Nashville, Tenn. ? When the NFL schedule was released, Monday night’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans looked like a playoff prelude in prime time.

But because of a slew of injuries, the Chiefs and Titans are struggling at 4-8 and a long way from the playoffs.

Titans receiver Derrick Mason promises plenty of motivation exists to play well, starting with pride and jobs at stake.

“And in the end, you want to put on a good showing for the country to let them know if we didn’t have so many injuries on our team that we would be one of the top teams in the league right now,” Mason said.

Finding enough healthy Titans will be coach Jeff Fisher’s most immediate problem. He listed a season-high 16 players on his injury report, including five who won’t play; that doesn’t include another five on injured reserve.

Titans linebacker Keith Bulluck said there was no point in whining about injuries.

“There’s going to be problems. If you live in a perfect world, I need to be in your shoes,” Bulluck said. “This is our job. Whether we have 30 (players) or 45, we’re going to be out there to play. It doesn’t matter.”

This will be the first meeting between Fisher and Kansas City coach Dick Vermeil since January 2000, when Vermeil’s St. Louis Rams beat the Titans, 23-16, in the Super Bowl.

Vermeil said the Titans hadn’t changed much, but Fisher offered plenty to ponder by trying three onside kicks and a fake punt last week in trying to keep the Colts’ prolific offense off the field.

“All of these things have been part of the profile of their special teams for a long time,” Vermeil said. “They will attack you and do whatever they think they have to do to win. We really have to be alert.”

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Coming off last week’s 34-27 victory at Oakland, Kansas City has a chance for consecutive road victories for the first time this season. But the Chiefs are nearly as banged-up, with 11 players on their injury report after ending running back Priest Holmes’ season because of his damaged right knee.

Offense hasn’t been Kansas City’s problem. The Chiefs rank second in the NFL behind only Indianapolis, averaging 418.8 yards a game, and they have topped 500 yards three times this season. They are the only NFL team with three running backs who have reached 100 yards in a game at least once this season.

The problem is defense. The Chiefs have allowed more total points (326) than any AFC team except Oakland.

The key will be quarterback Trent Green’s performance against the only NFL team he never has faced. When Green was with the Rams in 1999, he was injured and missed both games against the Titans.

His timing couldn’t be better, facing a Titans defense decimated by injuries.

Even if tackle Albert Haynesworth returns from a dislocated right elbow that kept him out the past three weeks, the Titans still will be using six rookies at times.

“We’ve got our work cut out for us again for a second week as an offense,” Mason said. “What we need to do is score points and keep their offense on the bench.”

The Titans hope to have Steve McNair, who watched last week’s 51-24 loss at Indianapolis from the sideline while wearing warm-ups because he had aggravated his bruised sternum. McNair’s stats are similar to backup Billy Volek, but McNair is 3-3 when playing the whole game, while Volek is 1-3 as a starter.

Having a rowdy crowd could help the Titans as they return home following a three-game road trip. A team that was one of the NFL’s best at home since 1999 is just 1-4 in The Coliseum this year.

Titans right tackle Fred Miller said Nashville loved any chance to appear on Monday Night Football.

“The first time we had one here probably was one of the best games I’ve been at other than the Super Bowl. The crowd was pumped for it. There was electricity in the air,” he said. “They’ll be up for it. It’s a great chance for them to drink some beer on a weekday.”