Jaguars fall to Titans in shootout

This Sunday’s game against the Tennessee Titans was certainly an exciting one. The Jacksonville Jaguars met the Tennessee Titans once more, having just played them two weeks previously at home.

The game started off pretty slow, only 7 points going up on the board to the Titans, with 0 going up for the Jags in the 1st quarter. The 2nd quarter put up a total of 26 points; the 3rd bringing another 7. What really made the game though, was the last quarter, which had a total of 41 points in just 15 minutes. As a result, this game would tie for the second-most touchdowns scored in a fourth quarter since the 1940s.

While the Jags, yet again, played their strongest in the final quarter, they could not squeeze out a win against the Titans. This, in turn, meant a home win for Tennessee; their first one since October of 2014 when they played, none other, than the Jaguars themselves.

While the 4th quarter brought a lot of points, it brought just as many mishaps. On one drive, the ball was snapped up and over quarterback Blake Bortles’s head. Titan’s linebacker Wesley Woodyard recovered the bad snap and ran the ball 3 yards for a Tennessee touchdown. There was a failed 2 point conversion attempt by the Jags. Jags kicker Jason Myers also missed another extra point. In an attempt to score one last time, Bortles was, unfortunately, sacked on a 4th down with 2 minutes to go on the Titan’s 6 yard line.

Key players this week for Tennessee included quarterback Marcus Mariota, who had a great game-- throwing 3 touchdown passes for 250 yards. Mariota also ended with over 100 rushing yards, making him the first Titans player to run for at least 100 yards since running back Chris Johnson in 2013. Rookie Dorial Green-Beckham had a big day as well, with 5 catches and 120 yards.

Key players this week for the Jags included Bortles, who threw for 3 touchdowns alone in the 4th quarter. Altogether, Bortles threw 5 touchdown passes for a total of nearly 330 yards on the day. Linebacker Telvin Smith had a big play when he stripped the ball from Mariota, which led to a pass to tight end Julius Thomas for Jacksonville’s lead of the day. Wide receiver Allen Robinson also had a solid game day 2 catches for 150 yards. With this, Robinson became the Jaguars' first 1,000-yard receiver in a season since Jimmy Smith in 2005.

The final score of the game was 39-42, Tennessee. The Jaguars will face off against the Indianapolis Colts this Sunday.  

Article by Kristen Pickrell