Luck rallies Colts to 1st win of season over Titans
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Marcus Mariota will be expected to lead the Tennessee Titans past the Indianapolis Colts and Andrew Luck some day.
The Colts’ quarterback made sure it wasn’t Sunday.
Luck threw two touchdown passes 56 seconds apart in the fourth quarter as he rallied the Indianapolis Colts to their first win this season, beating the Tennessee Titans 35-33.
The Colts (1-2) trailed 27-14 before Luck got going, and Luck improved to 7-0 against Tennessee with another stunning comeback.
He drove the Colts 98 yards before hitting Phillip Dorsett on a 35-yard TD with 6:49 left.
Dwight Lowery became the first defender to intercept Mariota with a 69-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter. He picked off Mariota again to give the ball back to Luck.
Luck found Donte Moncrief for an 11-yard TD for a 28-17 lead just 56 seconds later.
Mariota drove them to a TD. Defensive pass interference put the ball at the 1, but rookie fullback Jalston Fowler was stopped for a big loss on the 2-point conversion.
Tennessee’s onside kick went out of bounds, allowing the Colts to kneel down. Frank Gore ran for two TDs, including the clincher on a 6-yard run with 2:51 left.
Mariota looked ready to make his first home game something for the record books. He threw two TDs, tying Mark Rypien as the only quarterbacks to throw eight touchdown passes in his first three career games. Rypien had his eight TD passes in 1988 for Washington.
The rookie threw for 367 yards, and Tennessee outgained the Colts 433-378 after holding the ball for nearly 35 minutes. The Titans also scored 27 straight points in taking a 27-14 lead.
But the Colts sacked the rookie three times.
Luck came in with a league-high five interceptions, and he attempted a career-low eight passes in the first half. The Titans also intercepted him twice in the span of 3 minutes in the third quarter.