Thus far this week we've discussed plenty about what the Tennessee Titans bring to the table on offense.  Their primary weapon is Chris Johnson and most of us probably agree that he is the key player to stop tomorrow.  And of course there is plenty of discussion about Vince Young and what he might or might not bring to the table.  But what about the Titans defense against the 49ers offense?  The 49ers defense has scored some points, but the offense is likely going to need to get some points on the board if this team is going to win.

The title is probably one that can be used each week for most of the rest of the year.  Whether you are strongly behind Alex Smith or not, everyone will agree that the offensive line needs to step up for anything to develop on offense.  If Frank Gore is going to make plays, he needs to get some holes to burst through.  if Alex Smith is going to make plays, he needs time to progress through his reads.  Simply put, the offensive line is once again the key.

The line has been riddled with injuries, so it's probably a lot to expect a fantastic performance.  However, they could still put together a mediocre performance and the team still wins.  The Titans defense has a lot of question marks, particularly in a rather young secondary.  This could be a legit chance for Josh Morgan and Michael Crabtree to both take advantage.

Of course, Smith will need more than a second or two to make things happen.  The Titans have some guys who can get to the quarterback, but like the 49ers they haven't been able to be all that consistent.  They have one fewer sack than the 49ers, but I'd love some more insight on general pass rush.  After all, a lack of sacks doesn't automatically mean no pass rush.  For example, the 49ers have had games with limited sacks, but they've still managed to keep the quarterback running.

A quick look at DVOA (speaking of which, Florida Danny is dealing with some important stuff this week and will not be posting his rankings) indicates the Titans are 28th overall, 28th against the pass, and 14th against the run.  On the same page it ranks a team's defense against various receivers (1st, 2nd, Other WR, TE, RB) and the Titans rank, in order, 28th, 18th, 30th, 26th, and 6th.

Needless to say, those rankings against receivers and tight ends has to be rather enticing.  So, will Alex Smith get enough time to make plays tomorrow?  Even if he has enough time, will the team utilize enough of a vertical game for it to make a difference?  I guess I'm asking for general predictions about what kind of scheme we'll see from the offense tomorrow.

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As always, there is plenty of value to be had in hearing about the 49ers upcoming opponent straight from the horses mouth.  Jimmy over at Music City Miracles, was kind enough to take a few minutes to answer some questions I had of him.  I also answered five questions for him and if you feel like offering your own take on his questions, head on over.

Fooch: Can you nail down what caused the Titans early season losing streak, or was it a combination of factors?

MCM: It  has been a combination of a lot of things.  It starts on the defensive side of the ball.  New defensive Chuck Cecil seemed to be having trouble making the in game adjustments that needed to be made early on.  The secondary wasn't playing well and then they got banged up.

On offense Kerry Collins seemed to regress from last season.  The receivers couldn't catch when he was actually on the mark, and the offensive line wasn't playing as well as they did last season.

On special teams the Titans didn't have anyone that could catch a punt or return a kickoff.  So you can see that it was a combination of a lot of things working against them.

We continue with a few more questions after the jump...

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I'd be intrigued to hear what others have to say, but I'm of the impression that the most important thing the 49ers need to accomplish this weekend is shutting down, or at least containing Titans running back Chris Johnson.  If the 49ers can contain Johnson, the Titans will need to have Vince Young making plays.  Of course maybe that makes Vinsanity the ultimate x-factor in this game.  For now though, let's focus on Johnson.

Chris Johnson has obliterated any possibility of a sophomore slump as he is on pace to easily surpass his very impressive rookie season.  Johnson currently leads the NFL with 824 yards, averaging a robust 6.9 yards per carry, and also leading the NFL with ten rushes of 20+ yards.  Needless to say, Chris Johnson is rushing with a lot of confidence and is taking aim at 2,000 rushing yards.  So there you have an irresistible force.

On the other side of the field, the 49ers roll out a rushing defense that leads the league in yards per carry allowed at 3.2.  Often times this can be due to an abysmal pass defense.  The 49ers pass defense has issues, but it's certainly not abysmal.  Football Outsiders updated their unit rankings (Florida Danny will have more on that this week) and at this point, the 49ers rank third against the rush and 11th against the pass in terms of DVOA.  So while the 49ers defense might not be #1 like Chris Johnson is #1, it is certainly turning into the proverbial immovable object.

So, as the classic question asks, what happens when the irresistible force meets the immovable object?  Vince Young or Alex Smith could certainly go wild and be the difference-maker in this matchup.  But I actually think this game comes down to who can win the matchup of Chris Johnson vs. 49ers rushing defense.

In looking at the matchup, it's certainly hard to bet against a guy like Johnson.  I certainly don't doubt Chris Johnson's ability, but I also think some of his numbers can be questioned at least a little bit.  For example, this past week he put up 228 yards...against the Jaguars.  It's a great number, but it must be put in context.  The two previous games he put up 128 yards in a 59-0 loss to the Patriots, and 34 yards in a 31-9 home loss to the Colts.  The Patriots number is probably the most misleading given that it was 45-0 at the half.  One might be able to infer that the Patriots were not exactly playing the toughest rush defense.  I could be wrong, but when you lose by that matchup, I'm less inclined to be impressed by the numbers.

After the jump we look at the 49ers rush defense against quality running backs...

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The 49ers come home this weekend to face the artists formerly known as the Houston Oilers.  The Tennessee Titans have struggled mightily this season, but finally notched their first win of the season last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars.  The Titans finally decided to roll the dice with Vince Young after settling for a bit too much mediocrity with Kerry Collins.  Young wasn't a superstar last week but he did exactly was required of him and executed that much more or less to perfection.  He finished 15/18 for 125 yards and a touchdown.  It'll be interesting to see if the team expands his role, or is wise and continues riding Chris Johnson.

The 49ers host the Tennessee Titans in what will be the 12th meeting between the two teams, dating back to 1970. The last time San Francisco faced Tennessee was in 2005, when they were defeated by the Titans, 33-22, in Nashville.

The 49ers look to snap a three-game losing streak after falling to the Colts, 18-14, in Indianapolis last week. After jumping out to an early 7-0 lead on a 64-yard touchdown run by RB Frank Gore, 49ers QB Alex Smith connected with TE Vernon Davis on an 8-yard touchdown pass late in the 2nd quarter to give the team a 14-9 advantage heading into halftime. The Colts went on to score nine unanswered points in the second half to claim victory. Gore recorded his third touchdown carry of over 60 yards this season, while Davis posted his seventh touchdown reception and continues to lead the NFL in receiving scores.

The upcoming game showcases a tough San Francisco run defense (84.9 ypg. - 2nd in the NFL) against a high-powered Tennessee ground attack (162.3 ypg. - 2nd in the NFL).

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This Sunday will see the 49ers square off in what I believe is their toughest match-up of the season.  The Colts have a lot of talent on both sides of the ball, which is sure to give us an even better idea of where the 49ers really are as a team.  As we approach the game, we've had some great discussion in the Q&A FanPost.  However, as is often the case, I wanted to ask five more directed questions of BigBlueShoe from Stampede Blue.  He was kind enough to take a few minutes to answer some of my questions.

NN: Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark continue to impress.  However, younger receivers Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon have started to impress.  Can you tell us a little more about the two youngsters?

SB: Sure. Pierre Garcon is a second year player who, as some know, played Division III college ball at Mount Union. He went there because he lacked the grades, and the pedigree, to go to the bigger college schools. Regardless, he dominated Div III football so much that the Colts used a 6th round pick on him in 2008. At roughly 6'1, 210 pounds, he is a big dude playing WR. He also has Marvin Harrison-like speed, as Peyton Manning described during Training Camp. Garcon likes getting physical after catching the ball, stiff-arming players and bowling over people rather than using his speed to shake them out of their shoes (like Marvin used to do). Pierre is also a little cocky. He's been flagged a bit too much for taunting, which is something Colts fans absolutely detest.

Austin Collie is pretty much a clone of Brandon Stokley. Stokley is, arguably, the best slot receiver ever to play football, and his best years were with the Colts. Collie is running the same patterns and doing the same things out of the slot that Stokley did. He's a very smart kid who does not play like a rookie. Very cerebral player who understands running in space and positioning himself on a route to make a big catch. It's been fun watching these young players grow and develop throughout the season. This area used to be a problem area for the Colts. In the past, it was Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, Brandon Stokley, and then... not much of anything. Now, with Pierre, Reggie, Austin, Anthony Gonzalez (who will return from injury soon), and the recently signed Hank Baskett, the Colts might have the deepest WR corps in football.

After the jump we run through four more questions about the Indianapolis Colts...

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Well, as some of you pointed out, we've truly come full circle.  Alex Smith makes his first start in two years, but more interesting is the fact that he made his first career start in the last matchup between these two teams.  Smith was 9/23 for 74 yards, 0 TDs and 4 interceptions in that start.  Let's hope for something just a little bit better than that.

The 49ers travel to Indianapolis to face the Colts in what will be the 42nd meeting between the two teams, dating back to 1953. The last time San Francisco traveled to Indianapolis was in 2001, when they defeated the Colts, 40-21. QB Alex Smith made his first NFL start the last time the two teams squared off in San Francisco, in 2005.

The 49ers look to snap a two-game losing streak after falling to the Texans, 24-21, in Houston last week. After trailing 21-0 heading into the second half, Smith entered the game and sparked the 49ers offense in what was his first action in 28 regular season games. He completed 15 of 22 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns, all of which were
caught by TE Vernon Davis, who set a career-high with the three scores and became the first 49ers tight end to record 3 receiving scores in a game. Davis now leads the NFL in touchdown receptions with six.

The 49ers have a perfect 3-0 record against division opponents this season and enter this week’s game having won 8 of its past 13 contests, dating back to 2008.

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Hallelujah, we've made it through the bye week and we can finally bring you another edition of the "Prospector's Guide."  The 49ers face one heck of a challenge coming out of the bye, heading down deep int he heart of Texas to take on the Houston Texans.  It's been a rather eventful bye week for the 49ers as they've made multiple lineup changes, potentially culminating in the starting debut of Michael Crabtree.  Even if Crabtree doesn't start the game, he'll still get to make his playing debut in his home state.  The Texans on the other hand remain a bit of an enigma this season.  They're coming off a bit win over the surprising Bengals, but up to this point, the Texans have alternated wins and losses.

The 49ers travel to Houston to face the Texans in what will be the second meeting between the two teams, dating back to 2005. In the only contest played in the series, the 49ers defetated the Texans 20-17 in overtime at Candlestick Park in the 2005 season finale. Prior to 2005, the last time the 49ers had played a regular season game in Houston was in 1996 against the Houston Oilers.

While Houston might not be a familiar place to many current 49ers, Mike Singletary knows the city very well. The 49ers head coach was born there and has a large contingent of family and friends in the area.  The 49ers will look to make Singletary’s homecoming a special one after coming off a bye week. San Francisco went 3-0 in the division to start the season and maintains a 3-2 overall record. In each of the past two years, the 49ers have gone 2-2 against AFC opponents.  San Francisco enters this week’s game with a current streak of seven consecutive games with at least one interception and has won 8 of its past 12 games, dating back to 2008.

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As some of you know, I'm originally from Las Vegas.  I'm not sure how much it's influenced some of my interests, but either way I enjoy the world of gambling on football.  When I'm down in Las Vegas during football season, I always get in a couple parlays.  Parlays can usually be a sucker bets, but they certainly make things interesting.  I've decided that each week we'll roll out the opening line for the 49ers matchup.  The people who open these lines are often inclined to know a lot more about a given team than your average fan.  When money's on the line, you certainly have to be ready.  For the purposes of this discussion, we'll be using Bodog.com's daily lines.

The 49ers open as a 3-point underdog heading into Houston.  I find this line particularly intriguing given Houston's big weekend win over Cincinnati and the 49ers own debacle two Sundays ago against Atlanta.  The home team automatically gets 3 points on the line.  So, in a not so precise way, Houston as a 3 point favorite would seem to indicate the bookies/Vegas think the 49ers and Houston are relatively even on a neutral field.  Obviously even a neutral field might change things, but for the sake of argument, we'll operate under that assumption (feel free to contribute any other assumptions you'd like).

This line seems to indicate one of two things (or maybe both): 1) The 49ers are still respected by the oddsmakers, or 2) Houston is not all that respected.  One reason the 49ers might be getting some love this week is that it seems likely they'll have Michael Crabtree in the lineup this week, potentially starting.  As much discussion as that's generating, the more important lineup issue is the likely return of Frank Gore to the starting lineup.  Aside from the two big runs against Seattle, Gore has had his troubles, but he remains Frank the Tank, the guy who generated most of the offense the last couple seasons.  He may struggle, but the upside potential is huge and bookies might not want to go against that.