JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Third-string quarterback Charlie Whitehurst led the Tennessee Titans to a place they had not been all year — the end zone on their opening possession.
Whitehurst completed all six of his passes and capped an 84-yard drive with a 8-yard scoring pass to Jacksonville native Leon Washington as the Titans built a 7-0 lead after one quarter.
Whitehurst is filling in for Zach Mettenberger, who is out with an injury to his right shoulder.
The final NFL game on Thursday night had the wrong kind of implications. Both teams are 2-12, and about the only thing at stake this deep in the year was the inside track to get the No. 1 draft pick next year, and to possibly get an easier schedule.
The Titans converted all three of their third downs, including the touchdown pass to Washington. He caught Whitehurst’s pass at the 2 and bulled his way into the end zone.
The Titans had not scored on their first drive all year. And it was a first for the Jaguars, who were one of two teams who had yet to yield a TD on the opening drive. Houston now is the only team with that distinction.
The Jaguars were a slight favorite, which was news itself. The Jaguars had not been favored in their previous 42 games dating to September 2012.
They sure didn’t look like one early on. Blake Bortles, who injured his ankle Sunday against Baltimore and had limited practice this week, completed a 7-yard swing pass to Toby Gerhart on their opening drive. That was their longest play. Bortels had another horizontal pass lose 4 yards.
The Titans had a 110-14 advantage in yards in the opening quarter, and had six first downs to just one for the Jaguars.
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