Marcus Mariota’s return helps Titans upset Saints 34-28 in OT

Mariotas injury occurred on a hit from Miamis Olivier Vernon, who was penalized for roughing the passer.“Hes going to play, ” Titans interim coach Mike Mularkey said. The Titans could not pick up a first down, sending the game into overtime.

“We’ve got to rally as a team”.

The game-winning touchdown was a thing of beauty on every level.

Returner Marcus Murphy fumbled a punt return that the Titans recovered and converted into a field goal. Brees also was intercepted on a pass toward the Titans’ end zone intended for Mark Ingram, but instead to B.W. Webb, who was brought up from Tennessee’s practice squad a day earlier.

Both teams missed go-ahead field goal attempts in the last two minutes of regulation. Game over. Mariota finished 28-39 for 372 and four touchdowns. Mariota was named the AFC player of the week after leading the Titans (2-6) to each of their two wins. “On the sideline, we said we had to find a way”. His ability to get the ball out quickly made it hard for New Orleans to apply pressure. If they can protect QB Marcus Mariota and give him sufficient time to throw the football, then the rookie seems to have the goods to deliver on a consistent basis. But another Saints defender came in to make a play on the ball and it bounced up in the air into the hands of tight end Delanie Walker, who caught it and took it the rest of the way.

“There’s nothing really to say”, Byrd said. “You go through a coaching change like that in the middle of the season, and for Mularkey to go in there and take control; there was a lot of going on”. You can’t put the ball on the ground.

Defensively, Jurrell Casey is probably a guy you have heard of, but most people that don’t play the Titans very often don’t know just how good he is. Yes, there have been plenty of mistakes and growing pains, but his unflappable nature and his ability to stay calm while going through adversity, gives him the look of a franchise quarterback. We just struggled getting off the field. The run game and whatever improvement it makes should be interesting over the second half of the season.

Actually, the Saints nicely overcame it on offense. Mariota took that confidence and made a 371-yard, four touchdown and no interception performance out of it.

But the Saints stalled offensively from there, and the Titans (2-6) ramped up. Carson Palmer opened his season against New Orleans with the best game he played until Week 8.

Payton pointed to the fluky 61-yard touchdown Tennessee scored off a deflection in the first half as something out of the Saints’ control.

Brandin Cooks and the Saints lead at home.

New Orleans didn’t score again. Mularkey said Michael knows the Titans’ offense inside and out. The result was a 34-28 overtime win in New Orleans where Mariota wasn’t sacked even once and hit only twice. The drive stalled after two conservative run calls, leaving Ryan Succop with a 55 yard field goal tried. The Saints had a chip shot that was blocked by Cody Sensabaugh.