Sunday 7 January 2018 17:31, UK
Marcus Mariota threw for two touchdowns and Derrick Henry ran for 156 yards as the Tennessee Titans dominated the Kansas City Chiefs in the second half of a 22-21 stunning comeback win.
The Chiefs flexed their muscles early in the first playoff game of the weekend, as they were up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter. Kareem Hunt plunged in from a yard out for the opener, and Alex Smith connected with Travis Kelce for a 13-yard score.
The Titans came out in a no-huddle offense in the second quarter and managed to find some rhythm and production on two consecutive drives, but the first of those was cut short by a Marcus Peters interception and the second only resulted in a field goal to make it 14-3.
It looked as though the Titans were going to keep it close heading into the half, but Alex Smith and Demarcus Robinson had other ideas. The pair connected four times for 57 yards on a devastating two-minute drive that ended with Robinson strolling in to put the Chiefs up 21-3 with just a few seconds to go before half-time. It looked like they were going to walk away with the game.
However, the third quarter belonged to Tennessee. The Chiefs were without their star tight end Kelce, who was hurt just before the half with a head injury, and they could not move the ball, while rookie kicker Harrison Butker missed a 48-yard field goal attempt. On the other side of the ball, Mariota capped off a 15-play, 91-yard drive with a miraculous touchdown throw to... himself!
In the fourth, the Titans continued their second-half dominance. Two plays into the quarter, Derrick Henry rumbled up the middle for 35 yards to bring his team within a score. In what proved to be the final scoring drive of the game, Mariota was masterful, converting three third downs and finding Eric Decker for a 22-yard touchdown to cap an 11-play, 80-yard drive.
The Chiefs, entirely on the wrong side of momentum, had one last chance to score and take the lead, but their season came to an end when Smith's deep throw on fourth down to Albert Wilson was knocked out of the receiver's hands by Johnathan Cyprien. There was late drama when Derrick Johnson returned a Henry 'fumble' 56 yards for a touchdown, but after review Henry was clearly down.
The Titans will advance to face either the Patriots or Steelers next week depending on the result of tomorrow's game, while Andy Reid ends yet another strong regular season with a playoff loss.
