Tennessee Titans vs. New Orleans Saints: 2023 Week 1 Recap

Game story

In Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season on 2023-09-10, the New Orleans Saints took care of business against the Tennessee Titans, pulling away with a 16–15 final that came down to the wire.

The highest-scoring period was Q3 with 10 combined points — the stretch that most shaped the final margin.

R. Tannehill (Tennessee Titans) paced the passing game, with -10.67 total EPA, and -19.3% completion percentage over expected.

On the individual side, C. Olave (New Orleans Saints) delivered the top overall EPA impact at +8.05 — the clearest player-of-the-game signal on the analytics sheet.

The momentum swing (-19.6% win probability) landed in the fourth quarter when Tennessee Titans changed the game: (2:20) 6-N.Folk 29 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.

Line score

Final score and points by quarter.

Stars of the game

Top performers by total expected points added (EPA) across passing, rushing, and receiving.

1. 1 C. Olave · New Orleans Saints · Receiving · +8.05 total EPA · 10 snaps · +0.81 EPA/play
2. 2 R. Shaheed · New Orleans Saints · Receiving · +6.30 total EPA · 6 snaps · +1.05 EPA/play
3. 3 D. Carr · New Orleans Saints · Passing · +5.59 total EPA · 39 snaps · +0.14 EPA/play
4. 4 D. Henry · Tennessee Titans · Receiving · +2.55 total EPA · 3 snaps · +0.85 EPA/play
5. 5 M. Thomas · New Orleans Saints · Receiving · +1.45 total EPA · 8 snaps · +0.18 EPA/play
6. 6 N. Westbrook-Ikhine · Tennessee Titans · Receiving · +1.27 total EPA · 7 snaps · +0.18 EPA/play
7. 7 T. Spears · Tennessee Titans · Rushing · +1.16 total EPA · 3 snaps · +0.39 EPA/play
8. 8 T. Burks · Tennessee Titans · Rushing · +0.95 total EPA · 1 snaps · +0.95 EPA/play

Player of the game

FantasyHQ analytics player-of-the-game pick based on total EPA and signature plays.

Who scored touchdowns and field goals

Every touchdown and field goal with the player named in official play-by-play.

Touchdowns

• New Orleans Saints — R. Shaheed (D. Carr pass) (Q3 16:28)

Field goals

• Tennessee Titans — N. Folk (Q1 58:45)
• New Orleans Saints — B. Grupe (Q1 55:21)
• Tennessee Titans — N. Folk (Q1 48:10)
• New Orleans Saints — B. Grupe (Q2 37:40)
• Tennessee Titans — N. Folk (Q2 31:43)
• New Orleans Saints — B. Grupe (Q3 24:30)
• Tennessee Titans — N. Folk (Q4 11:16)
• Tennessee Titans — N. Folk (Q4 2:20)

How it unfolded, quarter by quarter

A quarter-by-quarter recap built from live scoring plays and play descriptions.

The opening quarter: Tennessee Titans won the period 6–3. Tennessee Titans connected on a field goal from the NO 32 (Q1 58:45) — (13:45) 6-N.Folk 50 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.; New Orleans Saints connected on a field goal from the TEN 8 (Q1 55:21) — (10:21) 19-B.Grupe 26 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.; Tennessee Titans connected on a field goal from the NO 9 (Q1 48:10) — (3:10) 6-N.Folk 27 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse..

The second quarter: The quarter finished even at 3–3. New Orleans Saints connected on a field goal from the TEN 14 (Q2 37:40) — (7:40) 19-B.Grupe 33 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.; Tennessee Titans connected on a field goal from the NO 13 (Q2 31:43) — (1:43) 6-N.Folk 31 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse. Penalty on NO, Illegal Formation, declined..

The third quarter: New Orleans Saints won the period 10–0. New Orleans Saints connected on a field goal from the TEN 34 (Q3 24:30) — (9:30) 19-B.Grupe 52 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.; New Orleans Saints found the end zone from the TEN 19 (Q3 16:28) — (1:28) (Shotgun) 4-D.Carr pass deep right to 22-R.Shaheed for 19 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; New Orleans Saints added 1 points from the TEN 15 (Q3 16:23) — 19-B.Grupe extra point is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley..

The fourth quarter: Tennessee Titans won the period 6–0. Tennessee Titans connected on a field goal from the NO 27 (Q4 11:16) — (11:16) 6-N.Folk 45 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.; Tennessee Titans connected on a field goal from the NO 11 (Q4 2:20) — (2:20) 6-N.Folk 29 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse..

Turning points

Plays that moved win probability the most — the swings that decided the game.

• Tennessee Titans (Q4 2:20) — (2:20) 6-N.Folk 29 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse. [WPA -19.6% · EPA +0.09]
• Tennessee Titans (Q4 4:36) — (4:36) (Shotgun) 17-R.Tannehill pass short left to 15-N.Westbrook-Ikhine to NO 20 for 24 yards (32-T.Mathieu). [WPA +17.9% · EPA +1.85]
• New Orleans Saints (Q3 16:28) — (1:28) (Shotgun) 4-D.Carr pass deep right to 22-R.Shaheed for 19 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +15.5% · EPA +3.08]
• Tennessee Titans (Q2 34:29) — (4:29) 17-R.Tannehill pass short left to 22-D.Henry to NO 24 for 46 yards (6-M.Maye). [WPA +12.1% · EPA +2.69]
• New Orleans Saints (Q3 26:44) — (11:44) (Shotgun) 4-D.Carr pass deep left to 12-C.Olave pushed ob at TEN 42 for 45 yards (31-K.Byard). [WPA +11.4% · EPA +3.76]

Impact plays

Highest expected-points added snaps that flipped field position and scoring chances.

• New Orleans Saints (Q1 60:00) — 6-N.Folk kicks 63 yards from TEN 35 to NO 2. 22-R.Shaheed to NO 21 for 19 yards (37-A.Hooker). FUMBLES (37-A.Hooker), ball out of bounds at NO 24. PENALTY on NO-46-A.Prentice, Offensive Holding, 10 ya [WPA -9.1% · EPA -6.30]
• New Orleans Saints (Q3 26:44) — (11:44) (Shotgun) 4-D.Carr pass deep left to 12-C.Olave pushed ob at TEN 42 for 45 yards (31-K.Byard). [WPA +11.4% · EPA +3.76]
• Tennessee Titans (Q3 28:06) — (13:06) 17-R.Tannehill pass deep left intended for 11-C.Moore INTERCEPTED by 6-M.Maye (27-I.Yiadom) at NO 1. 6-M.Maye to NO 6 for 5 yards (11-C.Moore). [WPA -8.4% · EPA -3.55]
• Tennessee Titans (Q3 18:14) — (3:14) (Shotgun) 17-R.Tannehill pass deep right intended for 10-D.Hopkins INTERCEPTED by 29-P.Adebo at TEN 33. 29-P.Adebo pushed ob at TEN 33 for no gain (10-D.Hopkins). [WPA -6.7% · EPA -3.40]

Quarterback report card

R.Tannehill led all passers in efficiency for Tennessee Titans, setting the tone in the passing game according to FantasyHQ analytics.

• R.Tannehill (Tennessee Titans) · 43 dropbacks · 37.2% completion · -19.3% CPOE · -0.25 EPA/play · -10.67 total EPA
• D.Carr (New Orleans Saints) · 39 dropbacks · 59.0% completion · +6.2% CPOE · +0.14 EPA/play · +5.59 total EPA

Team stats comparison

Side-by-side offensive and defensive efficiency from FantasyHQ analytics.

By the numbers

Both offenses finished within striking distance on EPA per play (Tennessee Titans -0.16, New Orleans Saints -0.19) — a true toss-up on the analytics sheet.

• New Orleans Saints: 12 drives, -15.82 total EPA, 4 scoring drives
• Tennessee Titans: 12 drives, -13.14 total EPA, 5 scoring drives

Key takeaways

What to remember for fantasy research, film review, and follow-up box score digging.

• New Orleans Saints leaves with the win and the better postgame narrative for Week-to-week momentum.
• One-score margin — fantasy managers should double-check garbage-time stats before drawing conclusions.
• C. Olave (New Orleans Saints) is the first name to pull up for highlight reels and prop-retrospective research.
• R. Tannehill (TEN) finished below expected efficiency — volume may have masked accuracy issues.
• D. Carr (NO) beat expectation through the air — positive CPOE game for stack builds.

Every scoring play

Chronological scoring with field position and full play-by-play context.

1. Tennessee Titans FG (+3) — Q1 58:45 · NO 32 · Score 3-0
   (13:45) 6-N.Folk 50 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.
2. New Orleans Saints FG (+3) — Q1 55:21 · TEN 8 · Score 3-3
   (10:21) 19-B.Grupe 26 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.
3. Tennessee Titans FG (+3) — Q1 48:10 · NO 9 · Score 6-3
   (3:10) 6-N.Folk 27 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.
4. New Orleans Saints FG (+3) — Q2 37:40 · TEN 14 · Score 6-6
   (7:40) 19-B.Grupe 33 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.
5. Tennessee Titans FG (+3) — Q2 31:43 · NO 13 · Score 9-6
   (1:43) 6-N.Folk 31 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse. Penalty on NO, Illegal Formation, declined.
6. New Orleans Saints FG (+3) — Q3 24:30 · TEN 34 · Score 9-9
   (9:30) 19-B.Grupe 52 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.
7. New Orleans Saints TD (+6) — Q3 16:28 · TEN 19 · Score 9-15
   (1:28) (Shotgun) 4-D.Carr pass deep right to 22-R.Shaheed for 19 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
8. New Orleans Saints XP (+1) — Q3 16:23 · TEN 15 · Score 9-16
   19-B.Grupe extra point is GOOD, Center-49-Z.Wood, Holder-39-L.Hedley.
9. Tennessee Titans FG (+3) — Q4 11:16 · NO 27 · Score 12-16
   (11:16) 6-N.Folk 45 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.
10. Tennessee Titans FG (+3) — Q4 2:20 · NO 11 · Score 15-16
    (2:20) 6-N.Folk 29 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-46-M.Cox, Holder-4-R.Stonehouse.