NASHVILLE — The Dallas Cowboys and Tennessee Titans are desperately chasing division titles as the NFL’s regular season winds to a close.
Their approaches when they meet Thursday night in Nashville will be very different.
To win a second straight NFC East title, the Cowboys (11-4) need to win out — they visit the Washington Commanders on Jan. 8 to close the regular season — and have the Philadelphia Eagles, who sit atop the division standings, lose at least once.
Tennessee’s top priority Thursday night is coming out of the game as healthy as possible. The only way the Titans (7-8) can win a third consecutive AFC South title is by beating the host Jacksonville Jaguars, 36-22 winners on Dec. 11 in Nashville, in the final week.
So if Tennessee coach Mike Vrabel wants to rest as many of his players as possible Thursday, that’s just fine with the Cowboys.