Tennessee quarterback Marcus Mariota completed 21 of 29 passes for 240 yards with a pair of touchdowns and run for a third for 4:38 remaining to carry the Titans to a 28-14 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night.
The Cowboys had seemingly dominated the first quarter of the game as Mariota lost a pair of fumbles on their first two drives. However, Dallas managed only seven points of their own on a touchdown pass from Dak Prescott to Amari Cooper. Brett Maher missed a 38-yard field goal and Prescott was intercepted by Kevin Byard in the end zone after the Cowboys had reached the Titans 4-yard line as Dallas could only manage a 7-0 cushion despite the ball bouncing their way early on.
Cooper caught five passes for 58 yards and a touchdown in his first game with the Cowboys.
Following the lost fumbles on their first two possessions of the game, the Titans mounted back-to-back touchdown drives to take the lead. Derrick Henry’s 1-yard run capped a 15-play, 80-yard drive to even the game at 7-7. Mariota then connected with Dion Lewis for a 18-yard touchdown as the Titans grabbed their first lead of the night.
Prescott would connect with Allen Hurns for a 23-yard touchdown to tie the game at 14-14 headed into halftime. Prescott completed 21 of 31 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns with an interception for Dallas.
Jayon Brown sacked Prescott and forced a fumble that was recovered by the Titans at the Cowboys 40-yard line. Seven plays later, Mariota would hit Jonnu Smith on a shovel pass for a 7-yard touchdown to grab a 21-14 lead. After a missed 28-yard field goal by Ryan Succop kept the lead at just seven with 11 minutes remaining, Mariota would lead one more scoring drive to seal the victory. Mariota scrambled for a 9-yard touchdown to cap a 64-yard touchdown drive and give Tennessee the 28-14 advantage.
