The Arizona Cardinals are in Nashville to face the Tennessee Titans in their most important preseason game to date. The Cardinals are playing in their fourth preseason game, third on the road, in the newly renovated LP Field. They will look to build on the success they had in their 31-27 win over the Oakland Raiders last week. It was the first win for the Cardinals this preseason, who saw the return of running back Ryan Williams, and the first touchdown throw by either one of their potential starting quarterbacks. The Cardinals defense finally took hold as well, not only making a significant goal-line stand, but also causing two fumbles and an interception in the game.
This will be the final preseason game many of the starters on both teams will see significant action in, prior to them playing in the regular season, when the games start to count. Most starters will play three quarters, and what makes this so important for the Cardinals is that the starting quarterback position is still up for grabs. Will it be Kevin Kolb, the $63 million dollar man; or John Skelton, the fifth round draft pick from college football dynasty Fordham University. This game against the Titans will probably determine the outcome of that battle, and who will lead the Cardinals on opening day.
In addition, running back Beanie Wells will be making his debut, along with tight end Jeff King. It will be the first time Wells and Ryan Williams will play together in over a year. The loss of offensive tackle Levi Brown in last week's game is something that will hurt the Cardinals offense moving forward. The offensive line has struggled in pass protection, and they have given up 14 sacks in three preseason games.
The Tennessee Titans, and new head coach Mike Munchak, have already made their starting quarterback decision, and are going with second year player Jake Locker on opening day. Fortunately, they will have a veteran backup in Matt Hasselbeck as a nice safety net. Locker will have some support in the backfield, with running back Chris Johnson looking to rush for over 1,000 yards for the fifth straight season. Wide receiver Kenny Britt is still recovering from off-season knee surgeries, and will probably not play at all during this preseason. The Titans are hoping he will be ready by the regular season. Defensively, the Titans are looking to get more pressure from their front four, and have a more aggressive mind-set overall, according to defensive coordinator Jerry Gray.
This will be the first home game for the Titans this preseason, as they have been making improvements to LP Field during the off-season. The Titans are coming off a 30-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, to even their record at 1-1 this preseason.
Kickoff Time: Everything is scheduled to begin Thursday, August 23 at 5 p.m. MT from LP Field.
TV Schedule: This game will be nationally televised on ESPN. Pre-game coverage will begin at 4:00 p.m.