Marcus Mariota done for season with MCL sprain

Tennessee rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota, whose fumble off a sack by defensive end Chandler Jones gave the Patriots their third touchdown, left the game in the second quarter with a knee injury.

Mariota said his knee got twisted up underneath him on a sack by linebacker Jamie Collins.

The Pats face decisions on how much to rest players in the final two regular-season games, and while they have clinched a playoff bye they have not yet clinched the top overall seed.

Mariota ends his rookie season with solid numbers, though his protection leaves more than a little to be desired.

The Patriots suffered injuries to linebacker Dont’a Hightower (knee), receiver Danny Amendola (knee) and safety Patrick Chung (hip).

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) celebrates with wide receiver Keshawn Martin after throwing a touchdown pass to running back James White in the first half of a 33-16 victory over the Titans in Foxboro. Mularkey and the Titans’ staff chose to err on the side of caution. He has thrown for 2,818 yards and 19 touchdowns this season.

There are still two games left, though, and with road trips against the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins, the Patriots won’t have it easy in Weeks 16 and 17. On the day he finished 23-for-25 for 267 passing yards and two touchdowns.

Brady took the Patriots 79 yards on their first possession, connecting with Gronkowski from 5 yards to make it 7-0. He has, however, been sacked 38 times, tied for fourth-most in the league.

Stephen Gostkowski added a field goal before halftime to extend New England’s lead to 24-3 at the break.

The lack of continuity is never a good thing for a quarterback, but Mariota has proven he possesses the smarts, ability and motivation to adjust and improve. “So I think we’re just trying to, like I said, figure out ways to move the ball down the field and score points and take advantage whenever we can get the ball in the end zone”. But White persevered despite being buried on the depth chart behind Dion Lewis when it came to the Patriots’ pass catching/change of pace runner out of the backfield.

Fantasy Impact: There was some concern about Brady after he was listed as questionable with an illness going into Sunday.

Mettenberger, a sixth-round pick from LSU in 2014, started two games earlier this season, losses to the Falcons (10-7) and Texans (20-6).