Patriots vs. Titans: TV Schedule, Live Stream, Spread, Radio, Game Time and More

There are 30 defensive coordinators across the NFL that are secretly relieved they don't have to face the New England Patriots in the 2012 NFL opening weekend.

Jerry Gray of the Tennessee Titans isn't so lucky.

While the Patriots obviously have Super Bowl aspirations again this year after last season's heartbreaking loss to the New York Giants, the Titans have plenty to play for as well. It may be a bit ambitious to suggest they'll unseat the Houston Texans in the AFC South, but they should be in the running for a wild-card berth.

And it all begins on Sunday.

From plenty of offensive stars in New England to intriguing young players (namely Jake Locker and Kendall Wright) in Tennessee, there are plenty of reasons to watch this one. Let's take a closer look.

When: Sunday, Sept. 9 at 1 p.m. ET

Where: LP Field, Nashville, Tenn.

Watch: CBS

Listen: Sirius 148

Stream: NFL Audio Pass

Spread: Patriots (-6), according to Bovada

Patriots Injuries (via ESPN)

TE Visanthe Shiancoe, Unspecified, Questionable

RB Shane Vereen, Leg, Questionable 

S Patrick Chung, Unspecified, Questionable 

TE Aaron Hernandez, Unspecified, Probable Sept. 2

RB Jeff Demps, Knee, IR

Titans Injuries (via ESPN)

DT Leger Douzable, IR

What's At Stake

There isn't a team in the NFL that doesn't want to open the season with a win.

The Patriots are trying to win the Super Bowl this year. The Titans will be trying to return to the playoffs. Neither will want to begin pursuing those aspirations with a loss.

Fantasy Impact

Tom Brady, Wes Welker, Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez, Wes Welker, Brandon Lloyd and Chris Johnson should be started in all formats.

Stevan Ridley, Kendall Wright and Nate Washington are all intriguing flex options.

Jake Locker and Jared Cook should be on your bench for now. And I would avoid the defenses in this one.

Patriots Player to Watch: Brandon Lloyd, Wide Receiver

The easy choice for this one would be to select Brady, or maybe Gronk. But the guy I'm really curious to see in action is Lloyd, whose ability to stretch the field on deep routes could make this Patriots offense borderline unstoppable this season.

If you haven't heard by now, Lloyd has had a lot of success in the past two years playing under current Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. Methinks having Brady throw him passes should help too.

Fantasy owners and defensive coordinators around the league will be watching Lloyd's impact on this offense very carefully.

Titans Player to Watch: Chris Johnson, Running Back

Simply put, will the Chris Johnson from 2008-10 return this season? Or will we get another disappointing season from CJ2K like his brutal 2011?

While the Patriots have improved the front seven this year, it's still a group largely made up of the players from last year's unit that was 17th in rush defense, allowing 117.1 yards on the ground per game. Johnson should be able to find some running lanes.

If he can't, it might be a long season for Johnson's fantasy owners. Oh yeah, and the Titans offense.

What They're Saying

The Titans have several areas they need to improve upon defensively this season, as John Glennon of The Tennessean notes. Of course, doing any of the below will be a serious challenge against the prolific New England offense:

"

The Titans can take pride in allowing the eighth-fewest points per game last season, but that doesn’t tell the full story.

Too often, the defense spent too much time on the field, as evidenced by the 32:11 average opponents had the ball against the Titans—tied for the third-worst in the league.

One way the defense can get back to the sideline faster is to improve on third down. Last season the Titans allowed opponents to convert at a 40 percent clip.

A better pass rush and more aggressive play in the secondary would help. The Titans produced only 11 interceptions last season. It was their lowest total since 2005.

"

Key Matchup: Titans Linebackers Against Patriots Tight Ends

Gronkowski and Hernandez are matchup nightmares for defenses.

Hernandez has the size of a tight end but the speed of a wide receiver and is utilized all over the field for the Patriots. In many ways, he's the most difficult player for defenses to deal with since he gives linebackers and safeties fits.

And then there's Gronk, who is basically impossible to cover in the red zone given his size and soft hands.

So how do you stop them?

Well, quite frankly, you don't. But if you have a solid pass rush and you can delay each from getting a clean release off the line, you can affect Brady's timing just enough to allow the rush to get in his face.

That's where the Titans linebackers come in.

Akeem Ayers, Colin McCarthy and Will Witherspoon need to do everything they can to slow down Gronk and Hernandez in their routes. If they can slow things down within five yards and the Titans can generate pressure without having to over-rely on the blitz, they'll have a chance to slow down this passing attack.

Easier said than done, of course.

Prediction

I think the Titans will play a scrappy, physical game on defense and should put up some points offensively. But the Patriots are just too good offensively to lose the opener. Look for them to pull away late, winning 31-17.

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