Will Levis is the talk of the NFL right now, and football fans will get to see him in action again in the first game of Week 9 action. Levis filled in for Ryan Tannehill as the Tennessee Titans starting quarterback last week. Not only did he exceed all expectations, but he was historically good. Fans are anxious to discover if Levis is the next great NFL quarterback or if he had beginner's luck. The Titans play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football. Below is everything that you need to know on how to watch the game.
When and where is Thursday Night Football?
Week 9 action begins at the Steelers' Acrisure Stadium in Pittsbugh, Pennsylvania. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. PT on November 2nd.
How to watch Titans vs. Steelers
All Thursday Night Football games are on Prime Video, Amazon Prime's streaming platform. The game will not be on national television. Al Michaels will be the play-by-play announcer, and Kirk Herbstreit will provide color. Kaylee Hartung will be the sideline reporter.
Date: Thursday, Nov. 2 | Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
Location: Acrisure Stadium — Pittsburgh, Pa.
TV channel: N/A | Live stream: Prime Video
Odds: Steelers -2.5 | O/U 36.5
Titans storylines
Ryan Tannehill has struggled all season long. In fact, he only has two touchdown passes. Fans were itching for the rookie Will Levis to get an opportunity, and that chance came when Tannehill went down with an ankle injury. It is the same ankle that has given him problems in the past, so Levis might be the starter for the foreseeable future. He is definitely starting this week, and if he plays like he did last week, then there should be no chance Tannehill regains the starting position.
Levis became the only player ever to throw for more than 225 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions while sporting a completion percentage over 65% in their debut. He was also one of three players to ever throw four touchdowns in their debut. The rookie quarterback has incredible arm strength, and his accuracy looked better than expected. There were concerns about if Levis could find success early in his career, but he seemingly answered those questions last week.
While Levis proved he is deserving of a shot at quarterback, there were questions about what the team around him will look like going into his second week as the starter. The Titans were a team to look out for at the NFL trade deadline, but they ended up standing pat. The team moved Kevin Byard, but that was over a week before the deadline. Some people that the team would trade Derrick Henry. The legendary running back was not moved, and that will be big for Levis' development going forward. Henry is a beast of a back. He will take a lot of pressure off of Levis and attention away from the passing attack.
Henry isn't the only veteran star who is going to help the young quarterback going forward. Levis found something special with DeAndre Hopkins in his first game. Hopkins was one of the best receivers in the NFL for a long time, but he had faded some with Tannehill throwing him the ball. Hopkins looked rejuvenated with Levis as his quarterback. He caught three touchdown passes from Levis. It was only the second time in his career that he caught three scores in one game.
There is still a chance the Titans give the job back to Tannehill, and there is still a chance rookie jitters find their way to Levis. Tennessee's game against the Steelers will tell us a lot about the direction of Levis and this team going forward.
Steelers storylines
The Titans' quarterback play last week has given fans hope and optimism for both the long and short term. The Steelers have plenty of optimism about their quarterback long-term, as Kenny Pickett was a first-round pick in 2022, but their short-term outlook at the position is a little bit gloomier.
Pickett is questionable with a rib injury for the Week 9 contest. The quarterback was injured in the second quarter of last week's game and didn't return. He is expected to play, but he has been a limited participant at practice. Even though he is expected to play, a rib injury is not an easy injury for a quarterback to play through. It makes it hard for them to generate power on their throws, and it is also a vulnerable area to get hit by incoming pass rushers. On top of that, Pickett has struggled all season long, and his statistics are among the worst in the league.
Levis and Hopkins had some chemistry together, but Pickett has struggled to get anything going with the majority of his offensive teammates. George Pickens has 522 receiving yards on the season, but no other pass-catching option has more than 212. Those 212 receiving yards belong to Diontae Johnson, a receiver who was out for four weeks with an injury. He is back now and will be relied on to give the team a boost going forward.
Pittsburgh's offense has struggled to put up points regardless of who has been on the field. The team is 29th in scoring. However, the defense has also been underwhelming. Led by T.J. Watt, the Steelers' defense was supposed to be one of the best in the league. Instead, they rank only 18th in scoring defense.
Last week the team felt as though they were screwed over by the refereeing.
“They wanted them to win,” Johnson said after the game on Sunday. “Everything was in their favor, like every little call.”
Even if the referees were doing them no favors, you have to be able to overcome that in the NFL. A loss is a loss, and Pittsburgh will look to prove their last loss truly wasn't their fault when they take on the Titans. The Steelers will have to prepare themselves in a short week with their quarterback being limited at practice. That is not an easy thing to do, but they are still favored being the home team playing against a rookie quarterback.
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