
The Tennessee Titans hung on to beat the New England Patriots 20-13 on Saturday, advancing to the divisional playoff round to play the AFC’s Number 1 seed, the Baltimore Ravens.
The Patriots put the first points on the board with a 36-yard field goal by kicker Nick Folk.
Tennessee responded soon thereafter with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Tannehill to tight end Anthony Firkser, capping a 12-play, 75-yard drive.
That is when New England regained the lead 10-7 with a five-yard rushing touchdown by receiver Julian Edelman.
When it appeared as if the Titans could face a double-digit deficit going into halftime, their defense held the Patriots to another field goal after they had a first and goal at the Tennessee one-yard line.
That allowed the Titans to go into the locker room with a 14-13 advantage after running back Derrick Henry’s one-yard touchdown run.
He says, “We knew it was going to be a tough game. We just had the mindset to never give up and keep playing. That’s the way we like it – we want it gritty, and we want it dirty. We played Titans football. We knew we were coming into a hostile environment, and we just had to play our game.”
In addition, they didn’t allow New England to find the end zone even once in the second half.
All Glory 🙌🏾 #MMCNB #BallGame #FullCircle pic.twitter.com/a2h9r3oKgZ
— Logan Ryan (@RealLoganRyan) January 5, 2020
Late in the fourth quarter, cornerback Logan Ryan intercepted Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and returned it for a touchdown with just nine seconds left to play, setting the stage for the Titans’ big win.
The victory improves Tennessee’s all-time record to 9-5 in wild card games as well as a 5-4 record on the road in wild card games. It also improves their postseason record to 7-7 in the “Titans era,” and gives them at least one playoff victory in two of the last three seasons, in addition to a 2017 wild card win.
The Titans will face the Ravens on Saturday, January 11.