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HomeSportsTennessee Titans head to Indianapolis Colts, Sunday

Tennessee Titans head to Indianapolis Colts, Sunday

Tennessee Titans (5-5) vs. Indianapolis Colts (4-5)

Sunday, November 20th, 2016 | 1:00pm EST/Noon CST
Indianapolis, IN | Lucas Oil Stadium | TV: CBS

Tennessee TitansNashville, TN – This week the Tennessee Titans (5-5) play their first of two consecutive road games, traveling to face the division-rival Indianapolis Colts (4-5). Kickoff at Lucas Oil Stadium (capacity 63,000) is scheduled for 1:00pm EST/noon CST on Sunday, November 20th.

The Titans and Colts are each hoping to gain ground or at minimum keep pace with the first-place Houston Texans, who lead the AFC South with a record of 6-3. The Texans travel to Mexico City this week to play the Oakland Raiders on Monday night.

Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) runs for a short gain during the second half against the Green Bay Packers at Nissan Stadium. The Titans won 47-25. (Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) runs for a short gain during the second half against the Green Bay Packers at Nissan Stadium. The Titans won 47-25. (Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports)

This week’s game will be televised regionally on CBS, including Nashville affiliate WTVF NewsChannel 5. Play-by-play announcer Spero Dedes will call the action alongside analyst Solomon Wilcots.

The Titans Radio Network, including Nashville flagship 104.5 The Zone, will carry the game across the Mid-South with the “Voice of the Titans” Mike Keith, analyst Frank Wycheck, gameday host Rhett Bryan and sideline reporter Jonathan Hutton.

Tennessee Titans

Titans Look to Build on Historic Win

Tennessee TitansLast week the Titans hosted the Green Bay Packers and won by a final score of 47-25, recording their third consecutive game with 35 or more points. It marks the first time in franchise history the team scored at least 35 points in three consecutive games in a season. They tallied 36 points against the Jacksonville Jaguars on October 27th and 35 points at the San Diego Chargers on November 6th.

The team’s 47 points tied for the 11th best single-game total in Titans/Oilers history and amounted to its biggest output since a 47-point outing versus the St. Louis Rams on December 13th, 2009. The 47 points against the Packers also tied for the most the team has ever scored at Nissan Stadium, which opened in 1999, equaling the total from the same 2009 contest against the Rams.

Tennessee Titans running back DeMarco Murray (29) breaks through the line and scores a touchdown during the first half against the Green Bay Packers at Nissan Stadium. (Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports)
Tennessee Titans running back DeMarco Murray (29) breaks through the line and scores a touchdown during the first half against the Green Bay Packers at Nissan Stadium. (Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports)

In the win, Titans second-year quarterback Marcus Mariota completed 19 of 26 passes for 295 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions (149.8 passer rating). He established an NFL record with his sixth four-touchdown performance (passing and/or rushing) in his first 22 career games, and he became the first quarterback in NFL history to have three games with a 70.0-plus completion percentage, at least four touchdown passes and no interceptions in his first two seasons.

Mariota, who has an NFL-high 17 touchdown passes over the past six weeks, has at least two touchdown passes in each of those six games. He tied Warren Moon’s club benchmark for the most consecutive games in franchise history with multiple touchdown passes.

Also against the Packers, running back DeMarco Murray scored on a 75-yard run and totaled 123 yards on 17 carries. He notched his fifth 100-yard rushing game of the season. He also recorded his fifth consecutive game with a rushing touchdown to tie Earl Campbell’s franchise record, set in 1979.

Murray additionally contributed a 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end Delanie Walker. In doing so, he became the first Titans non-quarterback since Campbell (September 7th, 1980 at the Pittsburgh Steelers) to rush for a touchdown and pass for a touchdown in the same game. Murray is the first NFL non-quarterback with a touchdown run of 75 yards or longer plus a touchdown pass in a single game since Pittsburgh’s John Henry Johnson in 1960.

Indianapolis Colts

Indianapolis ColtsThe Colts will have an extended period to prepare for the Titans after enjoying a bye last week. Prior to that, they traveled to Lambeau Field in Week 9 and escaped with a 31-26 win over the Packers.

Colts quarterback Andrew Luck’s 2016 passing statistics include 221 completions on 347 attempts for 2,565 yards (fifth in the NFL), 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He has four 300-yard games this season, including the first meeting against the Titans (353 yards).

His primary target is T.Y. Hilton. With 52 receptions for 791 yards, the fifth-year receiver ranks 11th in the NFL in catches and seventh in receiving yards.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) throws a pass during the second quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) throws a pass during the second quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)

Luck, the first-overall selection in the 2012 NFL Draft, was named to three consecutive Pro Bowls from 2012–2014 before being limited to five games last season due to injury. Earlier in 2016, he reached the 15,000-yard career passing plateau in his 56th career game, becoming the second fastest in NFL history to hit the mark.

Luck and Colts head coach Chuck Pagano are in their fifth season together in Indianapolis. They earned playoff berths in each of their first three seasons before posting an 8-8 record in 2015 and missing out on a division title by one game.

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