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Titans look to snap three-game slide

Dec 2, 2007 - 12:31 PM Houston (5-6) at Tennessee (6-5) 1:00 pm EST

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Ticker) - Suddenly in danger of falling out of playoff contention, the Tennessee Titans hope a return home will change their fortunes.

The Titans look to snap a three-game losing streak Sunday, when they host the Houston Texans in an AFC South contest.

With a 6-2 record at the season's midpoint, Tennessee appeared to a lock for the playoffs. But the slide has dropped the Titans one game behind the Jacksonville Jaguars for the AFC's final playoff spot.

Tennessee is coming off its worst performance of the season, a 35-6 loss at Cincinnati in which Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer threw three touchdown passes to Chad Johnson.

"What's interesting is we are not doing anything different," Titans coach Jeff Fisher said. "Our offense, our defense, our special teams, our play selection, our play-calling has really matched the first eight weeks."

Still, the Titans' slide start when they lost defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth to a knee injury.

In the last three weeks, Tennessee's normally stout defense has yielded 97 points in losses to Jacksonville, Denver and the Bengals.

In the earlier meeting with the Texans on October 28, the Titans were fortunate to escape with a 38-36 victory.

Tennessee squandered a 32-7 lead as Houston scored 29 points in the fourth quarter, but Rob Bironas kicked his NFL-record eighth field goal - a 29-yarder as time expired - to rescue the Titans.

Tennessee quarterback Vince Young missed that game in his hometown due to a strained quadriceps.

Young's effectiveness as a running threat has been limited this season due to his various leg injuries. He also has been inconsistent as a passer with 13 interceptions and only five touchdowns.

Following a 23-10 victory over the New Orleans Saints, the Texans reached the .500 mark after 10 games for the first time in franchise history.

But Houston could not slow down the Cleveland Browns last week, suffering a 27-17 setback.

The Titans struggled against the Browns' league-worst defense. Matt Schaub completed 22-of-36 passes for 256 yards and two touchdowns but also was picked off twice.