The Tennessee Titans are preparing to face off against the 4-2, surprise-story Cleveland Browns this Sunday in Nashville. Both Cleveland and Tennessee are coming off a victory, although it meant a whole lot more to the latter.
Beating the Indianapolis Colts for their first win of the 2026 season gave the Titans some much-needed life. Robert Saleh is still 1-5, but his group has a little more to play for now. We're only six games into the year, after all.
I've already penciled a prediction for this contest, but in the spirit of playing both sides, I'm outlining both best and worst-case scenarios for Tennessee in Week 7. We'll start with the (potentially) good news.
Best: Titans win 17-13, pick up two more takeaways
Given the current state of the Titans' offense, it was the defense that won them their first game of the season last Sunday. If Tennessee topples Cleveland, it will likely once again come down to the defense causing problems.
The Titans picked Daniel Jones off twice in Week 6, forcing a fumble and logging six sacks in the process. The Browns' offensive line has allowed a league-high 24 sacks this year already; expect Saleh to send his guys to the house on more than a few occasions in Week 7.
It helps that, after starting the season off hot offensively, the Browns have quieted down in the past two weeks. Cleveland scored 12 points in a road loss to the New York Jets, before beating the Baltimore Ravens on a game-winning field goal that brought them to 13 points.
In the best-case scenario, Saleh's defense continues to build momentum, and Tennessee buries Cleveland by way of great defense and just enough offense.
Worst: Titans lose 24-10, Browns' defense stays hot
Oppositely, the Browns' defense has also been keeping them in contests, if not outright winning them. Cleveland has allowed 20 points in just one game this season.
FOX Sports has the Browns' overall defense rated at 13th in the league, and their passing defense all the way up at eighth. The Titans' defense just got hot, but Cleveland's ball-stopping unit has been hot pretty much all year long.
In the worst of cases, it stays that way. We'd see Cam Ward struggle to make plays against the likes of CB Denzel Ward in the secondary, while DT Mason Graham creates pressure on Cleveland's d-line. Ward already has a pick and two forced fumbles this season, and Graham has four sacks.
Defense will likely tell the story either way, and Cleveland's offense is more likely to break free than Tennessee's. However, what the Titans did to the Colts last week would be good enough to disrupt just about any opponent.
We'll see which way the pendulum swings. Titans fans have a right to be a little more excited than usual, with Saleh's team returning home off their first win. Tennessee will try to win their second straight game for the first time in nearly four years against Cleveland.
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