Tennessee Titans 2011 Schedule: Chance for Wild Card Contention?

With the NFL lockout still in full affect, the teams learned last night what their schedule will be like, assuming that the lockout is over before the start of the regular season.

Despite some familiar foes being on the schedule, the Titans will have plenty of winnable games on the schedule to help them push for one of the AFC Wild Card spots.

For the first time in five years, the Titans will not have a prime-time game on their schedule, unless the NFL makes scheduling changes in Weeks 11 through 17.

The lack of a prime-time game could be a blessing in disguise for a team that will really be looking to find their way, and head coach Mike Munchak seemed to agree.

"We've got 15 out of 16 that start at noon, and I like the consistency of that," Munchak said in an interview featured on titansonline.com.

The first two games that jump off the page are obviously against the two AFC North powerhouses, the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Both teams are viable Super Bowl contenders, so obviously the Titans will have to shock the masses to grab wins in these two games.

The Titans will get the Ravens for the second game of the season, so we'll know real fast if the Titans are going to be contenders in the AFC.

This game will serve as a good measuring stick as to how the team is responding to the predominantly new coaching staff.

It should serve as no surprise that the NFL scheduled yet another date with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The two teams offered a great physical game last season and they'll do it again in 2011, regardless of how much better the Steelers may be.

However, once you look past those two games, the schedule really doesn't look all that challenging.

Sure, the Falcons and the Saints will be no easy task with their strong passing games, but I expect the Titans defense to make a big improvement from last season's performance.

The combined record from last season of the Titans' opponents is 105-107, which gives some reason to have hope if you're a Titans fan.

In fact, the Titans have five teams on their 2011 schedule that failed to win more than five games last season, with only one of them winning at least five.

Those teams are the Bengals, Bills, Browns, Panthers and Broncos. It will be critical for the Titans to take care of business against these teams if they want any remote chance of making the postseason.

For Munchak, it has to be a somewhat of a sigh of relief to see struggling organizations like these on the schedule.

It gives the Titans a starting point at least.

Not only will the Titans play against a lot of below average teams in terms of their 2010 record, but they'll also play against some pretty mediocre defenses as well.

The average 2010 total defensive ranking of their schedule will be 18th in the NFL, which will help out a Titans offense that will most likely have a new quarterback.

You also have to realize that the Colts are no longer as dominant as they once were and the Jaguars are a team that the Titans always seem to play well against.

The Texans are the new team to be feared in the AFC South and the Titans will be fortunate to see them for the first time fresh off their bye week.

This schedule could be a lot more daunting if the NFL had decided to work the AFC East and the NFC North into the schedule.

With the teams set as they are now before the NFL draft, it's not out of the realm of possibility that the Titans could finish with eight or nine wins.

If you work in an upset or two then the Titans could conceivably contend for an AFC Wild Card and help everyone forget about Jeff Fisher.