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Williams had a great day against the Colts, made a few things happen in the next three games and then starred against the Texans. Will that game vault Williams to the next level? Is he ready to be Tennessee's go-to receiver?
Big games can often give receivers the confidence to become "the guy". It does take more than one good game to establish the pattern.
Everyone is interested to see if Roydell Williams uses his super effort to in Houston to boost his status.
The Titans lost to the Raiders, 34-25 on October 30, 2005. Even though the game was right at two years ago, the Titans currently start just seven players who started that game.
Three of them are defensive linemen: Kyle Vanden Bosch, Albert Haynesworth and Antwan Odom. Keith Bulluck is the only remaining starter in the back seven of the defense. The secondary has been completely flipped since then.
On offense, Tennessee started Benji Olson, Bo Scaife and Michael Roos that day. Roos played right offensive tackle in the game that day; he's now the starting left tackle for Tennessee.
One would think that Jerry Porter will be looking forward to facing the Titans on Sunday. In five games against Tennessee, Porter has 19 catches for 337 yards (17.7 per catch) and six touchdowns. Two of his six career 100 yard games have come against the Titans.
Sunday's game will be the 45th meeting between the two old AFL foes. The AFL was known for offensive shootouts, so it's probably not surprising that when you check "The Last Time" segment of the Titans' press release, it is littered with big stats for both teams. Some examples include…
THE LAST TIME A TITAN RUSHED FOR 200 YARDS:
Eddie George vs Oakland (216 yards) at Memphis 8/31/97
THE LAST TIME A TITAN PASSED FOR 400 YARDS AND FOUR TDS:
Billy Volek at Oakland (492 yards and four touchdowns) 12/19/04
THE LAST TIME A TITAN RECEIVER HAD 150+ YARDS RECEIVING:
Drew Bennett at Oakland (160 yards) 12/19/04
THE LAST TIME THE TITANS HAD 500+ YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE:
At Oakland (527 yards) 12/19/04
THE LAST TIME AN OPPOSING QUARTERBACK THREW FIVE TD PASSES:
Kerry Collins at Oakland 12/19/04
THE LAST TIME AN OPPOSING RECEIVER HAD THREE TD CATCHES:
Jerry Porter at Oakland 12/19/04
Oakland kicker Sebastian Janikowski leads the NFL with 16 touchbacks. Rob Bironas has six, which ties him for 9th in the league…LenDale White has 4-5 converted 3rd and 1 rushes…Chris Davis is 3rd in the AFC and 8th in the NFL in punt returns, averaging 10.8…Oakland punter Shane Lechler leads the NFL in both gross and net punting yardage, averaging 49.0 and 43.3, respectively. His career gross average of 46.2 per punt ranks him #1 in NFL history…Tennessee and Oakland are both led in interceptions by linebackers. Keith Bulluck has a career-high four to pace the Titans, while the Raiders' Thomas Howard also has four (two returned for touchdowns). Another of Oakland's starting linebackers, Kirk Morrison, has three interceptions.
