The Sports Xchange

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — In a game of wild momentum swings, the Indianapolis Colts had one more in them than did the Tennessee Titans in a wild 35-33 win over the home team at Nissan Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The Titans, up by 13 points midway through the fourth quarter, seemed to be in control after pinning the Colts at their 2 with 12:20 to play. But quarterback Andrew Luck, who had thrown two interceptions earlier, marched the Colts downfield and hit wide receiver Phillip Dorsett with a 35-yard scoring toss, and then after Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota threw an interception, Luck hit wide receiver Donte Moncrief with an 11-yard toss with 5:53 left.

The Titans scored a touchdown on Jalston Fowler’s 1-yard run with 47 seconds left to get within two. A pass interference call on the Titans’ first two-point conversion attempt gave Tennessee a second try from the 1-yard line. But Fowler was stopped short on that play.

“Defense played well. Unfortunately, I put them in a bad spot in the fourth quarter,” Mariota said. “For the most part, they are a good, solid unit. We’ll continue to lean on them throughout the year and they’ll make plays for us.”

The Titans (1-2) had rallied from 11 down to score three touchdowns in a 5:38 span from the end of the first half and the start of the second.

After Tennessee forced a punt on the first possession of the second half, Mariota led the Titans to the Colts’ 8, where running back Antonio Andrews rushed for a score on the next play, putting the Titans up for the first time all day at 17-14.

On the Colts’ next offensive snap, Titans cornerback Perrish Cox intercepted Luck at the Indy 30, returning it to the 3. One play later, Mariota found rookie wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham for the score.

Zach Brown’s interception and return to the Colts 13 led to a 21-yard Ryan Succop field goal that put Tennessee ahead 27-14.

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What we learned about the Colts:

1. He’s still the same Andrew Luck. It’s not been an easy year for Luck, who’s now thrown seven picks in three game, and threw two ill-advised interceptions on Sunday. But with wide receiver Andre Johnson practically invisible and tight end Dwayne Allen inactive against the Titans, Luck doesn’t have the same kind of surrounding cast that he and Peyton Manning enjoyed over the last few years. More than anything, you want your quarterback to be resilient and able to win you games even when he’s not at his best, and Luck did that Sunday with the two late TD throws, and a host of other well-thrown balls down the stretch. The franchise may be down, but there’s no doubt about who the face of that franchise is. Luck deflected credit for the win later. “At times I didn’t play well, but what a bunch of fortitude and grit by those guys in the locker room,” he said.

2. Running back Frank Gore is important in this offense as a move-the-chains back. At 32 years old and with nearly 2,500 carries under his belt, Gore doesn’t have the explosive gear he had earlier in his career. But he does have a knack for getting tough yards. Gore had two scores Sunday, but some of his most important carries came as he kept drives alive on third downs. It may not get him to a Pro Bowl, but ask the Titans, who lost because they couldn’t find someone to do what Gore did.

3. Indianapolis desperately needs a healthy secondary. On Sunday, the Colts gave up 367 passing yards to a team whose two best downfield threats are Delanie Walker and Kendall Wright, who have combined for zero Pro Bowls in 13 previous seasons. Give plenty of credit to Tennessee quarterback Marcus Mariota for making plays, but the Colts too often left receivers running unattended through their defensive backfield. Perhaps it was more than coincidental that Darius Butler (30 career starts, with one coming this year) and Greg Toler (37, with 15 last year) were inactive Sunday with injuries. Through three games, the Colts are giving up a 64.9 percent completion rate and 8.3 yards per attempt against the Titans, Bills and Jets, three teams hardly expected to be among the NFL’s top aerial attacks.

Etc.:

–WR Phillip Dorsett caught his first career touchdown pass on a strike from QB Andrew Luck. The 35-yard catch was a career long.

–P Pat McAfee picked up a first down on his first career rushing attempt. With the ball resting at the Indy 20, the seven-year vet fielded a snap that sailed a bit to his right, and instead of trying to punt, McAfee sprinted to his right for 18 yards.

–TE Jack Doyle, playing due to the absence of TE Dwayne Allen, had a career-best 32 yards receiving. His three catches were his first of the season.