By: Jason Nelms
I woke up sore Monday morning. Why you may ask? Because I was exhausted, mentally and physically, after cheering for the Titans Sunday. Tennessee’s 44-41 OT win over the Detroit Lions sent Titans fans on a rollercoaster of emotion. But boy, did it end with a smile.
With the Titans going into Sunday’s game 0-2 and not many bright spots on either side of the ball, LP Field was none too happy to be hosting the all-mighty Detroit Lions. But suddenly, the Titans found themselves up 20-9 on the Lions. Seven of those points came off of what I deemed immediately as the “Music City Miracle Part Two.” Mind you, the circumstances weren’t quite as dire as the first time the Titans ran this play circa 2000, but the Titans needed a few mini miracles if they wanted to beat the Lions. Friend of HerGameLife.com and former airport janitor Tommie Campbell took the ball 65 yards off of a Darius Reynaud lateral on a punt return for a touchdown.
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Impressive? Not so fast. Before you could even blink, the Lions scored 18 straight points. Followed by another Titans 21. No, you are reading this correctly, and no, this wasn’t a basketball game. It was just that crazy. The fourth quarter was not to be believed.
Reynaud, the same guy who threw the touchdown lateral, ran for a kick return of 105 yards. Titans wide receiver Nate Washington caught the most unreal over the back catch for a 71-yard touchdown. And cornerback Alterraun Verner recovered a Lions fumble for a 65-yard TD return. Again, yes, all in the same QUARTER.
Oh, but we’re not done yet. The Titans thought they had this one in the bag. I mean, they were up two touchdowns with less than two minutes left. But then
By: Dave Hogg
the impossible happened. After a quick Calvin Johnson touchdown from Lions backup QB Shaun Hill, Detroit recovers the onside kick. Uh oh. The Lions final opportunity comes down to a Hail Mary. But those aren’t actually ever caught, are they?
Hill gives it his best shot as he throws it down field before it’s batted away by a few Titans defenders into the hands of LIONS WIDE RECEIVER TITUS YOUNG. They’ve done it. They Lions have forced overtime on a Hail Mary touchdown. Ugh.
Fast forward two drives into overtime and the Titans find themselves up three while the Lions are moving quickly down the field. This is not boding well for the Titans. But Tennessee’s defenders step up, and Detroit finds themselves with a short 4th-and-1 but easily in field goal range. Any sane coach at this point would go for the game-tying field goal and force the Titans to come back on the field. But Lions head coach Jim Schwartz is not sane, and goes for it. And doesn’t get it. DOESN’T GET IT. And the Titans win! THE TITANS WIN! We learn postgame that Schwartz in fact was not trying to ‘go for it’, but the play was in fact a miscommunication between his center and QB. Oh well. Stinks to be a Lion.
So finally, FINALLY, the Titans can crack a smile. It was an ugly, ugly game from many standpoints, but Tennessee can be proud to put the “W” on the schedule.
