The Tennessee Titans overcome a 10-0 halftime deficit that saw them out-gained by a 191-55 margin to beat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 on a 44-yard field goal from Randy Bullock with four seconds left to play.
A.J. Brown had six catches for 121 yards in the second half alone as part of a 145-yard night for the Titans to spark their second half rally.
The Titans gained as many yards on the first drive of the third quarter as they had in the first 30 minutes of the game. The drive led to a 38-yard Bullock field goal to give Tennessee their first points of the night and cut the lead to 10-3.
After Jimmy Garoppolo’s second interception of the night, D’Onta Foreman scored on a 3-yard run to tie the game at 10-10 midway through the third quarter.
The 49ers moved into Tennessee territory and were set to go for a fourth-and-1 from the Titans’ 35-yard line only for Trent Williams to false start and make it fourth-and-6. The 49ers still went for the conversion with Garoppolo and Brandon Aiyuk missing a connection to turn the ball over on downs.
Brown bailed the Titans out with a jump ball catch of a Tannehill prayer throw on third-and-23 to keep the Tennessee drive marching forward. Brown added a 12-yard catch as well before an 18-yard strike from Tannehill got Tennessee back in the end zone to give them their first lead of the night at 17-10 with 13:02 left to play.
After a Brett Kern punt pinned the 49ers back at their own 5-yard line, their offense finally put together a big drive. A 15-yard catch from Kyle Juszczyk got the 49ers off their own goal line and a 56-yard catch-and-run through the Titans defense moved San Francisco into scoring territory. Two plays later, Garoppolo found Aiyuk wide open on a 2-yard touchdown to bring the game level again with 2:20 remaining.
Tannehill cut through the 49ers defense on a critical 23-yard scramble to move into field goal range with just over a minute left to play. San Francisco would force the field goal attempt but Bullock delivered the dagger to give Tennessee the victory.
Tannehill finished the night completing 22-of-29 passes for 209 yards with a touchdown for Tennessee.
The 49ers should have had a much larger lead in the first half. They marched 75 yards on their opening drive with Jeff Wilson Jr. scoring on a 1-yard touchdown to take the early 7-0 lead. They were rolling again on their second drive as well with a 72-yard drive down to the Tennessee 8-yard line. However, Jackrabbit Jenkins picked off Garoppolo in the end zone on a pass intended for George Kittle to turn the 49ers away without points.
Robbie Gould added a 48-yard field goal to give the 49ers a 10-0 lead midway through the second quarter.
Deebo Samuel had 159 yards on nine receptions for San Francisco. Garoppolo finished 26-of-35 for 322 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
The Titans will win the AFC South if the Indianapolis Colts lose on the road at the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday.
