Week 13 Recap – Tennessee Titans at Washington Commanders
Washington Wins Big Over Titans 42-19
December 2, 2024
By Noonefromtampa
First Quarter
Washington won the coin toss and deferred until the second half. Julius Chestnut returned the kickoff 24 yards to Titans 28 yard line. The Titans, who are one of the most penalized teams in the league, started the game with a false start backing them up five yards. Tony Pollard ran for no gain after being tackled by Frankie Luvu at the line of scrimmage. The Titans got a second false start and then lost three yards on a Pollard screen play. On third down Luvu hit Will Levis as he threw and the ball fell incomplete. Ryan Stonehouse punted the ball 50 yards and Olamide Zaccheaus returned it 7 yards to the Washington 41 yard line.
On Washington’s first possession, Jayden Daniels came out throwing and connected with Terry McLaurin for 10 yards, then hit Noah Brown for 9 yards. Brian Robinson then took the hand off and ran a counter to the right and ran 40 yards untouched for a touchdown. Zane Gonzalez made the extra point to give the Commanders a 7-0 lead.
Chestnut returned the kickoff 26 yards out to the thirty. Pollard ran twice for 6 yards and 5 yards for a first down. Levis threw the ball away on first down ahead the Washington pass rush. The Titans then ran a tight end screen to Nick Vannett for 6 yards. On third and four, Luvu batted the pass and tackle JC Latham caught it for no gain. Stonehouse punted it into the end zone for a touchback.
On Washington’s second drive, starting from their own twenty, Robinson ran for 4 yards and Daniels ran a quarterback draw for 5 yards. On third and short, Daniels hit McLaurin for 9 yards. Zach Ertz caught the next throw for 6 yards. Offsetting penalties negated a first down run, but Robinson gained three yards on a run to get the first down. He then ripped off a 16 yard run down to the Titans 37 yard line. After a 5 yard scramble by Daniels, he hit McLaurin for 11 yards to the Titans 21 yard line. Jeremy McNichols ran around left end for 12 yards to set up a first and goal from the 9. McNichols ran for 6 yards and Daniels scored a touchdown on an option play. Gonzalez nailed the extra point making the lead 14-0.
On the ensuing kickoff, Tennessee was called for and illegal block above the waist penalty, backing them up to their own 15. Pollard ran for 4 yards on first down but on the next play Mike Sainristil ripped the ball out of Pollard’s arms and he recovered the ball at the Titans 24 yard line.
Robinson ran for 8 yards on first down but was stopped for no gain on second down. Daniels then found an open McLaurin on a crosser through the Titans zone coverage for a 16 yard touchdown. The extra point was good but Sam Cosmi was called for unnecessary roughness on the play. Washington’s lead stood at 21-0.
Jha’Quan Jackson fumbled the kickoff return on a hit by Tyler Owens, and the ball was recovered by Mykal Walker. Daniels scrambled for 7 yards on the last play of quarter.
Second Quarter
Robinson ran for no gain on second down and Tennessee was called for defensive holding on third down, which gave Washington a fresh set of downs. Robinson ran for 10 yards down to the Titans 12 yard line. Daniels lost 2 yards and had a pass batted down, putting Washington in a third and twelve situation. The Titans were called for roughing the passer on third down, which gave the Commanders a first and goal at the five yard line. Robinson for 4 yards on first down but lost 3 yards on second down. Daniels threw a quick slant to McLaurin for a touchdown. The play was reviewed but upheld. Gonzalez converted the extra point for a 28-0 lead.
Unsurprisingly, Chestnut was back to return the next kickoff, but the Titans were called for holding, which backed them up to their own 15. Chigoziem Okonkwo caught a 5 yard pass from Levis and the Tians were called for holding again on second down. Okonkow caught an 8 yard pass but the third down throw went off his hands for an incompletion. Stonehouse kicked a booming 57 yard punt which Zaccheaus returned 13 yards. However, Mike Davis was called for unnecessary roughness which backed the Commanders up to their own 12 yard line.
Zaccheaus caught a 7 yard swing pass on first down. McNichols ran for two yards on second down, but the Titans were called for a facemask on the tackle. McNichols ran for 5 yards and then Daniels ran for 12 yards on a designed run play. On a flea-flicker play, Daniels checked down to Noah Brown for 7 yards and then McNichols for 6 yards to pick up the first down. Daniels completed passes to Zaccheaus for 3 yards and Brown for 11 yards. After a 1 yard run by McNichols, Washington was called for an ineligible man downfield penalty which cost them 5 yards. Daniels was sacked for a 6 yard loss on the next play. The Titans were called for too many men on the field before the next play. Washington then was called for a false start which put them back at third and 20. They elected to run for yards. After the two-minute warning, Gonzalez missed a 46 yard field goal wide right.
On the Titans’ subseqent possession, after two incompletions then Levis hit Okonkwo for 14 yards and the first down. Luvu sacked Levis for a 1 yard loss. After another incompletion, the Titans were called for holding. Levis was able escape the pass rush and complete a 30 yard pass to Calvin Ridley down to the Washington 31 yard. The Titans were then called for a false start. After an incompletion, Levis hit Tyler Boyd for 9 yards. Levis threw a go route pass to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine over Sainristil for a 27 yard touchdown. The extra point was good, cutting the lead to 28-7.
After the touchback, Daniels threw a swing pass to Luke McCaffrey for 6 yards and McLaurin for 3 yards to end the half.
Third Quarter
McNichols returned the second half kickoff 22 yards to the Washington 22 yard line. Robinson was for 1 yard, then Washington was called for penalties on successive plays. An illegal blindside block on Ertz on second down was assessed but a holding call was declined due to the incompletion, making it third and twenty. Dyami Brown caught a screen pass for 7 yards, which led to Tress Way‘s first punt of the day.
Tennessee started at their own 37 after the punt and ran Pollard for 4 yards on first down. Levis was sacked for a 1 yard loss on second down, but Boyd then caught a 16 yard pass to get the first down. Pollard ran for 3 yards and Levis hit Ridley for 15 yards to the Washington 26 yard line. Tyjae Spears ran for 3 yards over right tackle brought down by Luvu. Levis then had two incompletions, including a dropped pass by Pollard forcing a 41 yard field goal by Nick Folk which was good. The Washington lead shrunk to 28-10.
After the kickoff, Washington started with an incompletion and a 3 yard completion Ben Sinnott. On third down Javis Brownlee was called for pass interference on McLaurin giving Washington a first down. After a one yard run by Robinson, Dyami Brown caught a short pass and ran for 13 yards. Daniels tried to hit Ertz in the middle of the field but the pass was high and Ertz tipped it up and it was intercepted by Armani Hooker at the Tennessee 38 yard line.
Levis threw a short pass to Westbrook-Ikhine which he took for 17 yards. After an incompletion, which was another Pollard drop, Pollard caught a 30 yard pass down to the Washington 15 yard line. Levis threw the ball away to avoid the pass rush on first down. On second down, Fowler tackled Levis for a 3 yard loss on a designed run and then the center botched the snap, giving Fowler an easy 8 yard sack on Levis, who recovered the ball. Folk converted the 44 yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-13.
Following McNichols’ return to the 28 yard line, Robinson ran for 4 yards and McLaurin caught a slant for 5 yards. On third and short, Robinson broke through the middle for 8 yards and the first down. Robinson then caught a pass for 6 yards which led to the big play of the drive a 25 yard completion to Ertz up the right seam to the Titans 24 yard line. A screen to Dyami Brown went to 12 yards and Chris Rodriguez, in his first action of the day, picked up 4 yards down to the Titans 8 yard line to end the quarter.
Fourth Quarter
Robinson ran for 4 yards to the four and then in a great run fake, Daniels hit a wide-open Ertz for the touchdown. The extra point was good, to make the lead 35-13.
After the touchback, Levis overthrew an open Ridley deep down the left sideline. Another incompletion brought up a third and ten, where Levis led an open Ridley too much, forcing a punt. Zaccheaus returned the punt 11 yards to the Washington 29 yard line.
Rodriguez ran for 17 yards following an incomplete throw to Dyami Brown. Daniels scrambled for 4 yards and Rodriguez added another 4 yards. On third down, Rodriguez ran for 8 yards and the first down. Two successive runs by Rodriguez and Brown each went for 4 yards. After a 4 yard loss, Gonzalez attempted a 52 yard field goal which was right wide again.
On the Titans’ next possession, Josh Whyle caught a three yard pass from Levis to start the drive. After an incompletion, Jeremy Chinn was called for pass interference for 15 yards giving the Titans a first down. Pollard ran for 7 yards and Boyd had a 13 yard reception and trucked Quan Martin who left the game with a shoulder injury. After an incompletion, Pollard caught a 3 yard pass and then Levis hit Westbrook-Ikhine for a 17 yard touchdown in front of Chinn. Sainristil broke up the two-point conversion attempt, making the score 35-19.
After the kickoff return, Rodriguez ripped off a 25 yard run up the middle of the defense. Rodriguez picked up 7 yards on the next two plays and Daniels scrambled for 1 yard on third down. Washington elected to go for it on fourth down and Daniels hit McCaffrey for 7 yards to extend the drive. Rodriguez ran for 5 yards on first down and Dyami Brown caught a short pass for 3 yards. On third down, Daniels faked a keeper around the left end but stopped and threw to a wide open for McLaurin for 16 yards to the Titans 7 yard line. Rodriguez ran it from there over left tackle. Gonzalez converted the extra point for a 42-19 lead.
The Titans drive consisted of a defensive pass interference penalty on Bobby Wagner, followed by a 2 yard pass to Pollard and three incompletions to force a turnover on downs.
Rodriguez ran for 5 yard to take the clock to the two-minute warning. After the timeout, Rodriguez ran two more times for 8 yards and the first down. The team then went into victory formation to run out the clock.
Thoughts
The Titans made a lot of mistakes with dropped passes, turnovers and penalties to help Washington out early in the game. To Washington’s credit, they exploited the turnovers and scored touchdowns.
Washington will be auditioning kickers this week for sure. Two missed field goals are concerning given how close NFL final scores are.
The defense regressed in the second half, allowing Tennessee a couple of long drives when the offense sputtered. Third quarter play seems to be an issue with this team.
Washington ran the ball well, with Brian Robinson gaining 103 yards and Chris Rodriguez getting another 94 yards. Plus, both scored rushing touchdowns.
Jayden Daniels also played well, having 25 completions against 30 attempts for 206 yards, with three touchdowns and one interception. Terry McLaurin caught 8 of those passes for 73 yards and two touchdowns.