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It’s Week 10 and the Patriots are in Nashville to face the Titans, looking for their seventh straight win. Refresh this page for the latest from Nissan Stadium.
Details: Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CBS will broadcast the contest.
Pregame notes and scenes
Vrabel had a nice chat with McDaniels, and now is catching up with Robert Kraft pic.twitter.com/0SU3jbcPzV
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 11, 2018
Tom Brady and Mike Vrabel with a pregame chat. #Patriots pic.twitter.com/a5MAM8OYsj
— Jim McBride (@globejimmcbride) November 11, 2018
Stat of the Day: Tom Brady is 14-2 in games right before a Bye. Hasn’t lost since 2005
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 11, 2018
Malcolm Butler hits the field for warmups with his headphones on pic.twitter.com/n9eVwKlfez
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 11, 2018
Welcome to Nissan Stadium and the best press box view in the NFL pic.twitter.com/TNiVOMxuoT
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 11, 2018
Inactives
■ Tight end Rob Gronkowski traveled with the team to Nashville, but is inactive. He had been a limited participant at practice all week, hampered by a nagging back injury and an ankle injury. He said Friday that this season has been “more challenging” for him.
■ Also inactive for the Patriots are running back Kenjon Barner, guard Shaq Mason, defensive end Derek Rivers, safety Obi Melifonwu, cornerback Keion Crossen, and tackle Matt Tobin.
■ Running back Sony Michel, linebacker Dont’a Hightower, left tackle Trent Brown, and tight end Jacob Hollister are all active.
■ Ted Karras is likely to get the start in place of Mason for the second straight week.
Tom Brady’s weapons vs. Titans:
RB: Michel, White
WR: Edelman, Gordon, Hogan Dorsett
Hybrid: Patterson
TE: Allen, Hollister
FB: Develin
No Gronk, but offense should have much more balance and a real running game with Michel back in the lineup.
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 11, 2018
■ For the Titans, defensive lineman Matt Dickerson, offensive lineman Jack Conklin, receiver Taywon Taylor, offensive lineman Aaron Stinnie, fullback Jalston Fowler, safety Dane Cruikshank, and linebacker Derrick Morgan are inactive.
Keys to victory
Titans
1. Corners Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler have plenty of experience facing Tom Brady. Do they recall any subtle Brady tells that will aid them in their defense?
2. Defensive tackle Jurrell Casey is a mover and a shaker. He can move blockers with ease and shake ball carriers to their core. He needs to be a force.
3. The backfield tandem of Dion Lewis and Derrick Henry needs to kick it into high gear to get this game on cruise control. Let Lewis strike early and Henry grind the gears late.
Patriots
1. The pbad rush was near-perfect against Aaron Rodgers. A duplicate effort is needed against Marcus Mariota. Keep him contained or he’ll bring the pain.
2. Keep the ground game churning no matter who’s lining up behind Mr. Smash Mouth himself, James Develin. Keep the attack balanced to keep the Titans off-balance.
3. Tennessee’s receivers are banged up. Get physical with them, slow them, and then snag an interception or two. The Patriots have a takeaway in every game this season.
— Jim McBride
Pregame reading
■ Chad Finn’s Unconventional Preview: The Titans are an opponent worthy of respect, and they’ll prove it even in defeat. (Read more)
■ The Patriots’ offense is famously difficult to learn for receivers, which makes what Josh Gordon is doing even more impressive. (Read more)
■ For the Patriots’ defense, weekly benchmarks have been the measure of improvement. (Read more)
■ Patriots-Titans scouting report: Who has the edge in every phase of the game, players to watch, and more. (Read more)
■ Playing with Patriots is a dream come true for safety Obi Melifonwu. The Mbad. native and former UConn standout, released by the Raiders earlier this season, gets to start over in Foxborough. (Read more)
Brady vs. Logan and Butler
Tom Brady is expecting strong competition from two cornerbacks he knows well, Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler, both of whom left the Patriots over the last two years to join the Titans in free agency.
“They’ve gone on to have some really great contracts and I’m happy for them. They really earned it. I think when you’re a great player, you get the opportunity to do that. I know we can’t keep everybody but obviously happy for them and what they’ve accomplished,” Brady said.
“They were hugely impactful in what we were trying to do in the roles that they played. Logan was a great player, still is — incredible awareness and just such a smart player. And Malcolm, I’ve always loved playing against him and in practice, it was very competitive. He’s a very competitive person. He wants to try to win every play and hopefully we can have a good plan against that entire defense.”
Brady went on to mention Butler and Ryan as members of the NFL’s No. 1 red zone defense and top scoring defense, both frequent talking points in Foxborough this week. While the Titans have allowed the fewest points and have the highest-rated red zone defense, context is necessary to inform how successful they actually have been.
The Titans defense has been on the field for 83 opponent drives this season. That’s relatively few, which keeps scoring totals down. The Patriots defense, for instance, has seen 107 drives.
Tennessee has still been disciplined and successful defensively, but take their status with a grain of salt.
— Nora Princiotti
Owen Pence contributed to this report.
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