Published Oct 14, 12:24pm ET by
Paul Lebowitz - Betting Preview Analyst and Sports Writer
Last updated Oct 14, 12:24pm ET
Grok AI
Updated Oct 14, 3:00pm ET
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| Tennessee Titans | +7 (-113) |
| New England Patriots | -7 (-107) |
In Mike Vrabel's first year on the Pats' sideline, he has them sitting at 4-2. They've won 3 straight and find themselves tied with the Bills for 1st place in the AFC East. Now, they travel to Tennessee to play the spiraling Titans.
Is it a coincidence that Brian Callahan was fired the same week former Titans coach Vrabel is coming to town, flying high with his new team?
As a team, New England is coming along fast, led by the individual rise of second-year QB Drake Maye.
Maye has a 112.5 passer rating, has thrown 10 TDs, and 2 interceptions. He's rushed for 138 yards on 36 carries and scored twice on the ground.
Against the Saints in Week 6, he completed 18 of 26 passes for 261 yards and 3 TDs. He's on the short list for MVP candidates a third of the way into the season.
The Saints defend the #Patriots' draw fake perfectly, and Drake Maye still turns it into an explosive play
— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) October 12, 2025
The safety cut off Hunter Henry's route, and there's pressure at Maye's feet after a Rhamondre Stevenson cut block, so the QB escapes the pocket and takes off for 20 yards pic.twitter.com/Lu6ATKsaAu
Stefon Diggs is having a Pro Bowl comeback season with 32 catches for 387 yards.
The Pats' pass defense is vulnerable, ranked 25th in the league in yards per game. They are middle of the pack in takeaway differential, but that's largely due to Rhamondre Stevenson's fumbling problem. Their rushing attack needs work. But with a weak schedule ahead, they are going to make the playoffs. They could even threaten Buffalo for the division title in what would be a recurring nightmare for the Bills, reawakening a ghost it thought it had exorcised.
An upcoming post will discuss whether Callahan's firing was justified.
For now, veteran coach Mike McCoy takes the reins on an interim basis.
McCoy has head coaching experience from his four years with the Chargers, accruing a record of 27-37 with one playoff appearance. It's not much consolation, but he can't do much worse than Callahan did.
A lobotomized gorilla couldn't do much worse than Callahan did.
On the field, Tennessee has been non-competitive. Their only victory came about when Cardinals running back Emari Demercado dropped the ball as he was just about to cross the goal line on a long TD run, opening the door for the Titans to come back. They won 22-21 on a last-second field goal.
They followed that up with a 20-10 loss to the equally terrible Raiders.
It was the final straw for owner Amy Adams Strunk, and Callahan was terminated.
The 1st overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Cam Ward, has struggled so far, as should be expected with rookies. However, he has shown little to no improvement, and this clearly contributed to Callahan's demise. At least McCoy is an experienced NFL coach working with a variety of personalities and talent levels.
Cam Ward with a BRUTAL fumble!
— Aggregate Sports (@AggregateSports) October 12, 2025
Raiders recover with under a minute left 😳💀#Raiders #NFL #CamWard pic.twitter.com/k5d3sa6ydm
Ward has a 67.3 passer rating, has 3 TD passes, and 4 picks. His 28 sacks for 198 yards lead the NFL, indicating two things:
In time, they can fix both issues.
Entering the season, the one team strength was their pass defense. That has lived up to expectations, ranked 13th in defensive passing yards per game. They're near the bottom in everything else. They have defensive talent with Amani Hooker, Jeffery Simmons, and L'Jarius Sneed.
Don't expect McCoy to work miracles. However, this is an appealing job with Ward already in place and a high 1st round draft pick in 2026 a certainty.
| PLAYER | STATUS |
|---|---|
| Blake Hance, TEN | INJURED |
| Bryce Oliver, TEN | INJURED |
| Kevin Zeitler, TEN | INJURED |
| Arden Key, TEN | INJURED |
| Marcus Harris, TEN | INJURED |
| Joey Slye, TEN | INJURED |
| Oluwafemi Oladejo, TEN | INJURED |
| Vederian Lowe, NE | INJURED |
| Lan Larison, NE | INJURED |
| Jared Wilson, NE | INJURED |
| Mike Onwenu, NE | INJURED |
| Keion White, NE | INJURED |
| Anfernee Jennings, NE | INJURED |
| Jaylinn Hawkins, NE | INJURED |
| Antonio Gipson, NE | INJURED |
| Brock Lampe, NE | INJURED |
For the Week 7 Patriots-Titans matchup, these are two teams going in opposite directions. The Titans pulled the trigger on Callahan quickly, but it was a mess. It's likely better to cut ties now and get a head start in looking for a new candidate while giving Ward a veteran NFL coach in McCoy to steer him along.
This is a trap game for the Patriots. There are myriad distractions with Vrabel returning to face the team he led for six seasons and brought to an AFC Championship Game. The Pats' bandwagon is growing. Vrabel will make sure they stay focused.
The coaching change might give the Titans a boost, but they're overmatched and outmanned.
Favored New England will cover the spread.
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Pick
New England Patriots -7
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