, a trip to Las Vegas against an underrated Raiders team.
Las Vegas Raiders
Like the Lions, Las Vegas has a bitter taste in their mouth at 1-4, better than their record suggests. Blowing leads to the Cardinals and Chiefs were headscratchers, but losing by a combined 14 points shows the Raiders are a few minor adjustments away from getting consistency together.
At times they have started games slowly, and most recently failed to close at Arrowhead on Monday Night Football. The season could spiral away quickly in such a competitive division, despite many promising moments.
However, they should be able to overcome the Texans at home to salvage playoff hopes with an offense – spearheaded by Josh Jacobs – that has found its groove in recent weeks. Houston has the 30th ranked run defense so far this season, with Jacobs averaging 5.4 ypc. The secondary needs to help a strong defensive line, while the offense outside of Jacobs and Davonte Adams will need to improve.
Tennessee Titans
As expected, the Titans are a top of the AFC South at 3-2, and like in 2021 at this point, they are already battling with many injuries. Still, despite the 0-2 start, the three-game winning streak has been inconsistent but encouraging enough.
The Titans thrive on being greater than the sum of their parts and are always well coached by Mike Vrabel. Sweeping the Colts would put them in the driving seat to take the AFC South yet again, even if they are flattering to deceive.
The Monday Night Football thrashing at Buffalo perhaps indicates the Titans are drifting further away from the elite teams in the AFC, but are good enough to still win the division and be competitive. Outside that 47-7 loss at the Bills, the Titans have been industrious, with the defense stepping up when the offense disappeared in their three victories.
The Titans offense lacks talent outside of Derrick Henry yet is the most efficient red zone offense, with twelve touchdowns on thirteen trips. They also possess one of the top third down defenses, so situationally the Titans have been very good. Consistency is key however, and it remains to be seen whether edging out close victories is sustainable given the lack of depth on offense.
