Rapid reaction from the Tennessee Titans’ 26-20 victory over the AFC South rival Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium:Talking PointsHold up: The Titans . . . actually . . . WON?Yes, sir. It will not be 0-for-17 for the Titans this season. Credit their defense and special teams for stepping up to overcome a 13-0 deficit and rally in the second half to seize a game that very much appeared to be tilting the other direction in the opening half. The season’s first victory for the Titans, who’ve been getting booed at home themselves, was serenaded by booing fans in Indianapolis.The Titans did it despite continued struggles for the offense and quarterback Cam Ward. But the defense forced three Colts turnovers and totaled six sacks, while the special teams directly caused two Titans touchdowns and got four field goals from Joey Slye. The biggest play was a blocked punt by Julius Chestnut that was recovered for Femi Oladejo for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Who had a defensive end getting a go-ahead touchdown late in this game?Don’t let the result fool you: This was not a good performance by Ward. He still hasn’t had many good performances as an NFL quarterback, truthfully, and he threw for only 102 yards against the Colts, completing 11 passes. Ward did, however, convert a key third-and-5 pass to Wan’Dale Robinson to extend the drive that led to Slye’s 49-yard field goal with 2:03 remaining to retake the lead at 23-20. Rookie receiver Carnell Tate was again productive despite his offense’s continued struggles, catching six passes for 70 yards and his first NFL touchdown. As FOX’s Terry Bradshaw noted at halftime of this game, it is “ugly” for the Titans offensively right now. The old Steelers QB wasn’t wrong. But the fact that Tate has been able to emerge as an exception is highly encouraging for his future.Chimere Dike, a Pro Bowl-caliber returner as a rookie, finally broke out of his sophomore slump by getting loose for big gains during the Titans’ late comeback. His 58-yard punt return didn’t go the distance, but it set up the offense at the Colts’ 28-yard line, leading to the offense’s lone touchdown of the game.Eyebrows raised to see the Titans list struggling cornerback Alontae Taylor as a healthy scratch for this game. Bold move, that one. They could’ve just benched Taylor, but instead, they were OK just ruling him out completely in a thin secondary. The Titans signed Taylor this past offseason to a $58 million contract. Per Spotrac, Taylor’s cap hit of roughly $14 million is the fifth-highest on the team (and that cap hit is set to jump to $25 million next season). There could be more behind this, but at first glance, it’s a terrible look for general manager Mike Borgonzi that his expected No. 1 cornerback was demoted to the inactive list by Week 6. Joshua Williams, back from an early injury, started in Taylor’s place.Where the game turnedIt was via special teams. This was a huge day for John Fassel’s u
Content Source: Yahoo News
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