National Football League

Titans snap skid, beat winless Jaguars 16-14

Published Oct. 12, 2014 4:17 p.m. ET

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) The Tennessee Titans didn't have time to think about blowing a second straight lead at home.

This time, they just held on for the win.

Even if it was against the woeful Jacksonville Jaguars, who hurt themselves late.

Sammie Hill blocked a field goal attempt in the final seconds, and the Tennessee Titans held off the winless Jaguars 16-14 Sunday to snap a four-game losing streak.

''Huge,'' Titans defensive lineman Jurrell Casey said. ''We've been fighting for a win for so long and to come out with a win like this, it's kind of a bummer. But at the end of the day, a win is a win, and we fought to the end.''

Jackie Battle ran for a touchdown, and Ryan Succop also kicked three field goals as the Titans (2-4) bounced back after blowing the biggest lead ever by a home team in the regular season with their loss last week to Cleveland.

''It was a relief,'' Titans quarterback Charlie Whitehurst said. ''I think we kind of controlled the game most of the game, and we weren't able to sustain a drive in the second half to put it away. It would've been a little easier on everybody's hearts. It's a win, and we're very happy about it.''

Casey had two of Tennessee's six sacks. The Titans forced two turnovers as they won their first game at home this season - only their second here in nine games.

The Jaguars (0-6) scored with 37 seconds left as Blake Bortles found Clay Harbor for a 20-yard TD. They recovered the onside kick after Titans safety Michael Griffin couldn't hold onto the ball.

But Hill got his right fingers on Josh Scobee's 55-yard field goal attempt with 3 seconds remaining. Jacksonville had to kick on third-and-2 because coach Gus Bradley had no timeouts left, losing both his challenges and the timeouts that went with them.

Bradley took the blame for not having a timeout. They usually need 17 seconds to rush the field goal unit out.

''I felt really confident,'' Bradley said of the distance. (Scobee) felt confident on the sideline, and it looked like it was going. It was the right direction and he got enough on it. It was just the height on it.''

Even though this game was a sellout, thousands of empty seats awaited two of the NFL's worst teams. The Titans gave their fans a reason to stick around to the end by making this more exciting in the final seconds than they wanted.

Whitehurst threw for a career-high 233 yards in starting his second game in three weeks in place of the injured Jake Locker. He was out with a second injury to his right hand - this time his right thumb.

But Bortles, the No. 3 overall draft pick, had his best day yet. He had 336 yards as the Jaguars outgained the Titans 379-290, and the rookie quarterback also led the Jaguars in rushing with 38 yards.

Locker had plenty of company on the sideline as the Titans, who placed veteran starters safety Bernard Pollard (Achilles tendon) and left tackle Michael Roos (right knee) on injured reserve this week, started three rookies.

Taylor Lewan, the No. 11 pick overall, replaced Roos. Second-round draft pick Bishop Sankey started at running back with Shonn Greene (hamstring) out.

Avery Williamson started his second straight game at inside linebacker. And the rookie returned a fumble 41 yards with 4:25 left to help seal the win.

The Jaguars came in second in the NFL behind only the Bills and Jets with 16 sacks. They added three more of Whitehurst as they hit him repeatedly during the game.

Bortles was nearly perfect in helping the Jaguars open a game with their first touchdown drive this season. They went 80 yards on a drive capped by a 1-yard TD by another rookie Storm Johnson, Bortles' teammate at UCF.

Jacksonville also forced the Titans to settle for field goals. The Titans took the lead for good when Battle capped an 80-yard drive with a 1-yard plunge just before halftime for a 10-7 edge.

The Jaguars had their chances. Titans cornerback Blidi Wreh-Wilson picked off Bortles' pass at the Tennessee 16 in the third quarter and ran it back to midfield. Succop put Tennessee up 16-7 with his third field goal, a 42-yarder.

Notes: Casey had his fifth game with two sacks in a game. ... Titans returner Leon Washington had a 50-yard kickoff return in the first quarter and became the second active player and 11th in NFL history with 7,000 yards on kickoff returns. ... Wreh-Wilson had his first career interception.

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Online:

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL

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Follow Teresa M. Walker at www.twitter.com/teresamwalker

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