Week 5 Mismatches: Titans ready to punish Allen, Conner set for big day

Here are four of the most one-sided matchups in Week 5 of the NFL season:

Titans' defense vs. Josh Allen

To the surprise of many, the Tennessee Titans have beaten two of the NFL's top four teams in the Jaguars and Eagles over the past two weeks. While injuries have somewhat limited the Titans' offense, the defense has been sensational, allowing just 18.3 points per game - the sixth fewest in the league.

Next, Tennessee will travel to Buffalo to face Josh Allen and the Bills. Other than when Allen played out of his mind against Minnesota in a surprising Week 3 win, the Buffalo offense has struggled mightily this season, failing to score more than three points in two of four contests. It should be more of the same this weekend.

On the defensive line, the Titans possess one of the most underrated talents in all of football in Jurrell Casey, who sits fourth in run stops among interior linemen this year, per Pro Football Focus. At 6-foot-1 and 300 pounds, Casey plays with surprising quickness and inhuman strength, which allows him to be productive against both the run and pass.

With Buffalo featuring a suspect interior offensive line, Casey figures to have a productive afternoon. Vladimir Ducasse, Russell Bodine, and John Miller simply lack the talent and technical proficiency to hold Casey in check when matched up one-on-one.

On the edge, Brian Orakpo has quietly been playing really well, and he’s second on the Titans in quarterback hurries (Casey is first), per PFF. Meanwhile, rookie edge defender Harold Landry has provided the Titans with a young, potentially dominant pass-rusher. His speed rush has been particularly potent thus far:

On this play, Landry uses a pure speed rush to beat Lane Johnson, one of the best offensive tackles in football. Thanks to the pliability in his lower body, Landry has the unique ability to wrap around the edge at acute angles without losing balance or momentum.

For his part, Allen lacks a well-rounded skill set, so using his athletic ability is likely the only way he'll avoid numerous sacks on Sunday. Tackles Dion Dawkins and Jordan Mills aren't expected to provide much protection.

And even if Allen somehow has enough time to throw the ball, the Titans' talented secondary will be all over the Bills' receivers.

While Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan received big contracts from Tennessee over the past two offseasons, second-year cornerback Adoree' Jackson has actually been the crown jewel of the secondary. At 5-foot-11 and 185 pounds, Jackson lacks size, but he more than makes up for it with speed, transitional quickness, ball skills and leaping ability:

Here, Jackson is matched up with Houston Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins, one of the toughest covers in the NFL. Despite giving up some separation off the line of scrimmage, Jackson's track speed allows him to catch up to and stack Hopkins, who's running a skinny post. When the ball is thrown, Jackson stays glued to Hopkins' upfield hip, which allows him to rise above the receiver and bring down the interception.

For the cherry on top, the Titans also feature one of the better safety duos in the NFL in Kevin Byard and Kenny Vaccaro.

Put simply, the Bills' offense lacks the talent to consistently move the ball against the Titans' excellent defense. If Tennessee's offense can put some points on the board, this will be a rout.

Chargers' offense vs. Raiders' defense

Quietly, the Chargers have one of the more balanced offenses in the NFL, ranking sixth in rushing yards and 13th in passing yards. On the other side, the Raiders possess one of the worst defenses in football, ranking 27th in yards allowed per game and 31st in points allowed per game.

This sounds like a mismatch to me! Let's break it down further.

Despite his age, Philip Rivers is still one of the most efficient passers in football, ranking sixth in adjusted net yards per pass attempt this season, the passing statistic most correlated with winning in some studies. The 36-year-old's experience and football intelligence allow him to make the right pre- and post-snap decisions, which allow the Chargers to consistently move the ball against most defenses.

This week, it shouldn’t be that hard against a defense whose best player might be tackle Maurice Hurst, a fifth-round rookie.

And while Rivers will likely find success through the air, the best way to attack Oakland is on the ground, as the defense has allowed 139.3 rushing yards per game (30th).

Chargers running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler should have a field day. Gordon is the bell-cow back while Ekeler provides Los Angeles with a quick, change-of-pace option. The Chargers love to use Gordon between the tackles, where his balance and impressive elusiveness in tight spaces are both apparent:

Here, the Chargers are running a zone concept toward the edge. Even though San Francisco does a great job of bottling up the run initially, Gordon is able to layer his jump cuts and avoid five different 49ers defenders, resulting in a hard-fought 13-yard run.

Raiders-Chargers is divisional game, so anything can happen, but on paper, this looks like a huge mismatch in the Chargers' favor. Oakland’s defense better hope its offense can bail it out, or this one could be a blowout.

Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence vs. Texans OT Kendall Lamm

Despite leading the NFL with 5.5 sacks and playing on the most popular team in the league, Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence doesn’t get the credit he deserves.

And after facing one of the better right tackles in the NFL last week in Detroit's Ricky Wagner, Lawrence will likely get one of the worst this week in Kendall Lamm, who's replaced Julie'n Davenport as the Texans' starter.

Lawrence is so difficult to block because of his wide array of techniques and his relentless motor. And tackles can’t take a play off, as Lawrence is equally effective against the run and the pass.

Against the running game, Lawrence uses his quickness to penetrate his gap, while employing his well-developed hands and play strength to set a strong edge. As a pass-rusher, he uses well-placed and well-timed hands along with excellent footwork to defeat offensive tackles on the edge. His go-to move has been his cross-chop:

On this play from Week 4, Lawrence is aligned on the outside edge of Wagner. He uses his quickness off the snap to immediately stress Wagner’s set, forcing the O-lineman to turn his shoulders perpendicular to the line of scrimmage (bad idea) and to reach with his outside hand.

Unfortunately for Wagner, Lawrence was ready and immediately uses his inside hand to chop Wagner’s outside hand, effectively shortening the corner and allowing him to flatten to the quarterback for the sack.

For Lamm and the Texans, this is a recipe for disaster, as the four-year veteran struggles with his hand timing and placement. Lawrence could be even more effective if Houston gives Davenport his job back, as the former starter has shoddy footwork and below-average hand technique.

Expect Lawrence to have a big day against Houston while adding to his league-leading sack total.

Steelers RB James Conner vs. Falcons' defense

Le'Veon Bell could return in the near future, but running back James Conner will still be toting the rock for Pittsburgh against Atlanta’s struggling defense in Week 5. Conner's had an up-and-down start to the season, posting a total of 232 rushing yards and 164 receiving yards through four games.

Luckily for Conner, the Falcons may be the worst defense in football at defending running backs, especially without linebacker Deion Jones and safety Keanu Neal, who are both out with injuries. Thus far, three of the four starting running backs to face the Falcons have posted at least 95 yards of total offense.

Expect Conner to become the fourth this week as the Steelers' offense looks to bounce back from its abysmal Week 4 performance against Baltimore.

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger loves to get Conner involved in the passing game, routinely using him as the outlet in the short zones near the line of scrimmage:

Here, Roethlisberger quickly surveys the defense before throwing to Conner underneath Tampa Bay’s zone coverage. With the ball in his hands, Conner uses his tough running style to get downhill and accumulate 18 yards.

In the run game, Conner's a tough, powerful back who can wear down a defense and accumulate dirty yards. While the Falcons do have some talent up front, they also have a suspect linebacker corps, meaning Conner should see a few alleys for big gains.

John Owning is a football writer at theScore. He has written for Bleacher Report and Football Insiders. He was also the lead NFL content editor at FanRag Sports. John provides analysis on the Dallas Cowboys for the Dallas Morning News and edits for The Quant Edge. Find him on Twitter @JohnOwning.