Titans lean on blueprint to score statement win
INGLEWOOD, Calif. – The Tennessee Titans will have to look beyond “Dancing With the Stars” prospects if they hope to replace Derrick Henry.
Adrian Peterson, who confirmed he turned down an invitation to compete on “DWTS” because he wanted to play in the NFL again, made his debut here with the Titans. He helped prove what the Titans and everybody else should’ve already known.
Henry, the superstar running back who’s out indefinitely with a broken foot, can’t be replaced.
Of course, it might not matter if the Titans continue to play like they did in a 28-16 victory over the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium.
A smothering defense led the way as the Titans won their fifth game in a row and improved to 7-2, the best record in the AFC.
As for Peterson? Well, he scored a touchdown. But you had to wonder if the 36-yearold future Hall of Famer would have looked better dancing the tango than running the Wildcat (and getting stuffed on that play).
He managed a meager 21 yards on 10 rushes, and as a team, the Titans rushed for a measly 69 yards – compared to the 117 yards Henry had been averaging before suffering an injury that forced him to have surgery this week.
Yet the Titans scored their most validating victory of the season – on the road, against a Super Bowl contender – with a blueprint to win without Henry.
It starts with the defense. The Titans sacked Rams quarterback Matt Stafford five times.
They forced two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown and another that set up a TD.
They bullied Stafford into his worst game with the Rams, evidenced by his 71 passer rating and ESPN’s quarterback rating of 17.6.
He finished the game 31 of 48 passing for 249 yards and a touchdown (and it came late).
“What more can you ask for?” Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons said.
Not much more from Simmons, who had three sacks, three tackles for loss and four quarterback hits.
“Our defense was flying around having fun,” he said. This is nothing new.
The defense was largely responsible for a 26-second stretch during which the Titans went from trailing 3-0 to leading 14-3.
This is nothing new. Last week the Titans defense had a game-changing interception in overtime and another interception returned for a TD in their 34-31 victory over the Indianapolis
Colts.
The week before that, the Titans sacked Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes four times and intercepted him once in a 27-3 victory.
They did not allow a Rams TD until the final minute of the game.
Titans safety Kevin Byard, who returned an interception for a TD, didn’t sound concerned about whether the Titans would climb in the socalled power rankings. “The only stats that matter are 7-2,” he said.
But Byard said something else inside the locker room after the game, and teammates repeated what might become the Titans’ mantra: “We’re not trying to prove anyone wrong. We’re just trying to prove ourselves right.”
On this day, they proved the Titans can beat one of the NFL’s elite teams even without their elite running back.