Stand up and put your hands together for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Nine games into a trying, often soul-crushing campaign, Gus Bradley's team outplayed, outhustled and outlasted the Titans in a 29-27 stunner over Tennessee.
Jacksonville, to the naked eye, simply wanted this one more. The Titans (4-5) bordered on comatose out of the gate, spitting up turnovers early and withering up behind Jake Locker, who left the game in the first half with a potentially season-ending right foot injury. In came Ryan Fitzpatrick, who rallied Tennessee late, but it wasn't enough.
The Jacksonville jokes have come easily this season, but nobody in Rocky Top is chuckling about the stench coach Mike Munchak presided over on Sunday.
Here's what else we learned:
- Locker left the game averaging 2.7 yards per attempt. His play has improved this season, but the Titans have to think long and hard about the plan at quarterback. Locker's brittle nature makes him a risky long-term option unless Tennessee plans to invest heavily, year after year, in a reliable No. 2.
- Chris Johnson ran with purpose and renewed burst against the Rams last week, but finished with just 30 yards against the Jaguars and coughed up the ball on Tennessee's first play from scrimmage. It wasn't just Johnson, as the Titans had five fumbles -- three of them lost -- on the day.
- Justin Blackmon's suspension is a killer for Jacksonville's puny passing game, but Cecil Shorts and Mike Brown show flashes of playmaking ability. Plug in a legitimate quarterback, and this trio -- if Blackmon can stay clean -- gives the Jaguars something to build from.
- Bernard Pollard was a disaster on Sunday. The Titans safety kept a third-quarter Jaguars drive alive when he whacked Chad Henne as the Jaguars passer was sliding to a stop. Personal foul. Three plays later, Pollard was flagged for unnecessary roughness on a high-flying leap into Henne's grill on third down. Roughing the passer. Jacksonville went on to punch in a touchdown that put them up 20-7.
- The Jaguars weren't able to rip up Tennessee's run defense like Zac Stacy did in Week 9. Maurice Jones-Drew and friends were kept to 1.8 yards a tote, which stopped the bleeding of Tennessee allowing 100-plus yards in five of six games coming in.
- It's near impossible to take Tennessee seriously as an AFC playoff contender. With the Indianapolis Colts looking vulnerable after being smashed by the St. Louis Rams, Sunday was a perfect chance for the Titans to beat a lesser opponent. Instead -- for the first 30 minutes -- this looked more like Tennessee's second bye week:
The latest "Around The League Podcast" previews every Week 10 game, including the heavyweight battle between the Carolina Panthers and San Francisco 49ers.
