NFL Week 14: How the Tennessee Titans Will Beat the New Orleans Saints

The Tennessee Titans (7-5) are gaining ground and closing in on a playoff spot in the AFC, whether it be the Wild Card or the division.

Trailing the Houston Texans (9-3) in the division by two games and Cincinnati Bengals (7-5) in the Wild Card with a worse conference record (conference record is 6-4 to Tennessee's 5-4), the Titans are currently one spot out of the playoffs.

Funny thing is, Houston plays at Cincinnati this Sunday, providing the Titans with a perfect opportunity to move closer into a playoff spot.

However, Tennessee is hosting Drew Brees and the hot New Orleans Saints (9-3) in Nashville on Sunday, a force standing in their way of climbing up.

Saints have won four straight games and the Titans have won three out of their last four.

These are the keys to beating the powerful Saints.

Force Drew Brees To Make Mistakes

The Saints' proficient passer, Drew Brees, leads the NFL in passing yards (4,031) and has been having one of the best seasons of his career.

In order for Tennessee to even have a chance against this high-powered passing offense, they need to apply pressure on Brees and force him to make mistakes.

The less time the defense is on the field the better, because the Titans front four must be active in order to quickly end the Saints' drives or make Brees throw picks.

If Brees commits errors, good things happen for opponents. In two out of their three losses, Brees threw for a combined five interceptions.

Brees has been sacked a total of 21 times this season, but his accurate throwing and minimal interceptions make him one of the most elite quarterbacks in the league.

Matt Hasselbeck Must Be on His Game

With Chris Johnson's tortoise-like start to the season, Matt Hasselbeck, in his first year as a Titan, has been playing a major and productive role for the Titans offense, which has heavily relied on the run game for three straight seasons.

As for this Sunday, the Saints defense allows the third-most yards through the air in the NFL.

Hasselbeck has been utilizing the strengths of receiver Damian Williams as of late, accurately putting the ball where he can make easy catches and continue running for yards after the reception.

Nate Washington, Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins must be ready to carry the load in this battle of serious playoff implications.

How could I forget? This Tennessee offensive line has been remarkable for Hasselbeck, only allowing him to be sacked 15 times all season, third best in the league.

Titans Secondary Must Be Dominant

Tennessee's secondary has been taken advantage of multiple times this season, most notably by the Falcons' Matt Ryan, the Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger and the Texans' Matt Schaub; all resulting in losses.

However, Drew Brees and the Saints have been unpredictable away from home. All three of their losses have occurred on the road and two of them are to under-.500 teams (at Tampa, at St. Louis). 

Brees threw a total of five interceptions in the losses to the Bucs and Rams, raising questions of his composure recently on the road. Two out of the past three road games have resulted in defeats, and their one win was given to them in overtime at Atlanta.

Coverage down the field is a crucial key for the Titans to succeed in this game. I'm talking to you, Cortland Finnegan and Alterraun Verner.

Brees does a great job of spreading the ball across the field to multiple recipients, shaking up opponents' defensive plans of attack. 

By applying tight coverage on Saints receivers Robert Meachem, Marques Colston and Lance Moore, the Titans defensive line can put heat on Brees and force him to scramble, be sacked or throw picks.

Titans linebackers cannot forget about the most dangerous tight end in the league, Jimmy Graham, and his beastly abilities to gain power yards.

Chris Johnson Has to Be CJ2K

Chris Johnson has been heating up lately, and that's great news for the Titans, who are in the middle of the playoff hunt.

The Saints allow an average of 114.6 rushing yards per game, 16th best in the league, but allow an average of 134.3 rushing yards per game on the road.

The formula for C.J.'s recent success is the Titans' ability to gain an early lead, resulting in an increased amount of carries for Johnson to do his work.

C.J. needs to keep doing what he's been doing, and slice through the Saints defense.

Chris Johnson has rushed for 130 yards or more in three out of the past four games.

Titans Fans and LP Field Need To Be Loud!

There's no better place to play in December than in the confines of your own home.

Tennessee is 3-2 at home this season, suffering losses to Houston (blowout 41-7) and Cincinnati (a loss that's currently keeping Tennessee out of the playoffs). Their home wins came against Baltimore, Denver and Tampa Bay.

LP Field has sold out every game since it was constructed back in 1999, but as of late, there have been more empty seats than usual.

Understand that this offseason, the NFL was in a lockout, C.J. was holding out and the Titans had neither a coach nor a starting quarterback for some time.

Having won seven games up to this point and having a realistic shot at making the playoffs should give every Titans fan the motivation to fill LP and make it rumble in what is an extremely important game moving forward.

Get rowdy when the Titans are on defense and make it impossible for Brees to hear, causing him to get flustered and make bad decisions.