The Texans-Titans Rivalry is finally becoming heated and bitter, the way it should have been after the Oilers moved to Tennessee in 1997 and Houston got an expansion team in 2002. The Texans never have been good enough to force the Titans to get mad, but now they are. The Texans broke a seven-game losing streak in this AFC South series at Reliant Stadium last season, winning 13-12. In the second game this season, the Texans won 34-31 at LP Field. On Monday night, the Texans will try to sweep the Titans for the second time (2004). Seven of the last nine games in this series have been settled by eight or fewer points.
The Titans have a three-game winning streak since Vince Young replaced Kerry Collins as the starting quarterback. Young is 3-0 as a starter against the Texans. He's 21-11 overall. Houston is his hometown team. He played for Madison High School, which is near Reliant Stadium. He won a national championship at the University of Texas. In his first game at Reliant Stadium, he ran for a 40-yard touchdown in overtime to win 26-20. Titans RB Chris Johnson is the most exciting player in the NFL. He leads the league with 1,091 yards rushing. He averages 6.4 yards a carry. He's scored eight touchdowns rushing. The Texans have the sixth-ranked offense, including the third-ranking passing game. In their last two prime-time games, both at Reliant Stadium, they've blown out Denver and Jacksonville. DE Mario Williams had 6 .5 sacks in those two games.
Titans Keys For Success


1. Keep feeding Chris Johnson. Johnson is the NFL's most lethal weapon right now, and the Titans know it. So they're giving him the ball as much as possible. Johnson totaled 232 yards last week vs. Buffalo and has rushed for 100-plus yards in each of the last four games. He's the biggest reason the team has won three consecutive games and looks like a different team. The Titans must ride him. But Johnson's success won't necessarily guarantee a win�Johnson racked up 284 yards rushing/receiving and three touchdowns against Houston in Week 2 yet was on the losing end.
2. Limit mistakes. QB Vince Young has posted a passer rating of at least 90 in each of his three '09 starts, the first time a Titans QB has done that since Steve McNair in '03. Young has done it by completing more than 70 percent of his passes while throwing just one interception. To beat Houston on Monday night, the Titans must avoid costly mistakes that plagued them earlier in the season. So much of that hinges on whether Young continues to make good decisions. 3. Play better defense. The Titans can point to the Sept. 20 loss to Houston as the game that sent their season spiraling in the wrong direction, toward an 0-6 start, as they blew a 21-7 lead that day and lost 34-31. The Tennessee defense�the secondary in particular�deserves the blame. In that game, Houston QB Matt Schaub passed for 357 yards and four touchdowns. The Titans can't blame it on injuries either�they were at full strength that day, when they blew assignments and looked lost at times. The Titans can't afford to do that again.

Texans Keys For Success


1. Contain Johnson. In the Week 2 victory, Johnson had touchdown runs of 91 and 57 yards and a 69-yard touchdown reception. Over the last six games, Houston has allowed only 60.5 yards rushing per game. Texans defenders must maintain gap control on Monday night, get a lot of players swarming to Johnson and then tackle well.
2. Score early. Schaub must avoid another slow start for an offense that scripts its first 15 plays but hasn't scored a touchdown on the first series. Schaub has thrown four of his nine interceptions in the last two games. The Texans were able to overcome the interceptions at Buffalo but couldn't at Indianapolis. Schaub has to be calm and comfortable in the pocket from the opening kickoff and not start slow and have to play from behind. 3. Get RB Steve Slaton going. He and Johnson were the best rookie backs along with Chicago's Matt Forte last year. Johnson has skyrocketed in his second season, though. Slaton has experienced a sophomore slump, losing 5-of-7 fumbles. Coach Gary Kubiak won't say if Slaton, Ryan Moats or Chris Brown will start Monday night, but the best guess might be Slaton. With five consecutive days off to forget about his problems during the bye week, perhaps he has been rejuvenated.

The Bottom Line

If the Texans are going to be a legitimate playoff contender for the first time, they must defeat the Titans. If they do, they host Indianapolis in the next game and visit Jacksonville the week after that. If the Texans get off to another slow start and commit turnovers in the first quarter, the Titans might jump on them. Expect it to be a physical game with a lot of trash talking. The Texans will limit Johnson to fewer than 100 yards. Young will be forced to throw more than he wants.
Scoring prediction: Titans 24 - Texans 27