The Tennessee Titans head to Cincinnati in Week 8 of the 2026 NFL season still licking their wounds from another gut-punch loss, and the timing doesn’t get much easier. They just gave up a season-high 491 yards to the Cleveland Browns, and now they have to deal with a Bengals offense that can light up the scoreboard. Add in the trade of star defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons to the Chicago Bears, and the mood around this team is understandably shaky.
Even so, there are a few reasons Tennessee can walk into Sunday with some hope.
The clearest one starts on the ground. The Titans’ rushing game finally looked alive against Cleveland, piling up a season-high 141 yards and three touchdowns.
Tony Pollard did the heavy lifting with 129 yards, and that kind of production matters against a Cincinnati defense that has been vulnerable against the run all year. The Bengals are giving up 4.7 yards per carry, which places them in the bottom half of the league.
They held Derrick Henry to 45 rushing yards last week, but Tennessee’s better work up front and Pollard’s recent form at least give this matchup some promise.
There are signs the offense itself is starting to move in the right direction, too. Tennessee had been stuck in the mud for most of the season, scoring 20 points only once through its first five games.
Now it has posted 26 and 24 points in back-to-back weeks. Against the Browns, the Titans put together a season-high 322 total yards and found the end zone on offense three times.
They also scored touchdowns on their first two possessions for the first time since December 2024. The result still ended in defeat, but the bigger picture suggests quarterback Cam Ward and the rest of the unit may finally be settling in.
Defensively, Tennessee has also done a better job of taking the ball away. The Titans have forced five turnovers over their last two games, with three coming against Indianapolis and two against Cleveland.
Cor'Dale Flott has picked off passes in consecutive games, and rookie linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. forced a fumble against the Browns that Tony Adams recovered. That kind of playmaking will matter against Joe Burrow, who has thrown 15 touchdown passes and only three interceptions this season.
Cincinnati’s passing game is one of the league’s most dangerous, but if Tennessee can keep adding turnovers, it can at least create shorter fields for its offense and give itself a chance to stay in the fight.
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Jeffery Simmons Revealed The Part Of Leaving Titans That Hurt Most
Jeffery Simmons did not sound like a player focused only on the football side of a major move. After being traded to the Chicago Bears, the defensive tackle opened up about how difficult it was to leave his family in Nashville, a personal layer to a deal that already carried plenty of weight for both teams.
Chicago paid a steep price to get him, sending two first-round picks to Tennessee, a clear sign the Bears believe Simmons can be a difference-maker as they chase a division title under coach Dennis Allen. He arrives with strong defensive production this season, but the emotional adjustment may be just as real as the football transition as he settles into a new locker room and a new city. [Read more 🡒]
3 Titans Rookies Are Still Waiting For Their Chance
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Singleton has had chances but has struggled with vision and awareness, while Marshall was passed over on the depth chart even when he had a shot to climb. Coogans situation is a little different, since injuries elsewhere have not translated into meaningful work for him. There is still time for all three to change the story before the season is over, but for now the Titans are waiting to see which rookie, if any, can finally turn a small opening into something more substantial. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Have An Alontae Taylor Problem They Can't Ignore
The Titans have quietly reached a point where Alontae Taylors role is no longer something they can treat as a minor rotation issue. Joshua Williams has started consecutive games and held up well, while Cor'Dale Flott and Marcus Harris have also given Tennessee steadier play on the back end, leaving Taylor with fewer defensive snaps than expected for a player the team still has reason to keep involved.
A move to nickelback has been floated as a possible way to get Taylor back into the mix, but the path there is not simple when the current group is functioning. Williams strong stretch has made the depth chart harder to crack, and Taylors own production has lagged behind, which leaves Tennessee weighing fit against form as it tries to settle on the best use of its secondary. [Read more 🡒]