One game isn't enough to define the Titans, but their lack of possessions, explosive plays and pass rush offer numbers worth tracking, while Anthony Hill Jr.'s debut provides one encouraging exception.
By MIKE HERNDON, special correspondent
The Robert Saleh era of Titans football opened with a dud in a matchup against his former employer. Tennessee didn’t look fast or violent in any phase in a 23-10 home loss that wasn’t as close as the final score would suggest.
We are often told that “Week One is a liar,” followed by anecdotal evidence like the 2025 Raiders beating the Patriots last year. However, that isn’t actually supported by statistical evidence from an analysis of the last 20 years' worth of NFL results. Week One is no more or less indicative of a team's quality than any other week.
The reality is that every week is a liar in the NFL. Another popular football-ism, “any given Sunday,” is what this data screams. Whether it’s Week One or Week Six, statistically the biggest “liar” week according to the data, we should be very careful about drawing big assumptions from any individual game.
