Titans rally to end Jets’ playoff chances
Associated Press
nashville
Chris Johnson went 94 yards for the longest touchdown run in the NFL since 2006 and the Tennessee Titans beat the Jets 14-10 on Monday night to eliminate New York from playoff contention.
Jake Locker’s first touchdown run of the season put Tennessee ahead late in the third quarter and the Titans intercepted four passes by a struggling Mark Sanchez to snap a three-game skid.
The Jets (6-8) needed to win their final three games and get help elsewhere to earn an AFC playoff spot. Instead, the Titans sacked Sanchez three times and got a fourth on Tim Tebow. Jason McCourty and Michael Griffin each had two interceptions, keeping the Jets out of the playoffs a second straight season after reaching consecutive AFC title games.
Johnson, with the names of the victims of Friday’s shootings in Connecticut written on his cleats, ran 94 yards for a franchise-record TD in the second quarter. Locker’s 13-yard TD run at the end of the third put the Titans (5-9) ahead to stay.
The Jets took a 10-7 lead when Sanchez and Jeff Cumberland connected on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 3:19 to go in the third.
The Titans responded on their next possession with Locker’s first touchdown run of the season, capping a seven-play, 64-yard drive.
On Cumberland’s touchdown, the Jets’ tight end caught a third-and-12 pass at about the 5-yard line after getting behind Titans linebacker Tim Shaw, starting in place of injured defensive captain Colin McCarthy. Cumberland headed into the end zone from there.
The Jets began that drive at the Titans 35 after Brett Kern shanked a 30-yard punt. Kern has been one of the few steady performers this season for the Titans.