Nissan Stadium, 1 p.m. Eastern on CBS. One team has won four games in the final moments. The other just won its first game and partied like it was New Year's Eve on Broadway. Frank Haller carries the Browns' old championship scrolls. Pete Varga carries the Titans' patience, along with the Houston Oilers' first two AFL titles.
Frank: Pete, I'll start nice. Congratulations on the win. Truly. It's a big day when you get the first one.
Pete: Thank you, Frank. I'll be nice too. Congratulations on the four AAFC titles and four NFL championships. Remind me of the most recent one?
Frank: Next question.
Pete: That long, huh?
Frank: We're busy, Pete. Cleveland has the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to run. You've got a lot of guitars in Nashville, I'll admit. Do any of them play rock?
Pete: We're Music City, Frank. Half the songs on your radio were written on Music Row. We'll lend you a few.
Last week, Browns: Linebacker Carson Schwesinger knocked the ball loose from Derrick Henry, Tyson Campbell recovered, and Audric Estime, signed off Minnesota's practice squad that week, bulled in from 2 yards out to tie it. Browns 13, Ravens 10. Szmyt had missed from 48 a few minutes earlier, and his first try at the winner was blocked, but a Baltimore offside wiped it out.
Frank: Todd Monken spent the last three years running Baltimore's offense. He went back and beat his old friends with a field goal and a fumble. That's how Paul Brown would have drawn it up, if Paul Brown enjoyed suspense, which he did not.
Last week, Titans: Tennessee trailed Indianapolis 13-0 at halftime and won 26-20 for Robert Saleh's first victory as Titans coach. The defense forced three turnovers and posted six sacks, two by Jeffery Simmons, who also forced a Jonathan Taylor fumble on the first play of the second half. Chimere Dike's 58-yard punt return set up the tying touchdown, Cam Ward to rookie Carnell Tate from 8 yards. Then James Williams Sr. blocked a punt and Oluwafemi Oladejo returned it 14 yards for the lead. Joey Slye kicked four field goals, including two in the final 2 1/2 minutes.
Pete: Patience, Frank. Ward is in his second season. He went 11 of 22 last week, and that's fine. Development isn't a straight road. Neither is Interstate 40.
The matchup: This is a defensive game with a capital D. Cleveland's front, with Mason Graham, Jared Verse and Schwesinger, faces a Titans offense that has scored 84 points in six games. Tennessee's front, led by Simmons, faces a Browns offense that has scored 106 and allows sacks at a high clip. Tennessee runs for 3.8 yards a carry. So does Cleveland. Whoever wins the first-down battle probably wins the game.
Watch list: Cleveland running back Quinshon Judkins missed last week with an ankle injury, so his status is one to follow. Tate caught six passes for 70 yards and his first NFL touchdown last week. And the kickers might decide it again: Szmyt and Slye both just won games with their legs.
Frank: Prediction, Pete: you'll get a nice crowd, a nice anthem, and a nice field goal at the end. Ours.
Pete: You've won four games by the skin of your teeth, Frank. That's not a dynasty. That's a cardiologist's dream.
Frank: We call it character.
Pete: We call it Sunday. Come for the hot chicken, stay for the heartburn.
Two blue-collar teams, two coaches who like it tough, and probably one last-minute kick.
My call: Browns 19, Titans 18.