Tennessee Titans may rest players in Thursday’s game vs. Dallas Cowboys, Mike Vrabel says
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The Tennessee Titans’ loss on Saturday, 19-14 to the Houston Texans, guaranteed that the Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars will play a winner-take-all game for the AFC South division title on the final weekend of the regular season.
But before then is Thursday’s Week 17 game against the Dallas Cowboys. For a team with a lengthy injury list on a short week at the end of the season, the Titans are in a position to rest some players if needed. The Titans’ result on Thursday won’t change the importance of the trip to Jacksonville.
Titans coach Mike Vrabel admitted as much after Saturday’s game.
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“We’ve got some guys who have played a lot of football for us that are far less than 100%,” Vrabel said. “It’s those guys that I appreciate that, no matter what, find a way to be here for this team. So we’ll try to figure out who we have and who’s available and then make some decisions.”
The Titans (7-8) could still earn an AFC wild-card berth. That would require a win over Dallas, a loss at Jacksonville and a long list of help from other teams. Realistically, the Titans’ only reasonable shot at the postseason is by winning the AFC South.
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Tennessee has now lost five games in a row after Saturday’s defeat by the previously one-win Texans. Quarterback Malik Willis started the third game of his rookie season and struggled, completing 14 of 23 passes for 99 yards and two interceptions. Multiple reports indicate that Ryan Tannehill had surgery on his injured ankle, with a recovery timeline that would make a Week 18 return unlikely.
So which players would be good candidates for a week of rest? Tannehill fits the bill. Jeffery Simmons has popped up on the injury report since his return from an ankle injury in Week 11 and did not practice in full leading into Saturday’s game. Amani Hooker (knee) and Kristian Fulton (groin) missed Saturday’s game with injuries. Zach Cunningham (elbow), Bud Dupree (chest) and Nicholas Petit-Frere (ankle) all left Saturday’s game with injuries.
Tennessee has had to deal with a lot of injuries this season, and they are piling up. Reserves are getting a lot of playing time on the offensive line (which saw starts for Corey Levin and Jordan Roos Saturday), at linebacker (Jack Gibbens had an interception Saturday) and defensive back. The opportunity for rest and the upcoming mini-bye after Thursday’s home game (7:15 p.m., NewsChannel 5, Amazon Prime) may set the Titans up best for success in Week 18.
“We are what we are,” Vrabel said. “We’ve got to figure out the 48 guys we’ve got for Thursday night.”
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans may rest players in Thursday’s game vs. Dallas Cowboys, Mike Vrabel says