The Tennessee Titans had a chance to build on their first win of the season, but instead they walked out of Sunday with their most frustrating loss yet, a 27-24 home defeat to the Cleveland Browns that dropped them to 1-6 at home.
For a team already staring up from a 1-5 hole and a first-year head coach fighting to steady the ship, this was the kind of game that should have been there for the taking. It wasn’t. The Titans let leads slip, the game swung away from them on both sides of the ball, and a winnable matchup turned into another gut punch.
Tony Pollard gave Tennessee everything he had.
With Tyjae Spears and Nick Singleton inactive, Pollard carried the offense and turned in one of the best outings of his Titans tenure. He ran for 129 yards on 25 carries and scored three touchdowns, matching a career high.
He also added 26 receiving yards. Pollard had already burned the Browns last season with 161 rushing yards and two scores in a Tennessee win on the road, and he was just as central this time around, even if the result went the other way.
In the final year of his contract, Pollard has become one of the most dependable pieces on this roster. What happens next in Nashville is still unresolved, but the workload is clearly his as long as Ward and the rest of the offense keep struggling to find steady traction.
On defense, Cor'Dale Flott keeps flashing a skill the Titans badly need.
The offseason addition grabbed his second straight interception after picking off Deshaun Watson in the first quarter, helping Tennessee surge to an early 14-0 lead. That cushion didn’t last.
The Browns clawed back, tied the game, and then Tennessee’s defense cracked on the final drive. Watson finished with 308 passing yards, and Cleveland ultimately hung 27 points on the Titans.
Even with the defense unraveling late, Flott deserves credit for producing turnovers. Compared with fellow signee Alontae Taylor’s issues in the secondary, Flott’s knack for taking the ball away has become a real bright spot for Saleh’s unit. The line didn’t hold up, and the Browns found enough answers to win.
Ward’s day was better than last week, but not good enough.
After going 11/22 for 102 yards against the Indianapolis Colts, the second-year quarterback improved statistically, completing 20 of 31 passes. Still, he finished without a touchdown, threw one interception, and ended up with 181 yards through the air.
Some of the misses weren’t solely on him, either. Carnell Tate lost a fumble and Wan'Dale Robinson dropped a pass.
Even with that context, Ward didn’t do enough to cover for a defense that faded when it mattered most. Last week, Saleh’s defense carried the offense. This time, when the Browns started taking control, Tennessee’s quarterback couldn’t match the push.
And that leads to the question hanging over the entire loss: what changes if Tennessee cashes in on a goal-line chance and stretches the lead to two scores in the first half? Instead, the Titans came up short, and the feeling afterward was simple - they need more from everybody, especially their first overall pick.
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Julius Chestnut showed up to the Titans game against the Browns dressed for Halloween, with a black outfit and a full-face mask that quickly became a talking point online. For a Tennessee team already trying to keep its footing through a rough stretch, even a pregame appearance turned into another moment fans latched onto and criticized on social media.
The reaction came against the backdrop of a week that already had plenty of noise around the Titans, including the recent release of defensive tackle Jordan Elliott after an incident in the team facility parking lot that violated NFL rules. Robert Saleh described Elliotts actions as a lapse in judgment and a call for help, leaving Tennessee to manage yet another off-field storyline while the focus should have been on what was happening on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Cam Ward Debate Just Got Tougher For Titans Fans
The Titans had a chance to reset the conversation Sunday when they jumped out to a 14-0 lead on the Browns, but the familiar issues returned fast in a 27-24 loss. While Cam Wards up-and-down play will keep drawing the loudest scrutiny, the offense showed enough other cracks to make this more than a simple quarterback verdict, especially with Tony Pollard carrying the load on the ground and scoring three times.
Robert Saleh made clear afterward that the offensive struggles are not solely on Ward, and the numbers from Cleveland back up why the debate is getting messier. Ward went 20 of 31 for 181 yards without a touchdown, and his streak of throwing an interception in five straight games only adds to the pressure, but the Titans are also still searching for consistency around him as they try to turn strong starts into wins. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Have One Clear Path To A Browns Upset
The Titans finally got a win in Week 6 against the Colts, and now they return home with a chance to build on it against a Browns team that has spent most of the season looking like one of the steadier clubs in the AFC North. For Robert Saleh, the setting adds a little more pressure, too, since he is still chasing his first home victory as Tennessees head coach.
The clearest opening for the Titans comes up front, where their pass rush could meet a Cleveland offensive line that has had trouble keeping Deshaun Watson upright. Watson has already been sacked 24 times in six games, while Tennessee has put together 16 sacks of its own, and that sort of disparity can matter in a game where the Browns may not want to let the pocket collapse around their quarterback. If the Titans are going to follow up their first win with something bigger, winning that trench battle feels like the most direct route. [Read more 🡒]