Tennessee Titans edge out Buffalo Bills in exciting 35-34 victory – NFL Recap
Tennessee Titans beat Buffalo Bills by 35-34 after a neck-and-neck Week 7 game on Sunday, October, 21, 2012, at Ralph Wilson Stadium, Buffalo, New York.
Titans came out victorious in a tight game that saw quarterback Matt Hasselbeck scoring a touchdown in a do-or-die play with a minute left on the clock.
Titans running back Chris Johnson was finally able to give a breakout performance in this game.
Johnson covered a massive 195 rushing yards along with two touchdowns. He previously had a mere 301 rushing yards in six games this season.
Titans head coach Mike Munchak was delighted to see his team grinding out a win. During the postgame press conference, Munchak said:
"At the end, when we had to find a way to win it, all the phases came together. You see them believing in each other. If we're in the game, we're going to find a way to win it."
Hasselbeck finished the game with 22 of 33 for 205 yards and a touchdown. Titans offence was helped by miserable Bills defence that again failed to pose a threat to the opposing running game as Titans scored four rushing touchdowns.
Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick gave away an interception during the final minutes of the game that led to Hasselbeck’s game-deciding touchdown.
Despite completing an impressive 27 out of 35 passes for 225 yards and three touchdowns, Fitzpatrick gave away two decisive turnovers.
Bills head coach Chan Gailey looked frustrated after watching his team losing their third game in last four weeks. Gailey said:
“I think we have to reevaluate everything you do. That is what you do with the bye week. You reevaluate everything. You look at it. What is good you try to keep. What is bad and needs work you try to see what you have to do to get it done. If we had won
we would still be doing that.”
Titans got to a perfect start with Johnson getting a 16-yard run for a touchdown. Bills then quickly equalised, thanks to three-yard pass from Fitzpatrick to wide receiver Fred Jackson.
Johnson was again able to score with a superb 83-yard run to the end zone to make the score 14-7.
Then Bills’ Brad Smith got an 89-yard kickoff returned for a touchdown to finish the first quarter 14-14.
Titans struck early in the second quarter with a one-yard run from running back Jamie Harper. Bills then scored two field goals as first half finished 20-21.
Titans increased their lead to 28-20 after Harper scored another one-yard rushing touchdown. However, things quickly changed as Fitzpatrick threw two superb touchdown passes as Bills took the lead 34-28.
In the final quarter, it was all Bills controlling the game until the final two minutes when Fitzpatrick lost the possession and Hasselbeck took full advantage of it. His 15-yard pass to wide receiver Nate Washington marked a superb win for Titans.
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