Titans’ winners and losers from Week 15 victory versus Lions

The Tennessee Titans secured their first double-digit-win season since the 2008 campaign after topping the Detroit Lions in Week 15, 46-25.

Tennessee’s offense stole the show in this one, as quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running back Derrick Henry spearheaded an attack that was unstoppable in the winning effort.

Tannehill completed 21-of-27 passes for 273 yards, took three carries for 21 yards and had five total touchdowns. Henry was almost equally impressive, finishing with 147 yards and one score, with 6.1 yards per carry.

The defense wasn’t great by any stretch, but did force two very big turnovers in the red zone, one of which occurred at the goal line. Without those turnovers, this game would have been a lot closer.

A convincing victory like this led to plenty of players getting a distinction as a “winner” but there wase also two “losers” and one “in between” to talk about. Let’s see which players or units fall into which categories.

Winner: Derrick Henry

Henry was once again the straw that stirs the drink in Week 15. Not only did he total 147 yards and one score on 6.1 yards per carry, but it was clear the Lions were biting hard on almost every play fake, leading to Ryan Tannehill's monster day (more on that in a minute). https://twitter.com/Titans/status/1340797656604549123 Henry fell nine yards short of the 156 he needed to average per game over his last three to get to 2,000 yards, but more importantly he out-rushed Dalvin Cook, keeping his comfortable lead for the rushing crown intact. Adding to that, Henry crushed his single-season high in rushing yards, which was 1,540. The Alabama product now has 1,679 yards on the season and needs to average 160.5 over his last two to get to 2,000 yards. With his breaking 1,500 yards and 15 scores this season, Henry became the fourth player in NFL history to do so in back-to-back seasons. https://twitter.com/NFL345/status/1340734227860623364

Loser: Tye Smith

(AP Photo/Ben Margot)

After putting up a valiant effort in Week 14 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, it was not a good day for Smith in Week 15, as his coverage was lackluster. The most notable gaffe came when Smith surrendered a 36-yard reception to Quintez Cephus after getting flat-out beaten on the play. With Adoree' Jackson now back, we'll see less and less of Smith the more Jackson ramps up his workload, and we figure we'll see Kristian Fulton at some point again, which will only bury Smith more on the depth chart.

Winner: Adoree' Jackson

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Simply being able to make his return is reason in and of itself to give Jackson the nod here; however, he also made a few good plays in this contest. One came when Matthew Stafford dialed up a deep ball to Cephus, who was well covered by Jackson, leading to an incomplete pass. Jackson also made a big tackle over the middle of the field on a third down that led to the Lions trying a fake punt on fourth down that failed. Jackson appears to have emerged just fine out of his first game of 2020 and while he didn't play a full complement of snaps in this game, he'll certainly get ramped-up in the weeks ahead — but even in limited action, Jackson made his presence felt.

Winner: Ryan Tannehill

(AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Fantasy owners who started Tannehill this week were quite pleased with what they got. The Titans signal-caller totaled 294 total yards and five scores, and he's the first Tennessee quarterback notch that many total touchdowns in a single game since the immortal Billy Volek did it in 2004. https://twitter.com/Titans/status/1340794654720200704 More importantly, Tannehill looked sharp and feasted off the play-action, as the Lions were biting hard every time because of the mere threat of Henry. Tannehill now has 3,482 passing yards through 14 games, which means he needs just 259 per game over his last two to reach 4,000 for the third time in his career.

Winner: Corey Davis

Davis continues to come up big in what is a contract year for him. The former No. 5 overall pick totaled his fifth 100-yard game of the season and notched a 75-yard touchdown play thanks to a dime from Tannehill and impressive individual effort from Davis himself. With his 110 yards and one touchdown on Sunday, Davis has 945 yards and five scores on the season, both new single-season highs for him. Davis needs a measly 55 yards to get to 1,000 for the first time in his career, and that could come in Week 16 against the Green Bay Packers.

In between: Titans' defense

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If not for some big turnovers, the Titans might have saw a much closer game on Sunday due to less-than-stellar play from the defense. Matthew Stafford and Co. didn't face much resistance for most of the game, whether it was in coverage or from the pass-rush, but the difference was Tennessee's ability to force turnovers, two of which were in the red zone. The hope now is that having Adoree' Jackson back will enable more flexibility, like being able to blitz more in order to create pressure, and, of course, improved coverage. However, as of right now, this does not look like a Super Bowl-caliber defense by any stretch and Tennessee's success will most likely be predicated on its ability to score points.

Winner: Darrynton Evans

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Evans flashed some of what we expected to see this season upon finally making his return to the field after not playing in a game since Week 5. The Appalachian State product totaled eight carries for 30 yards, and two receptions for 27 yards and his first career touchdown on Sunday. His 24-yard reception was the highlight, as Evans reeled in a tipped pass and showed great individual effort to pick up yards after the catch. If Evans can continue to add that kind of element to Tennessee's offense, it'll be even harder to stop.

Loser: Jeremy McNichols

(AP Photo/Wade Payne)

McNichols had been serving as the main backup behind Henry, but that changed in Week 15 with the return of Evans. McNichols was relegated to just one touch for five yards, while the rookie compiled 10 touches for 57 yards and one score. At the very least, McNichols' limited looks will become more scare with Evans back.

Winner: Kevin Byard

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Byard notched his long-awaited first interception of the 2020 campaign. It was odd to see the star safety without one this late in the season after totaling 17 combined the past three years. Adding to that, Byard finished second on the team in tackles with 10, and he had a tackle for loss and a pair of passes defensed. This was one of his better games of the season.