The
New Orleans Saints sought their fourth consecutive victory when they paid a visit to the
Tennessee Titans in Week 17. Here’s a recap of Sunday’s game.
First Quarter
The game opened with a pair of punts before a 50-yard field goal from Joey Slye gave Tennessee a 3-0 lead.
The Saints responded with a field goal attempt of their own, set up by a 36-yard connection from Tyler Shough to Kevin Austin Jr. But Charlie Smyth’s 43-yard attempt went wide left.
It was then Cam Ward’s turn for a deep pass, as he found Chimere Dike for 38 yards on the ensuing Titans drive. Slye soon converted again to double the lead.
The visitors then went three and out, and Tennessee drove back near midfield before the quarter’s end.
Second Quarter
The Titans kept the ball moving before Ward hit Chigoziem Okonkwo for a 43-yard touchdown.
New Orleans, trailing 13-0, responded with somewhat of a marathon 44-yard drive. The 12-play possession took over 7 minutes with a number of short gains, before Smyth ended it by nailing a 56-yard field goal to get the Saints on the board.
Penalties had already marred the Titans’ ensuing drive before it got even worse for the hosts, as Chase Young was able to force the ball out from Ward and run it all the way in for a Saints touchdown.
Nevertheless, Tennessee found a response before halftime, helped massively by a pass interference call against Justin Reid, costing the Saints 50 yards. Ward found Elic Ayomanor for a 7-yard touchdown before the half to restore a 20-10 lead.
Third Quarter
Audric Estime and Chris Olave started the second half on the right foot for the black and gold as the drive reached midfield. Shough then found Juwan Johnson on a 30-yard pass as the Saints entered the red zone.
Two plays later, it was Olave in the end zone for New Orleans after a 19-yard grab.
Despite finding 59 yards on just the first two plays of their next drive, with a run from Tony Pollard and a throw to Mason Kinsey, the Saints were still able to force Tennessee into another field goal from Slye, putting the score at 23-17.
An 18-yard pass to Dante Pettis helped matters as Shough looked to cut into the lead once more, but the Saints were kept to just 3 points again with a 57-yarder from Smyth.
Fourth Quarter
The Titans proceeded to keep the theme of long field goals running, as Slye converted from 58 yards to put the hosts up 26-20.
A huge throw to Johnson through traffic gave the Saints drive instant momentum, but a catch-and-run from Pettis on the next play saw him fumble at the 3-yard line on his way to the end zone, resulting in a touchback and giving possession back to Tennessee.
The Titans quickly punted, and then the Saints were sure to make no mistake. Shough found Olave for 60 yards before throwing a 10-yard touchdown to Austin Jr to give the black and gold a first lead of the game.
Tennessee went three and out again, and a 23-yard pass from Shough to Johnson preceded a 32-yard touchdown run from Estime to extend the visitors’ lead to 34-26.
The Titans failed to do any damage from there, and the Saints were able to close out the game for their fourth straight victory.
The final game of the season now awaits the black and gold, as they travel to Atlanta to take on the Falcons in Week 18.
