Back to reality: Titans dominate 2nd half, top Jaguars 37-16

 Tennessee and Jacksonville each played much more like all those preseason predictions Sunday.

Derrick Henry, Delanie Walker and Jalston Fowler each ran for touchdowns, and the Titans pounded the Jaguars in the second half for a 37-16 victory.

Reality check? The result was quite possibly more indicative of what to expect from the AFC South rivals than what they showed in their season openers.

"Those guys wanted to come out the second half and make a statement, and I think they did," Titans coach Mike Mularkey said.

Henry finished with a career-high 92 yards on the ground for the Titans (1-1), including 87 in the final two quarters. His 17-yard touchdown run , which seemingly broke Jacksonville's defense in the third, came on a play the Titans installed Saturday night.

"It was awesome to start running the ball the way we did in the second half, to start popping the holes open and get the runs breaking out," right tackle Jack Conklin said.

"It was huge for us. It's picking up where we left off last year. That's the way we want to play. It's smash-mouth football. We love when (the coaches) want to run, run, run the ball. That's what we're all about."

Starting running back DeMarco Murray spent much of the second half standing on the sideline and wearing a baseball cap backward, nursing a tight hamstring. There was no need to risk him in this one, the third consecutive lopsided score in the series.

Marcus Mariota, returning to the place where he broke his right leg last December, completed 15 of 27 passes for 215 yards. He had a 32-yard touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith in the final quarter.

"Last year, I was leaving here on crutches," Mariota said. "To be able to walk out of here with the guys, huge divisional win, I'm going to enjoy it."

Tennessee's performance surely eased some concerns about a 10-point home loss to Oakland in the opener. The Titans ran 21 times for 95 yards against the Raiders, hardly the ground attack Mularkey craves.

Tennessee finished with 179 yards on the ground against Jacksonville, including 121 in the final 30 minutes.

"We tried it in the first half and it didn't go so well," Mularkey said. "It was the patience of sticking with it."

Jacksonville's home opener felt eerily similar to most of the team's performances the previous five years: Lackluster offense and countless mistakes.

Blake Bortles threw two interceptions, including one on a ball tipped at the line, and fumbled once. He completed 20 of 34 passes for 223 yards and a touchdown to Allen Hurns in garbage time.

Rookie Leonard Fournette scored for the second time in as many games , but this one came with the game out of reach. Tennessee led 30-3 before Fournette found the end zone. He finished with 40 yards on 14 carries.

The Jaguars (1-1) enjoyed a near-perfect opener at Houston, running the ball with authority, avoiding errors and playing stingy defense.

Jacksonville looked nothing like that against Tennessee. The team's biggest issues were turnovers (three) and penalties (10).

"With the way we play, we can't have any mistakes," receiver Marqise Lee said. "It's only the second game. You've still got 14. If you're sitting here worried, then you've got a problem."

KEY INJURIES

Titans rookie receiver Corey Davis injured a hamstring. Fellow receiver Taywan Taylor injured his left ankle on punt coverage in the second quarter, but later returned.

Jaguars defensive tackle Malik Jackson left the game with a groin injury in the third quarter. Linebacker Lerentee McCray injured a knee and did not return. Defensive tackle Michael Bennett left the game with a pectoral injury.

CHIPPY CORNERBACK

Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey got a little chippy after Walker's 1-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter. Ramsey pushed Walker after he was in the end zone and was flagged for unnecessary roughness. Several players exchanged words as Mariota grabbed Ramsey and whispered something into this ear.

"Going to let somebody walk in our end zone celebrating and (stuff) with the ball in one hand," Ramsey said. "I gave him a little nudge. I ain't even really get all in to him, to be honest. I gave him a little nudge."

IMRA TRIBUTE

The Jaguars wore "One Florida" stickers on their helmets to recognize those affected by Hurricane Irma. Defensive end Dante Fowler, who grew up in Florida, led the team onto the field while carrying the state flag.

UP NEXT

The Titans host Seattle next Sunday. Tennessee has lost six of the past seven in the series.

The Jaguars travel to London to play Baltimore. It will be Jacksonville's sixth consecutive season playing at Wembley Stadium, the most of any NFL team.

Carr, Raiders edge out Titans yet again 26-16

 Derek Carr showed the advantage of having a year of experience and a better supporting cast in a season opener pitting two of the NFL's rising, young quarterbacks.

Carr threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns, and Oakland beat Tennessee 26-16 to give Carr his third straight win over Marcus Mariota and his Titans in as many years.

"It was fun to be back out," Carr said.

Amari Cooper caught a TD pass as the Raiders made the Titans pay for opening the season with an onside kick they couldn't recover.

Marshawn Lynch also looked very refreshed after his year away from football. Lynch finished with 18 carries for 76 yards - 10 in the fourth quarter.

"We're one for one with that," Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said of using Lynch late. "And that's the idea to be able to close these things, and we did that very well."

Giorgio Tavecchio kicked field goals of 20, 52, 52 and 43 yards in his NFL debut. He was signed Friday to fill in for the Raiders' all-time leading scorer and 18-year veteran Sebastian Janikowski, who's on injured reserve with a bad back.

Both Carr and Mariota broke their right leg hours apart on Christmas Eve for season-ending injuries. Carr finished his third season by tying Ezekiel Elliott of Dallas for third in voting for the AP MVP award after leading Oakland to a 12-4 season, while Mariota led the Titans to a 9-7 mark in just his second season.

Mariota looked healthy in running for a 10-yard TD and threw for 256 yards.

While Mariota was healthy for training camp, the Titans' top offseason additions of rookie wide receiver Corey Davis and veteran Eric Decker weren't. The Titans had to settle for a pair of Ryan Succop field goals after driving inside the Oakland 10.

"When you play against a good team like Oakland, you have to hit on all cylinders, and unfortunately we didn't make enough plays," Mariota said.

ONSIDE KICK

The Titans became the first team since 2009 to open a season with an onside kick. The Minnesota Vikings were the previous, and they also didn't recover the kick. Ryan Succop's kick went to Shalom Luani. Carr completed three passes, Lynch rumbled 14 yards on his first carry, and Cooper finished the drive with an 8-yard TD catch for a quick 7-0 lead .

Titans coach Mike Mularkey defended his decision to open with an onside kick, saying he wanted the ball for his offense. No, he didn't second-guess himself. "Not for a second," Mularkey said.

BEAST MODE

Lynch took the first carry of the game for Oakland and rumbled right over Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jurrell Casey on the Raiders' final scoring drive on one of his six rushes to set up the clinching field goal.

Lynch accidentally interrupted Del Rio's postgame interview and told a team official he had been available for three minutes. "They didn't holler at me. I'm good right?" Lynch said to laughter before closing the door and leaving.

BLAME ME

After Lynch picked up a first down on fourth-and-1 inside the Titans 5, the Raiders didn't give him the ball again with Carr throwing three straight passes to Cooper.

The wide receiver dropped the first, Titans rookie Adoree Jackson got a hand in breaking up the second and Titans linebacker Brian Orakpo got his right fingers on the third that Cooper couldn't pull in at the back of the end zone.

Carr complimented Jackson's play while also blaming himself for not making better throws. "I'm completely fine with saying I screwed up," Carr said. "I did a couple times. It always happens in a Week 1, but when you win you can sit back and realize that we could've had so much more."

HITTING CARR

The Raiders led the NFL in 2016 in the fewest sacks allowed and went 10 games allowing one sack or fewer. The Titans sacked Carr on back-to-back plays early in the second quarter with Wesley Woodyard, then Derrick Morgan taking the quarterback down. Tennessee didn't get to Carr again.

UP NEXT

Raiders: Host Jets.

Titans: Visit Jaguars.

Titans end home woes, roll to 36-22 victory over Jaguars

 There's nothing like a visit from the Jacksonville Jaguars to make the Tennessee Titans remember how to protect their home field.

Marcus Mariota threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns to end his home struggles and the Titans had their highest point total of the season in a 36-22 victory over the Jaguars on Thursday night.

Since the start of the 2014 season, the Titans are 3-0 at home against the Jaguars and 1-17 against everybody else. The Titans are 3-8 in home games started by Mariota, a second-year pro out of Oregon.

"It was important," Mariota said. "To give our fans an opportunity to see how this team can play, it was huge. Hopefully this will build a foundation for the rest of the year and give the fans what they really want."

Mariota was 18 of 22 and had a 148.1 passer rating, the second-highest of his career. DeMarco Murray ran for 123 yards and a touchdown to help the Titans bounce back four days after squandering a lead in a 34-26 home loss to Indianapolis.

"I thought it was good to have a short turnaround," Titans coach Mike Mularkey said. "It was a difficult loss we had against Indy. We had to get focused right on these guys immediately, especially with a prime-time game. We wanted to show what we're capable of doing, show the country what we're trying to do here."

The Titans (4-4) gained a season-high 494 total yards and won for the third time in four games. They scored on six straight possessions during a stretch that began in the first quarter and stretched into the third period.

Tennessee already led 3-0 before Mariota threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Kendall Wright on the first play of the second quarter. Rookie Derrick Henry capped the Titans' next drive by scoring his first career touchdown on a 6-yard run.

Murray added a 14-yard touchdown run 3 1/2 minutes later.

After starting out to his right and encountering traffic, Murray reversed his field, capitalized on a downfield block from Mariota and dove into the left corner of the end zone for his sixth touchdown run of the season.

Jacksonville (2-5) trailed 24-0 by the time it got its second first down of the game midway through the second quarter. The Titans led 27-0 at halftime.

"It's a broken record," Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles said. "It's a lack of execution. It's dumb mistakes. The same stuff every week."

Bortles threw three touchdown passes and went 33 of 54 for 337 yards, but much of his production came with the game out of reach.

UNFAMILIAR TERRITORY: This is the first time the Titans have reached the midway point of the season without a losing record since 2011, when they also were 4-4. That 2011 team went on to finish 9-7.

LARGER WORKLOAD FOR HENRY: Titans rookie Derrick Henry had a combined three carries in the two games leading up to this one, but the Heisman Trophy winner from Alabama was much busier Thursday.

Henry had 16 carries for 60 yards to set career highs in both categories. He also caught four passes for 37 yards.

RARE RECOVERY: LeShaun Sims got the Titans' first fumble recovery of the season in the third quarter after Jacksonville's Marqise Lee muffed a punt return. The Titans had entered the night as the only team in the NFL that hadn't recovered an opponent's fumble.

ANOTHER SLOW START: The Jaguars couldn't advance beyond their own 26 on their first series, continuing a long string of futility on opening possessions.

The Jaguars haven't scored a touchdown on their opening series of a game since the second week of the 2015 season against Miami. That 21-game drought marks the longest any team has gone without reaching the end zone on its first possession.

UNHAPPY HOMECOMING: This marked a return home for Jaguars rookie cornerback Jalen Ramsey, a first-round pick from Florida State who played high school football at Brentwood (Tennessee) Academy.

But it didn't turn out quite the way he wanted.

Ramsey was called for unnecessary roughness in the first quarter. In the second period, Ramsey was pushed backward on Henry's 6-yard run. One play later, Henry scored on another 6-yard carry.

UP NEXT: The Jaguars go back on the road to visit Kansas City on Nov. 6. Now that they've finished a three-game home stand, the Titans play at San Diego on Nov. 6.

Luck still perfect vs. Titans as Colts pull out 34-26 win

 No matter how much the Indianapolis Colts are hurting or struggling, they can always count on beating the Tennessee Titans.

Especially with Andrew Luck.

Luck threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Jack Doyle with 1:55 left to put Indianapolis ahead to stay, and the Colts rallied to beat the Titans 34-26 Sunday for their 10th straight win against their AFC South rival.

The Colts (3-4) came in having lost two of three, including blowing a 14-point lead in an overtime loss last week at Houston. But Luck improved to 8-0 against the Titans with yet another comeback win. He finished with 353 yards passing and three TDs, the last after Tennessee went up 23-20.

The Titans (3-4) saw their two-game winning streak end. They can't explain why Luck has their number despite his changing supporting cast.

"He's that good of a quarterback he's going to make players make plays," Titans coach Mike Mularkey said of Luck.

T.Y. Hilton caught seven passes for 133 yards, including a 37-yard TD . The Colts shook off 12 penalties for 131 yards in pulling out their 15th win in 16 games against Tennessee.

The Colts were missing wide receiver Donte Moncrief and tight end Allen, and Jack Doyle caught nine passes for 78 yards to fill in at tight end.

"We as a team, if we're dealt those cards, we embrace it," Luck said of the injuries. "We welcome everybody in and say this is what you've got to do to help this team get a win. That's the beauty of it."

Marcus Mariota had a chance to rally the Titans, but T.Y. McGill sacked him and stripped out the ball. Robert Mathis picked it up and ran 14 yards for the clinching TD with 1:47 left and a 34-23 lead. The Colts finished with three sacks

VINATIERI'S RECORD

Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri kicked a pair of field goals, and the second, a 33-yarder with 3:46 left in the third quarter gave him an NFL record 43 consecutive field goals made. His first tied him with former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt who made 42 straight between 2002 and 2004. "I'm happy that we won the game and that this is a little bit to go along with it," Vinatieri said.

ONSIDE KICK

The Colts pounced on the Titans with an onside kick after Luck's second TD in the second quarter. Titans tight end Phillip Supernaw had a chance to scoop up the ball only to fail, and Robert Turbin recovered for Indianapolis at the Tennessee 35. The Colts had to settle for a 28-yard field goal by Vinatieri after having first-and-goal, but the onside kick helped the Colts go up 17-6 with 10 straight points.

BIG MAN TD

The Titans opened a game driving for a touchdown for a second straight game, and Mariota being a perfect 5 of 5 for 47 yards wasn't the best part of the possession. Under pressure, Mariota dumped a pass off to left tackle Taylor Lewan, who ran 10 yards for the TD. Lewan was so wide open he looked back as he ran into the end zone for the first TD by a left tackle for this franchise, according to Pro Football Reference.

CARTED OFF

The Titans lost left guard Quinton Spain to an injured right knee on incomplete pass in the second quarter. He was carted off to the locker room. Then cornerback Perrish Cox went down late in the same quarter when linebacker Sean Spence appeared to land on him, and Cox was carted to the locker room, where he was evaluated for a concussion. Neither returned.

Mularkey said after the game that Spain was being taken for tests of a sprained knee.

UP NEXT

The Colts go home after splitting a two-game swing to host Kansas City. The Titans wrap up a three-game homestand hosting Jacksonville on Thursday night.

Mariota throws 3 TDs as Titans beat winless Browns 28-26

 Andre Johnson grabbed the ball going out of bounds on Cleveland's second onside kick within two minutes, finally allowing the Tennessee Titans to relax.

It's the kind of winning play the Titans simply haven't made enough in recent years on their own field.

Marcus Mariota threw for 284 yards and three touchdowns, and the Titans held on to beat the Cleveland Browns 28-26 Sunday for their second straight victory - the first time they've won consecutive games since the end of the 2013 season.

"I'm not sure in the last couple years that we win that game," Titans coach Mike Mularkey said. "This year we found a way to win the game. Obviously, we don't want to make it that close. We did a lot of good things in that game."

The Titans (3-3) matched their win total for all of last season when they went 3-13 and wound up with the No. 1 draft pick overall. They also beat a team other than Jacksonville on their own field for the first time since the 2013 season finale and improved to 3-16 in Nashville .

Cleveland (0-6) now is mired in its worst start since 1999 when the Browns lost their first seven as an expansion franchise.

Not that the Titans care after losing to the Browns each of the past two seasons, especially with the Browns nearly pulling off another thrilling comeback. They made NFL history here in 2014 rallying from 25 points down to win.

This time, they trailed 28-13 when Cody Kessler hit Terrelle Pryor Sr. for a 5-yard TD with 2:07 left, but his pass on the 2-point conversion failed. Browns coach defended his decision to go for 2 so early.

"I knew at some point I was going to have to take a whack at it," Jackson said. "Obviously, we didn't make it, then had to kick and try to get the onside. Gave ourselves a chance at that time. That was what we needed to do."

The Browns recovered their first onside kick, and Duke Johnson Jr. scored nine plays later.

On their second onside kick, Johnson got his hands on the ball as it went out of bounds for Tennessee. Titans wide receiver Kendall Wright said he wasn't too worried.

"They onside kicked it to a Hall of Famer," Titans wide receiver Kendall Wright said of Johnson.

OPENING DRIVE

The Titans opened the game with a 75-yard drive capped by an 11-yard TD pass from Mariota to Rishard Matthews . That was their first opening TD drive since the season opener of 2015. A big key was Mariota who showed just how fast he is on the Titans' first play from scrimmage as he kept the ball and went 41 yards up the Browns' sideline.

LONGEST TD PASS OF SEASON

Tennessee's longest touchdown pass of the season was a 30-yarder in Week 2 as the Titans rallied to beat Detroit 16-15. Mariota topped that with a 48-yard pass to Kendall Wright in the second quarter. Wright stretched out and dove for the ball, landing around the 5 and sliding near the 2 before getting up and into the end zone as he was hit. Wright finished with eight catches for 133 yards.

KESSLER HEALTHY

Kessler, knocked out of last week's game with an injured chest, was sacked six times by Tennessee. He threw for a career-high 336 yards and also had two TD passes, both to Pryor.

POYER TO HOSPITAL

Browns defensive back Jordan Poyer was taken to a Nashville hospital with a lacerated kidney and possible concussion after a being crushed on a block when chasing down Titans returner Marc Mariani when Antonio Andrews hit him, knocking Poyer to the ground with 6:33 left in the second quarter. Andrews was flagged and penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct on the blindside hit.

The hit left Poyer bent over on the grass for a few minutes before he walked to the sideline. He was carted to the locker room and then to a local hospital. "Obviously, we all know that's pretty serious, so we'll see where he is from there," Jackson said

Mariota throws for 3 scores to help Titans beat Miami 30-17

 Marcus Mariota did everything but sack Ryan Tannehill, leaving that task for his teammates with the Tennessee Titans.

Mariota threw for three touchdowns and ran for another score, complementing a defense that sacked Tannehill six times to help Tennessee beat the reeling Miami Dolphins 30-17 Sunday.

Mariota bounced back with a strong game after totaling three interceptions and no TD passes in losses the past two weeks. He went 20 for 29 for 163 yards with no interceptions and no sacks, and ran seven times for 60 yards.

"I saw some open lanes and just ran," he said.

DeMarco Murray added 121 yards rushing for the Titans, who totaled 235 on the ground for their highest total since 2009, according to Pro Football Reference. They improved to 2-3, and Miami fell to 1-4.

Tannehill and the Dolphins offense turned in another woeful performance aside from the occasional long gain. RookieJakeem Grant scored on a 74-yard punt return , Damien Williams had a 55-yard, catch-and-run to set up a touchdown, and DeVante Parker made a 50-yard reception that led to a field goal.

But by the second quarter, the crowd was booing Tannehill. By the fourth, fans were chanting for his replacement, Matt Moore, who hasn't started a game since 2011.

"Do I like it? No," Tannehill said. "But it doesn't affect how I play or how I think about myself."

First-year coach Adam Gase stood firm by the fifth-year quarterback.

"He's not coming out," Gase said. "You can ask me 100 times. He's going to be in there the rest of the season."

But Gase acknowledged serious issues on offense.

"We're inept right now," Gase said. "We can't get out of our own way."

It didn't help that the Dolphins were without both starters on the left side of their offensive line, and the Titans took advantage while doubling their season sack total. Brian Orakpo had two sacks to increase his season total to six, and Derrick Morgan and Jurrell Casey added two apiece.

The Titans' Jason McCourty yanked a pass away from Parker for an interception to set up a field goal.

Mariota directed touchdown drives of 61, 76, 75 yards and 66 yards. He scored his first rushing touchdown of the year on a 5-yard keeper , and threw for scores of 5 yards to Andre Johnson, 20 yards to Delanie Walkerand 4 yards to former Dolphin Rishard Matthews.

Miami, by contrast, totaled eight first downs. Tannehill finished 12 for 18 for 191 yards with two interceptions.

GROUND GAME

Mariota repeatedly hurt the Dolphins with his running. He scrambled 21 yards to set up the Titans' third touchdown, and converted a third down with a 19-yard scramble in the fourth quarter when his team was nursing a seven-point lead.

"He's a very dangerous guy back there," Murray said.

Murray repeatedly hurt Miami on the flank and increased his season rushing total to 461 yards, putting him on pace for 1,475 yards.

The stout ground game helped the Titans control the ball for nearly 37 minutes.

STILL PERFECT

Johnson improved to 8-0 against the Dolphins and scored his second touchdown of the year.

FAST START

The Titans, who had been outscored 30-9 in the first quarter this year, scored a TD in the opening period for the first time.

MIAMI BIG PLAYS

The Dolphins trailed in yards 195-26 late in the first half but were still in the game thanks to Grant. The rookie scored his first NFL touchdown by eluding five tacklers, including Kevin Byard after fielding the kick.

The Titans fired special teams coach Bobby April on Monday, one day after they gave up a 67-yard punt return for a TD.

WHAT'S NEXT

The Titans play Cleveland next Sunday in the first of three consecutive home games. The Dolphins continue a four-game homestand when they play Pittsburgh.

Fuller's punt return TD lifts Texans over Titans 27-20

 Will Fuller had never returned a punt for a touchdown at any level entering Sunday's game.

Moments after he grabbed the first return of his NFL career he knew that was about to change.

"It was wide open," Fuller said. "It was probably one of the easiest touchdowns I've scored."

Fuller had a tiebreaking 67-yard punt return for a touchdown and the Houston Texans earned a 27-20 win over the Tennessee Titans in their first game without J.J. Watt.

It was the first time Houston (3-1) had played without its star defensive end since the 2010 season after Watt , who is out for the season after back surgery, had started 83 straight games since being drafted in 2011.

Fuller also had 81 yards receiving and a touchdown.

Tennessee (1-3) was driving with less than two minutes remaining, but Marcus Mariota's pass to former TexanAndre Johnson on fourth down was broken up to secure the victory.

The Texans squandered an early 14-point lead and their offense was struggling in the second half when Fuller took the punt back for a touchdown to make it 27-20 late in the third quarter.

"That gave us a real shot in the arm," coach Bill O'Brien said.

Fuller, who ran a 4.32 40-yard dash at the combine, took the punt and quickly made a trio of Titans miss before outrunning everyone else down the sideline for the score.

The 21st overall pick in this year's draft was so far ahead of any defenders that he slowed down Usain Bolt-style near the 5-yard line and trotted into the end zone.

"Once I got past everybody I knew it was a touchdown," Fuller said. "So I didn't want run to the back of the end zone and look crazy."

It was Houston's first punt return for a touchdown since 2013 and he became the first player in franchise history to have a TD reception and a punt return for a score in the same game. Fuller's 5-yard touchdown reception made it 14-0 in the first.

The Titans' game plan was to shut down receiver DeAndre Hopkins, and they did that, limiting him to just one catch for 4 yards. But putting so much emphasis on him left Fuller open to make plays.

"You can take one away; you can't take two away," coach Mike Mularkey said.

Fuller's return came after Jadeveon Clowney led a defensive stand following Brock Osweiler's second interception of the game.

Clowney, the top overall pick in 2014, sacked Mariota for a 6-yard loss on first down and chased down Delanie Walker after a reception on third down to force a punt.

The Texans raced out to a 14-0 lead after touchdown passes by Osweiler on their first two possessions.

The teams exchanged field goals before two touchdown runs by DeMarco Murray tied it at 17-17. But the Texans added a field goal to lead 20-17 at halftime.

MURRAY'S FIRST HALF: Sunday was the first time since 2013 against the Raiders that Murray had two rushing touchdowns before halftime. He had 12 carries for 56 yards before the break and finished with 95 yards rushing.

THEY SAID IT: Mariota on the struggles of the offense in the second half: "We just weren't able to finish. We would get a first down here, a first down there, and, unfortunately, whether it was a penalty or miscommunication, just not executing. We just weren't able to do our jobs."

CUSHING RETURNS: Houston middle linebacker Brian Cushing returned after sitting out the past two games after injuring his knee in the season opener. He finished with four tackles. He was happy to be back so soon after he was initially expected to be out five or six weeks.

"I didn't want to be out that long and (we) really cut the time down big time," he said. "I was just really excited to be back out there."

INJURY REPORT: Tennessee DL Al Woods pulled a calf muscle and Mularkey said he'll be out at least four weeks. ... Houston TE C.J. Fiedorowicz injured his knee early on Sunday, but returned in the second half and said he was OK.

UP NEXT: Titans : Visit the Dolphins on Sunday.

Texans : Visit the Vikings on Sunday.

Oakland D forces 3 turnovers as Raiders beat Titans 17-10

To Derek Carr, it's time for all the critics to stop picking on the Oakland Raiders defense.

Carr threw for 249 yards and a touchdown, and the Raiders beat the Tennessee Titans 17-10 on Sunday with their defense finally coming up with some big plays.

"They won the game for us," Carr said. "That right there was a prime example of what I've seen every day in practice. That's why I kept saying what I was saying. It's hard to complete balls against them."

The Raiders (2-1) forced three turnovers and had a sack after coming into this game having given up more yards than any team since at least 1940 through the first two games. Coach Jack Del made a couple of lineup changes, starting linebacker Cory James and rookie safety Karl Joseph, their top draft pick.

Oakland took control in the second quarter, scoring 10 points and outgaining the Titans 129-40 to take a 17-3 lead into halftime.

The Titans (1-2) rallied from a 15-3 deficit a week ago in beating Detroit 16-15 , and they thought they at least had forced overtime when Marcus Mariota found Andre Johnson alone in the end zone for a touchdown. But officials flagged Johnson for interference on Raiders cornerback TJ Carrie.

"If he wouldn't have fell down, it wouldn't have been called," Johnson said.

Two plays later, Carrie appeared to grab Harry Douglas in the end zone on the Titans' final play with no flag thrown. Carr knelt to run out the clock as the Raiders escaped with a win.

Titans coach Mike Mularkey said he needed to watch the tape on some of the plays.

"I need to be careful," Mularkey said.

LEWAN'S PENALTY: Titans left tackle Taylor Lewan may have had the costliest penalty. He apologized to his teammates for an unnecessary roughness penalty that backed the Titans from the Oakland 3 to the 18 with 50 seconds left.

Tajae Sharpe caught a 19-yard pass and was being tackled when Lewan flew in to clean up the pile. Officials flagged him, costing Tennessee first-and-goal at the 3 with 50 seconds left to first-and-10 at the Raiders 18. Asked about the penalty, Mularkey said Lewan and the Raiders thought the play was still alive.

"Everybody but the officials," Mularkey said.

MARIOTA'S TURNOVERS: Mariota turned the ball over three times, and the No. 2 pick overall in the 2015 draft now has lost three fumbles with four interceptions already this season. The Raiders turned a fumble forced by Bruce Irvin into a field goal and a 10-3 lead. That was all the points the Raiders got off his mistakes.

NICE OPENING: Latavius Murray didn't touch the ball on Oakland's opening drive until he was handed the ball on the final play. Then, he ran 22 yards up the middle for a touchdown to put the Raiders ahead to stay. Carr also tossed a 19-yard TD pass to Seth Roberts late in the second quarter against a Tennessee defense that had allowed only one offensive TD through the first two games.

NFL RECORD: Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski became the NFL's career leader in field goals made from 50 yards and out when he connected from 52 with 8:13 left in the second quarter. He gave the Raiders a 10-3 lead on the 53rd field goal of 50 or more yards for the 17-year veteran, which broke a tie with Jason Hanson, who had 52 such field goals in 21 NFL seasons. His field goal came after a holding penalty wiped out a TD pass by Carr.

MR. MURRAY: Murray, the NFL's 2014 offensive player of the year, helped the Titans get back into the game. He reeled off a 36-yard run with the Titans backed up near the own end zone, and he capped a 93-yard drive by outracing a pair of Oakland defenders around the right side to the end zone for a 5-yard TD with 5:51 left in the third quarter. It was Murray's first TD running the ball this season.

He also ran for 114 yards on 16 carries to become the first running back to reach 100 yards in a game since the 2013 season finale.

Titans rally to beat Lions 16-15 on Mariota's 2nd TD pass

 Marcus Mariota moved the Tennessee Titans down the field like a savvy veteran, not a second-year pro, and completed all nine of his throws to complete a comeback a week after his turnovers hurt his team's shot to win.

Mariota converted a fourth down with a perfectly lofted 9-yard touchdown pass to Andre Johnson with 1:13 left, lifting the Titans to a 16-15 win over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

"They came out in a look that we had kind of anticipated," Mariota said. "Looking at it, we had a matchup with Andre on a linebacker. We felt that we could kind of exploit that a little bit, and he made a great play. I just tried to give him a chance."

Mariota, the No. 2 pick of the 2015 NFL draft, dropped the pass over linebacker Tahir Whitehead to Johnson, the No. 3 pick overall in 2013, just before safety Rafael Bush could get to him to potentially break up the pass.

Johnson said he didn't play a lot at Detroit, but was thankful his new team gave him a chance to make a catch in a crucial situation.

"Andre made a great play," Titans coach Mike Mularkey said. "That's why he's going to be in the Hall of Fame."

The Titans (1-1) ended a five-game losing streak, dating to last December, after Mariota threw two TD passes in the fourth quarter after trailing 15-3.

"It's something you can build on," Johnson said.

The Lions (1-1) had an opportunity to set up a winning field goal in the final minute for a second straight week, butMatthew Stafford threw an interception to Perrish Cox at midfield with 18 seconds left.

"It was a great play by him," Stafford said. "I wish I hadn't thrown the ball, but hindsight is 20-20."

Detroit had won seven of nine, dating to midway through the 2015 season, and receiver Golden Tate said wasting a chance to continue the team's momentum won't affect its players or coaches.

"We're definitely confident and will be confident from here on out," Tate said.

Tennessee started five possessions at their 9 or closer to their end zone, making it tough to win the battle of field position. DeMarco Murray flipped the field once with a 67-yard run, his longest since 2011 when he was a rookie with the Dallas Cowboys, but the Titans didn't take advantage because of mistakes in the flag-filled game that included 29 penalties. Detroit was flagged 17 times, matching the most penalties the team has had in a game since at least 1950.

When it mattered most, the Titans went 93 yards - including 10 yards they had to gain twice because of a penalty - on 13 plays over nearly 6 minutes on the game-winning drive.

A week ago, Mariota had two turnovers that led to Tennessee losing a 10-point lead in a 25-16 loss to Minnesota and proved he could bounce back.

"The guy is a gamer," Mularkey said. "He's gutty. He'll give us a chance every game we play."

NOT TIGHT

The Titans got tight end Delanie Walker involved as planned, and as Detroit feared it would after letting Indianapolis Colts tight ends Dwayne Allen and Jack Doyle combine for seven receptions, 88 yards and three TDs last week. Walker had six receptions for 83 yards, including a 30-yard TD catch early in the fourth quarter that helped Tennessee pull within five points.

"When we watched the Colts film, we seen a lot of things that we thought we could take advantage of," Walker acknowledged.

INJURY WOES

The Lions played without one of their best players on defense, missing linebacker DeAndre Levy because of a quadriceps injury, and lost another top player on that side of the ball early in the game when defensive end Ezekiel Ansah limped off with a left ankle injury and didn't return. Detroit running back Ameer Abdullah left with an injured left foot after a 24-yard run in the second quarter. The Titans had linebacker Derrick Morgan (hamstring) inactive and rookie Kevin Dodd made the most of the opportunity to play more, sacking Stafford late in the first half. They lost another linebacker, Avery Williamson, with a back injury during the game.

UP NEXT

The Titans head back home to host Oakland. Detroit goes on the road, where it will be for three of its first four games, to play Baltimore.