Team news: Tennessee Titans | Page 19

Pittsburgh's offense took a step back with Mason Rudolph in command last Sunday in an overtime tie against Detroit. Ben was unable to travel with the team but has been activated and head coach Mike Tomlin stated he will start.

This is a boost to all the Steelers' offensive weapons when they face the run funneling defense of the Los Angeles Chargers.

It sure sounds like as long as Ben Roethlisberger is cleared before the Steelers take off Saturday, and is physically fit enough to play, he will start.

Related players: Mason Rudolph

Pro Football Talk reported yesterday there was a chance Big Ben would miss Week 11 as well, so we'll likely have to wait this out until the weekend. HC Mike Tomlin says the game plan doesn't change from one QB to the other: "It's not like Mason Rudolph runs 4.4," he said.

There’s a good chance that Ben Roethlisberger will miss Week 11’s trip to face the Chargers as well and the Steelers will need more than a chance to win that game in order to boost their position in the AFC playoff race.

Related players: Mason Rudolph, Dwayne Haskins

If that's the case, it would appear Rudolph gets another chance to start in Week 11. The story said Rudolph did what the team expected him to do, which was give them a chance to win against the Lions, which ended in a tie. Rudolph was thrown in when Big Ben tested positive for COVID on Saturday so he didn't have a lot of time to prep. Rudolph probably did enough to earn the start over Haskins if Ben isn't cleared for Week 11.

Titans wide receiver Marcus Johnson came into the game with four catches for 60 yards on the season, but Julio Jones‘ trip to the injured reserve list opened up an opportunity for him to make an impact. Johnson turned a short slant into a 50-yard gain to set up a field goal in the first quarter and finished the day with five catches for 100 yards to lead the Titans in both categories.

Head coach Mike Vrabel said it was a “huge” performance and “what we needed to see” from a receiver who has flashed in practices without making a big impression in games.

Related players: Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Chester Rogers, A.J. Brown

Jones is going to miss two more games at least so Johnson has a chance to continue to make his mark in that span. With no Derrick Henry, the Titans will likely throw the ball more than they have with Henry in the lineup, so Johnson could have some fantasy value at least for the short term. Both Westbrook-Ikhine and Rogers have flashed fantasy numbers this year so it remains to see if Johnson will take over the WR2 role. Johnson, himself, flashed for the Colts last year, including a 5-108-0 game but mostly fizzled out after that.

starting quarterback Jared Goff suffered a strained oblique late in the first quarter.

Goff said he injured his side on an underthrown deep pass to Kalif Raymond one play after Julian Okwara intercepted Steelers starter Mason Rudolph.

Goff had minus-1 yard passing in the first quarter and was 11 for 20 for 54 yards passing in regulation.

He finished 14 of 25 for 114 yards as the Lions and Steelers tied on a rainy day at Heinz Field, 16-16.

Related players: David Blough, Tim Boyle

The Lions felt Goff was OK enough to play through the injury. Goff is backed up by Blough but Boyle recently came off the IR and reports say the Lions do like Boyle. It appears Goff is likely not in the long-term plans for the Lions but reports last week said the team is prepared to ride out Goff for the rest of this year as well as 2022. The numbers were pretty bad against the Steelers, however the problem seems to be Goff is the best option at the moment.

Roethlisberger recently claimed he is vaccinated so this will most likely hold him out for only a week. Mason Rudolph is slotted to start at quarterback and shouldn’t have too big of an impact on the supporting offensive unit.

Saints QB Trevor Siemian will start Week 10 at Tennessee. Taysom Hill will back up and still see the field.

A bit of a surprise based on how the Saints offense stalled last week. Temper expectations for the passing game Week 10.

Trevor Siemian said the late success didn’t make him feel any better because the team lost the game, but head coach Sean Payton had a more charitable view of how the quarterback played on Sunday.

“Overall, he played well,” Payton said in his press conference. “We missed some pickups. He had a few throws in there that were not primary receivers and played with poise, brought us back. I thought, overall, I felt like it was good."

Related players: Taysom Hill

Siemian didn't do much early on in what was his first start since 2019. Siemian lost a fumble while the Falcons were building a 24-6 lead over the Saints, but threw two fourth quarter touchdown passes to help get New Orleans back into the game, the story said. It would appear Siemian will get the call again in Week 10 against the Titans.

The Atlanta Falcons have placed WR Calvin Ridley on the reserve-Non-Football Injury list. Ridley will have to miss at least three games.

We wish Ridley the best as he takes time away from football.