The Tennessee Titans hosted the New England Patriots at Nissan Stadium on Sunday in a matchup between two pretty evenly matched teams. Both teams have young quarterbacks, first-year head coaches, and their own challenges to overcome.
Today, the Titans managed to overcome their challenges better than the Patriots and came away with a 20-17 overtime win. The game never should have gone to overtime, the Titans had a 17-10 lead with under two minutes to play, and they allowed the Patriots to drive down the field and score a touchdown.
When they didn’t score a touchdown on their first overtime possession after winning the toss, it wasn’t clear if they would hang on to win. And then Drake Maye made a poor decision and threw a bad pass that was intercepted by Amani Hooker to end the game. It is the Titans’ second win of the season, and may just give them some momentum heading into Week 10.
Here’s a quick look at the studs and duds (and studly duds) from Sunday’s win:
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Titans safety Amani Hooker has played well this season, we typically hear his name several times throughout a game. This week was no different, he recorded five tackles (two solo), three passes defensed, a quarterback hit and two interceptions. It was his second interception that ended the game and sealed the Titans’ victory that earned him Player of the Game honors.
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Jha’Quan Jackson is typically on the studs list due to his special teams performance, but this week even that was lackluster. He returned two kicks for 46 yards, one punt for seven yards, caught one pass on two targets for eight yards, and fumbled the ball twice. Only one fumble was lost, but it definitely wasn’t his best outing.
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Tony Pollard may not have seen the end zone against the Patriots, but he rushed 28 times for 128 yards and caught three passes for an additional 26 yards. It is his best performance in 2024 without a touchdown, and he’s proving to the Titans that he can carry the load in the absence of Tyjae Spears.
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Tyler Boyd hasn’t made near the impact the Titans hoped he would make this season. Against the Patriots on Sunday, he didn’t catch a single pass and wasn’t targeted once. He rushed one time for three yards and that was the only time his name was called on Sunday.
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Wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine had his best game of the season against the Patriots, recording five receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown. For the first time this season, Wesbrook-Ikhine caught a pass that wasn’t for a touchdown and wasn’t for a first down, but Mason Rudolph managed to find him more often today. The Titans need to foster that connection going forward.
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Tight end Joshy Whyle is typically a reliable pass-catcher and blocker, but today he simply didn’t play well. He had one catch on two targets for 12 yards, but he also committed a penalty at the end of the game that negated a Tony Pollard touchdown that would have sealed the game before going to overtime.
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Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph had one of his better games this season. He completed 20 of 33 passes for 240 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed four times for 19 yards. But he threw an interception and fumbled the ball and took a sack. The Titans managed to get the win, but it took the help of some defensive takeaways to get the job done.
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- WR Calvin Ridley
- TE Chigoziem Okonkwo
- TE Nick Vannett
- LB Jack Gibbens
- LB Kenneth Murray Jr.
- LB Arden Key
- DE Jeffery Simmons
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- C Corey Levin
- OT Daniel Brunskill
- OT JC Latham
- LB Jaylen Harrell
- DE James Lynch
