Freddie Falcon
Well-known member
- Mar 16, 2019
- 1,593
- 2
Getty Images
The Titans didn’t score any points in the second half of Sunday’s game in Atlanta, but that didn’t prove to be a problem against a misfiring Falcons team.
Marcus Mariota threw three touchdowns in the first half and the Titans defense sacked Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan five times in a 24-10 Tennessee win. The victory ended a two-game losing streak for the Titans and leaves them at 2-2 with the Bills coming to Nashville next weekend.
The last of the five sacks came on a fourth down as the Falcons were trying to climb back into the game in the fourth quarter. The Falcons put up 422 yards, but the sacks, seven penalties, a lost fumble and a missed field goal accounted for enough sloppiness to make the number of yards a meaningless number.
It wasn’t a performance that’s going to make anyone feel better about the direction the Falcons are taking after changing all three of their coordinators this offseason. If the heat isn’t up on head coach Dan Quinn’s seat now, it won’t take too many more losses before things are getting toasty.
If the Titans could find a way to duplicate their success through the air throughout an entire game, it would ensure that Mike Vrabel‘s seat will remain cool for a while. After going 14-of-19 for 189 yards in the first half, Mariota was 4-of-8 for 38 yards in the second half as the Titans decided to keep things conservative. The lone exception was when Vrable opted to pass on a field goal to try for a first down with just over 13 minutes to play in the game.
Three points would have made it a three-score game, but the defense made sure that there was no reason to second-guess that decision after a Falcons comeback.