Not since 2009 has the New England Patriots had to play in the wild-card round game, but that will change on Saturday as they face off against the Tennessee Titans. The Patriots lost their grip of a first-round bye with an ugly Week 17 loss to the Miami Dolphins and now they don’t get to rest up as they usually are accustomed to doing around this time of the year.
Before their Week 17 matchup, Ray Lewis issued a warning to the Patriots to not lose that first-round bye, and because they did so, the hall of fame linebacker is now choosing the Titans to defeat them in the first round.
“The bottom line is, the mentality of Derrick Henry and the way he can run the football on the New England Patriots — guys, I’m just telling you, I think they can go in there and they can beat the Patriots. …You know what? Honestly, man, I’m gonna go with the Titans,” Lewis said on the latest edition of Showtime’s “Inside the NFL.”
New England’s defense will need to be top notched to stop Derrick Henry who has been on an absolute tear in the 2019 season as he finished the regular season as the NFL’s leading rusher, and being the only back in all of football to eclipse the 1,500-yard rushing barrier.
Henry also had 16 touchdowns on 303 carries during the 2019 regular season, with all those stats leading the NFL.
When the Titans and Patriots square off in a Wild-Card Weekend game, Henry will face the defense that gave up the fewest points and fewest yards in the NFL in 2019.
