NFL Update: Tennessee Titans prevail over New Orleans Saints in the preseason finale (First Half)
The Titans might have won but their performance was still flimsy at best. Their opponents were not the defending champions. That team mostly just stood there on the sidelines and let the backups play. The Titans realize as much and the celebrations were toned down. However, a victory is a victory.
The Titans kicked off and Patrick Ramsey led the first Saints drive from the 20 yard line. The Saints initially tried the Rushing game with Chris Ivory. Chris tried unsuccessfully at first but then tried again for a 4 yard gain for the Saints. Ramsey took over and completed a 10 yard pass to wide receiver Lance Moore to the 34 yard line but got stuck there. If it wasn’t for the Titan’s defence making mistakes, the Saints drive would have ended there.
At the 34 yard line, Ramsey threw two incomplete passes and got sacked once but the Saints still advanced. Ramsey was sacked at the 23 yard line but a tripping penalty was awarded to New Orleans on the 24 yard line. In the next play, Ramsey’s pass was still incomplete but Defensive pass interference penalty took them forward to the Tennessee 27 yard line. Next play saw a penalty on the Saints side taking them back 10 yards to the Tennessee 37 yard line.
Next three plays gave the Saints 10 yards, only just making up for the penalty. The Saints abandoned the drive on the 27 yard line and took the field goal instead. Garrett Hartley kicked the 45 yard field goal which was good. The drive is successful but the Saints couldn’t have been pleased with it. Without the penalties, the Saints gained just 24 yards in the 53 yard drive to field goal.
The Tennessee offence was no better on Thursday. In their first drive, the Titan gained just 5 yards. Quarterback Vince Young completed a short right 5 yard pass on the 25 yard line but was unable to do anything more. After the pass, Young got sacked by New Orleans Cornerback Leigh Torrence but the saints lost no yard and stood at the 30 yard line. After another failed play by Young, Brett Kern took the punt.
The next time the Titan had possession, Young didn’t do any better. The drive began at the 11 yard line and running back Javon Ringer earned 11 yards for the Titans in two plays. Young completed a 5 yard pass to tight end Craig Stevens followed by another 6 yards gain by Ringer. The Ringer-Young combination made gained ground until the Titan reached the 44 yard line. That’s when Ringer really began to shine.
Ringer cut left and evaded the Saints' defensive line. Cornerback Torrence and Free Safety Malcolm Jenkins converged on Ringer but the Titan's Wide receiver Damian Williams cut them off. Ringer then veered right and eventually was stopped by Saints cornerback Patrick Robinson on the New Orleans 9 yard line. After another two plays, Young threw the touchdown pass down the middle at tight end Bo Scaife. Scaife was being shadowed by three Saints, cornerback Torrence and linebackers Casillas and Mitchell. Young somehow found the Scaife in all that traffic for the first touchdown of the game. The touchdown came just 17 seconds before the end of the first quarter.
Ramsey continued the Saints offense with very little success. In 7 plays, he advanced just 18 yards and was sacked once again, this time by defensive tackle Jason Jones. The drive failed for Tennessee and they decided to punt.
In their next drive, the Titans got into punt formation on the 34 yard line and Brett Kern took the punt which was blocked by defensive end Junior Galette. The Saint’s Linebacker Harry Coleman recovered the ball on the 1 yard line and carried it to touchdown. New Orleans was in the lead again.
The Titans were quick to bring the score back to even. Kerry Collins started a determined drive for Tennessee at the 14 yard line. Collins and running back Samkon Gado pushed Tennessee to the 30 yard line but struggled to move any further. The Titans opted for the punt but a New Orleans penalty made that play void. After another 20 yard penalty and a 30 yard rush by Gado, the Titans made it into the red zone. The Titans still couldn’t consummate the drive for a touchdown but they did earn their dues with a 30 yard field goal. The Titans regained the lead. They quickly regained possession after a 20 yard New Orleans drive.
Collins pushed the Titans forward from 29 yard line in with less than 100 seconds to go before the end of the quarter. Collins completed 4 passes for 55 yards in the drive and got the Titans to the 8 yard line with just 4 seconds remains. Rob Bironas took the field goal for Tennessee.
First Half ended with a 3 points lead for the Titans.
Tags: