Amani Hooker’s clutch interception and Cam Ward’s gritty performance fueled a resilient effort in Nashville, but Tennessee ultimately faltered as Philadelphia’s high-powered offense seized late control.
The Tennessee Titans got their chance to avenge the loss to the New York Jets in the season opener on Sunday.
This time, the Philadelphia Eagles came to town.
The Titans got linebacker Cedric Gray as he cleared concussion protocol. They did lose Cor'Dale Flott and James Williams Sr.
Flott was a late addition to the injury report. He appeared on Friday with a quad issue after being a full participant in the first two days of practice. He was listed as questionable and was eventually ruled out on Sunday.
Williams had been battling an elbow problem all week and was one of the Titans' inactive players on Sunday. Williams was limited in practice all week and was a game-time decision as well.
Getting Gray back for the Titans defense was a massive plus. The Titans started Gray, Anthony Hill Jr., and Cody Barton at linebacker, with the veteran back in the mix.
The Titans got the ball first and had a three-and-out on the opening drive. They punted the ball away and the Eagles started their first drive on their own 28.
Philadelphia slowly moved the ball down the field, and the Titans needed a spark on defense. The Eagles got the ball into the Titans' red zone.
Luckily, Amani Hooker provided the spark that entire team needed.
On 3rd-and-Goal at the Tennessee eight-yard line, the Titans forced Jalen Hurts into a bad decision with pressure, and he threw it right to Hooker.
Hooker nearly took the pass for a pick-six but was tackled in Eagles territory. The Titans went for it on fourth down and took an early 7-0 lead on a Cam Ward QB sneak.
The Eagles dominated the time of possession in the second quarter and scored two touchdowns. Philadelphia led 14-7 late in the second quarter.
The Titans had one last push for points before halftime. Ward started hitting big plays.
His first was to Elic Ayomanor to help them get across the midfield. Then, Tyjae Spears got involved in the passing game.
The Titans eventually stalled out after getting into field goal range. A false start from J.C. Latham really set the offense back.
The Titans would settle for a field goal after running a draw play on 3rd-and-long to go into halftime down 14-10. The Titans looked like a much better team than in the season opener, but still had another half to play.
Saquon Barkley left the first half with a neck stinger but returned for the second half. The Titans still managed to force a short drive by the Eagles and got the ball back quickly for their offense.
The Titans played a very inspired third quarter. The defense held the Eagles to three points, and Ward and the offense led a 12-play, 69-yard drive that ended with another rushing touchdown, tying the game at 17-17.
Ward didn't miss a single pass on the drive. The crowd bought back in for the final 15 minutes. You could feel the vibes change in Music City.
Neither the Eagles nor the Titans were willing to give up any ground in the final quarter. The Eagles tried to run off as much clock as they could in their first drive of the fourth quarter.
The Titans got their chance to win their first game under Robert Saleh after a Marcus Harris interception with six minutes remaining. The Titans got down the field quickly after a hurdle by Elic Ayomanor.
If that doesn't fire up, there's not much that will.
The Titans backed themselves up with multiple penalties. Then, Tyjae Spears stepped up on 3rd-and-22. He ran the ball on a draw play after a great block from Gunnar Helm. It was then 1st-and-Goal for the Titans with 2:37 to go.
The Titans got it down to the two-minute warning and took a 20-17 lead with a field goal from Joey Slye. The Titans' defense needed one more stop to secure Saleh's first win as head coach in Music City.
The Eagles had one more chance. They moved the ball with ease, despite the Titans trying to make things tough for them with pressure.
The Eagles got down to the three-yard line thanks to a great catch by DeVonta Smith. Just before that, there appeared to be an intentional grounding call, but the referees decided to keep the flags in their pockets.
That no-call proved decisive.
In just one more play, Philadelphia silenced the crowd at Nissan Stadium with a touchdown pass to Darius Cooper.
The Titans had a chance to win this game but couldn't outlast the Eagles. This team was much improved and should be proud of how they played.
This one hurt to lose, but things are looking up in the Saleh era. The Titans lost in Week 2, 24-20.
