– Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith left with a thigh injury in the first quarter against the Chiefs.
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Mariota tried a couple of different braces and wanted back in the game but at the end of the day, interim head coach Mike Mularkey chose to shut his rookie down for the rest of the game and turn it over to Zach Mettenberger. It nearly makes you want them to activate Julian Edelman just so he can get back there and catch the damn ball.
After all, there was little chance the Titans (3-11) would overtake the defending Super Bowl champions (12-2) even with Mariota.
The 2015 New England Patriots resemble the ill-fated 2013 team more by the week.
Brady connected on his first eight passes, seven of which came in the first touchdown drive. Owner Amy Adams Strunk fired former Ken Whisenhunt partly because of his inability to consistently protect Mariota and his decision to keep Mariota in the game after he suffered a sprained left knee October 18. “You’re just trying to do what you can to be productive”. “Twelve wins, that’s on the right track here”, Patriots coach Bill Belichick said after the win.
The Patriots defense is doing their job to eliminate opponents’ strengths, dominating offenses on third down (Tennessee was 3-for-12 Sunday), and making plays when opportunities present themselves.
New England’s defense had five sacks, two fourth-quarter interceptions and scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery.
Cornerback Logan Ryan had a tough time covering Tennessee wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, who caught six passes for 113 yards.
If Mariota does sit the final two games of the regular season, backup quarterback Zach Mettenberger would likely fill in, just as he did on Sunday.
The Tennessee Titans went to the AFC pinnacle of football on Sunday and got a first-hand look at how a team with injuries at every key offensive position and a sick quarterback can execute just enough to put a 3-10 team away early, and cruise to a win.
The rookie quarterback was sacked to end the next drive, too.
With the win and the Denver Broncos, 34-27, loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Patriots clinched a first-round bye. After Collins intercepted Mettenberger and ran it back 51 yards to the Titans 16, Gostkowski added another field goal. Unable to move – and again giving up a third-down sack of Mariota – they settled for a 49-yard field goal by Succop that helped them avoid the fate of their previous trip to New England, a 59-0 shutout in 2009. Hightower apparently re-aggravated his knee injury and Patrick Chung had to leave the game with a hip injury. Keshawn Martin had a great outing, finishing a 75-yard kickoff to set up another field goal for Patriots.
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Rob Gronkowski’s touchdown reception was his 11th of the 2015 season, the 65th of his career.
