NFL

Titans (3-6):

Offense:
Points Per Game: 21 (18th)
Total Yards/GM: 332 (21st)
Rush Yards/GM: 161.8 (2nd)
Pass Yards/GM: 170.2 (26th)

Defense:
Points Per Game: 28.3 (30th)
Total Yards/GM: 379.8 (30th)
Rush Yards/GM: 109.3 (16th)
Pass Yards/GM: 270.4 (31st)

Texans (5-4):

Offense:
Points Per Game: 23.9 (14th)
Total Yards/GM: 374.9 (6th)
Rush Yards/GM: 90.8 (28th)
Pass Yards/GM: 284.1 (3rd)

Defense:
Points Per Game: 20.9 (15th)
Total Yards/GM: 332.2 (17th)
Rush Yards/GM: 108.7 (14th)
Pass Yards/GM: 223.6 (17th)

What is at Stake?

Coming off their bye week, the Houston Texans will be looking to take the next step toward the first playoff birth in franchise history. If the Texans win, they will defeat a surging Titans team and move their record to 6-4. Lose and they fall back to .500 and threaten to lose momentum and finish with another disappointing season.

Key Matchup:

Passing, passing and more passing. The Texans enter the game with the leagues 6th ranked passing attack, while the Tennessee Titans are nearly dead last in passing defense at 30th. Lead by emerging star Matt Schaub, who has 17 touchdowns, 9 interceptions and a passer rating of 98.1 thus far in 2009, the Texans will attempt to air it out against the Titans, while trying to find a balance on the ground with an ineffective zone-blocking rushing game.

The Skinny:

Both teams understand that a lot of points will be put on the board Monday night. However, most importantly, the young Texans are starting to understand the importance to winning key games: “There are no moral victories,” wide receiver Andre Johnson said. “Are we getting better? I think we are. The biggest thing is just winning. You can get better all you want, but if you’re not winning, it really doesn’t matter.” Look for Houston to struggle and find a way to overcome some form of diversity in this game, whether it be an injury, bad call or turnovers to secure a victory and take one more vital step toward the playoffs.

Prediction: Houston 31, Tennessee 28