|
 The 32-year-old journeyman, making just his sixth career start,
played efficient, turnover-free football in Tennessee's 16-14 win
over the Jacksonville Jaguars at LP Field.
Whitehurst hit 17 of 28 passes for 233 yards and helped set up three
Ryan Succop field goals.
"Charlie handled himself just like I thought he would," Titans coach
Ken Whisenhunt said. "He did a nice job. He was prepared, he made
some good throws. ... He bought some time in the pocket. We didn't
protect him as well as we need to, but he managed the offense and
did a nice job."
The Titans' defense, which gave up a touchdown on the game's opening
drive, buckled down and forced two huge turnovers. Tennessee had six
sacks, including two from defensive tackle Jerrell Casey.
"It was a relief," Whitehurst said. "I think we kind of controlled
the game most of the game, and we weren't able to sustain a drive in
the second half to put it away. It would've been a little easier on
everybody's hearts. It's a win, and we're very happy about it."
The winless Jaguars dropped to 0-6.
"Well it feels like we're going in the right direction, but it's not
enough. It's not enough," Jaguars coach Gus Bradley said. "We've got
to use our pain that we're feeling in that locker room to get things
right, and I know they will."
The Titans (2-4) took the second-half kickoff and drove 77 yards in
13 plays as Succop's 21-yard field goal gave them a 13-7 lead.
Jacksonville appeared poised to answer, driving inside the Tennessee
35 before quarterback Blake Bortles threw a pass right to Titans
cornerback Blidi-Wreh Wilson at the 15. Wilson's return to midfield
helped set up Succop's third field goal of the day, this one, from
42.
With under 5 minutes left, Jacksonville wide receiver Cecil Shorts
fumbled away what everyone thought was the Jaguars' last real chance
inside the Titans 10, with cornerback Jason McCourty stripping it
and linebacker Avery Williamson returning it 41 yards.
However, Bortles hit tight end Clay Harbor with a 20-yard scoring
strike with 37 seconds left. When Tennessee safety Michael Griffin
couldn't handle the ensuing onside kick, the Jags still had a
chance.
Bortles drove the Jaguars into Titans territory, but with the team
out of timeouts, Jacksonville elected to have kicker Josh Scobee
attempt a 55-yarder with 12 seconds left. The kick was low and
defensive lineman Sammie Lee Hill blocked it, as Tennessee avoided
what would have been an epic collapse for the second week in a row.
"I had that sinking feeling just because of what we went through
last week, I'll be honest with you," Whisenhunt said. "But Sammie
got his big ole mitt up there and tipped it, and so I'm very happy
for Sammie."
It was a different ending from last week, when the Titans blew a
25-point lead to Cleveland in the biggest collapse by a home team in
NFL history.
"The defense stayed strong. We didn't let them get closer into field
goal range, and that's what mattered," Williamson said. "We got the
win. It was a huge week. I can sleep easy tonight."
[to top of second column]
|
That was a big change from the way the day started.
Bortles' 59-yard throw to Harbor put the Jaguars inside the 10 on
the game's first drive, where running back Storm Johnson scored on a
1-yard run.
"Blake just threw a great ball and led me," Harbor said. "The safety
tried to undercut it. I should have scored, I was looking kind of
slow out there."
The Titans answered when Whitehurst hit tight end Delanie Walker and
running backs Leon Washington and Dexter McCluster with first-down
throws to move Tennessee inside the Jacksonville 5, setting up
Succop's 25-yard field goal with 44 seconds left in the first
quarter.
The teams then traded punts for most of the rest of the first half,
until Whitehurst hit Walker with a 37-yard throw to move the Titans
past midfield. A 22-yard completion to wide receiver Justin Hunter
put the Titans at the 1, before fullback Jackie Battle bulled his
way into the end zone on the next play with 1:06 left.
The Jaguars out-gained Tennessee by a 379-290 margin, but the
Titans' plus-2 turnover margin was too much to overcome. It was also
the difference between the Jaguars being tied with Tennessee instead
of trailing the Titans by a pair of games in the AFC South.
"It was a good job late by us to keep fighting, but we've just got
to clean up the other 55 minutes of the game," Harbor said.
"I really think we're just a play away, a block away, a penalty
away, a turnover away from really getting some momentum and getting
some points on the board, and just being a good offense."
NOTES: Titans starting RB Shonn Greene sat out the game with a
hamstring ailment. His Jaguars counterpart, RB Toby Gerhart, was out
with foot issues. In their places, rookie RB Bishop Sankey (Titans)
and Storm Johnson (Jacksonville) got their first career starts. ...
Titans QB Jake Locker was inactive for the second time this season
with a thumb issue. ... The Titans put LT Michael Roos on injured
reserve, which meant that 2014 first-rounder Taylor Lewan got his
first start. ... Titans rookie LB Avery Williamson got his first
career start in place of Zaviar Gooden. ... Titans DT Jurrell Casey,
with two sacks, now has four for the season.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
