David Carr Faces Titanic Defense this Sunday

As Adam Jones seeks early reinstatement to the NFL, other members of Tennessee's defense step up their game, but stay out of the spotlight

Adam "Pacman" Jones meets with Roger Goodell today hoping to convince the commissioner of the NFL to shorten his year-long suspension for off-the-field issues. If Jones gets his wish, he would return to the lineup (Titans willing) on November 19th, a Monday-night game in Denver. Since this outcome is highly unlikely given "Pacman" Jones' continued questionable extra-curricular activities, Jeff Fisher and the Titans must not succumb to the media-stir and focus solely on their opponent this week. On Sunday they will be at home for their week-9 matchup, putting their 5-2 record and much-improved defense (ranked 5th overall in yards-per-game allowed in the NFL) on the line against David Carr and the Carolina Panthers.

So how did the Titans replace Jones who, last year, led the league with 12.6 yards-per-punt-return (taking three to the endzone), had four interceptions (taking one of those back as well), 62 tackles, a sack, and a forced-fumble?

Well, it has started with their defensive line, led by Albert Haynesworth, which has allowed an NFL-best 64.3 yards-per-game rushing. Haynesworth, who last year was suspended an unprecedented five games for his on-the-field face-stomping antics (which, for Andre Gurode, center for the Dallas Cowboys, meant thirty stitches in the face and a consult with a plastic surgeon) has turned his image and his team's defense around. Consider Haynesworth very lucky to even still be employed, since his violent disregard for appropriate behavior and proper anger-management could have meant the loss of an eye or even a life. Haynesworth stayed wise throughout the media-frenzy, apologizing profusely but otherwise keeping his mouth shut, graciously serving his suspension. This year, he has let his big game do the talking, contributing two of his team’s fifteen sacks and plugging gaps like few others in the league.

On the second level lurks un-sung Tennessee line-backing hero Keith Bulluck, who has matched Pacman's four-interception total from last year in only the first seven games of this season. Bulluck, in his ninth season (all with the Titans), has only missed one game in his illustrious, albeit un-glorified, career. As a prominent veteran voice in the locker-room, he is as important an individual as any in keeping this defense focused.

At safety, Chris Hope and Vincent Fuller (who doesn't even start) have, between them, deflected four passes, grabbed three interceptions, returned two for touchdowns, and forced one fumble. In a pear tree.

Punt-return duties have fallen to rookie wide-receiver Chris Davis out of Florida State, and while he lost two fumbles early on, Fisher stayed with him and has allowed Davis to put his stamp on many aspects of this team. In addition to being the sole member of the Titans to return punts this year, Davis has five receptions this season for 38 yards and two rushing attempts for 19 yards.

What does all of this mean, exactly, for the Carolina Panthers, who, at 4-3, stand atop the NFC South?

Statistically, the best part of the Panthers offense, their running game (ranked tenth in the NFL), doesn't look so hot when matched up against Tennessee's top-ranked run-defense. While Deangelo Williams and Deshaun Foster combine for formidable numbers, neither has established himself as the go-to back. Williams posted his second-career 100-yard rushing game in Arizona two weeks ago on the way to a 25-10 win over the Cardinals, but it was Foster last week who had the Panthers' sole touchdown in a loss to the Colts. Much of the pressure, then, will likely fall on the shoulders of David Carr, who, as former quarterback for the Houston Texans in the AFC South, is surely familiar with the Titans' D'. Let's hope this figurative pressure doesn't affect Carr's back, where he is still recovering from very literal compression fractures. Carr will get the start over Vinny Testaverde, who suffered an injury to his Achilles tendon when an offensive lineman was tripped up and landed on Testaverde's foot just before halftime last week.

All of that said, you are talking to a die-hard Panthers fan here. With Vince Young on-the-mend and desperate to disprove the curse that so-often accompanies those the year after landing on the cover of "Madden," beating the Titans in Tennessee will be no easy task. To the Panthers' credit, all of their wins this year have come on the road. In contrast to their 0-3 home record, the Panthers are undefeated outside of Bank of America Stadium this season. As anyone who follows the Panthers is well-aware, the key to keeping Carolina's offense from stalling out is to look for Steve Smith early and often. Surprisingly, Smith's stat-line shows that, in the Panthers' wins this year, he is only averaging .5 more receptions and 15 more yards than in the losses. This is primarily due to his insane performance against the Texans in week-2. In a 34-21 loss at home, Delhomme and Smith seemed to be the only Panthers playing with heart and desire, and they connected for 153 yards and three touchdowns on eight receptions. Excluding this game and the week-3 win over Atlanta in which Delhomme went down (Smith had one reception for 10 yards and one rush for 6 yards, clearly not enough touches for the Panthers' best offensive player), Steve Smith averages seven receptions for 100 yards and 1.0 touchdowns in Carolina's wins and 3.5 receptions for 25 yards and 0.0 touchdowns in the losses. This makes it easy to see how vital Smith is --he must be an integral part of the Panthers' offensive gameplan. Otherwise, Williams, Foster, and Carr will be heavily frustrated in Carolina's first-ever trip to Nashville.

Despite Tennessee’s loss of defensive personnel and despite some injuries and questionable quarterback play, the Titans have managed to improve drastically on their 2-5 start last season. Unfortunately, the AFC South, which houses the undefeated Colts, 5-2 Jaguars, and 3-5 Texans franchises, is one of the best in the NFL. Worrying about divisional matchups, however, must be pushed to the back of the Titans’ minds this weekend since Vince Young will have his hands full with Dan Morgan and Julius Peppers. The Titans are favored here, but if Carolina can shut down the run and David Carr can finally pull his career together, then with the help of the Panthers’ offensive-line, barring any face-stomping, they will squeak out a victory. Go Panthers, and dare I say, RAWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrr!!!!!