Gardner Minshew hit Michael Pittman with a 4-yard touchdown pass with 2:31 left in overtime as the Indianapolis Colts outlasted the Tennessee Titans 31-28 on Sunday in Nashville, Tenn.
Minshew, who was 26 of 42 for 312 yards with two scores, found Alec Pierce for a 55-yard gain to the Titans 4 on Indianapolis’ only possession of the extra period. Two plays later, Pittman caught his 11th pass of the day to keep the Colts (7-5) in playoff position in the AFC.
Tennessee rookie quarterback Will Levis completed 16 of 33 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown, while Derrick Henry rushed 21 times for 102 yards and two scores before leaving with a possible concussion in the fourth quarter.
Tennessee forced overtime when Levis found DeAndre Hopkins for a 3-yard touchdown with 5:26 left in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 25. But Nick Folk missed the extra point wide left, preventing the Titans (4-8) from winning in regulation.
Folk gave Tennessee a 28-25 edge with 4:19 remaining in overtime when he drilled a 46-yard field goal, capping a drive that lasted nearly six minutes.
Looking to remain unbeaten in Nashville this season, Tennessee came out of the starting block at full speed. The Titans needed less than two minutes to initiate scoring, as Henry finished off a 64-yard drive with a 22-yard touchdown run.
Indianapolis answered right away with Minshew connecting with Pierce on a 36-yard scoring strike at the 12:05 mark of the first quarter. Tennessee regained the edge as Folk connected on a 24-yard field goal with 13 seconds left in the period.
Henry made it 17-7 with 10:22 remaining in the first half on a 5-yard touchdown run. But Indianapolis made its way back into contention with 23- and 46-yard field goals by Matt Gay in the final 7:39, cutting the Tennessee lead to 17-13 at the half.
With 19 seconds left in the third quarter, Nick Cross blocked a punt by the Titans’ Ryan Stonehouse, which Grant Stuard recovered and returned 18 yards for a touchdown for a 22-17 Colts lead. Then on the ensuing two-point conversion attempt, Amani Hooker intercepted a tipped pass near the goal line and returned it the length of the field for a two-point play to make it 22-19.
Gay made it 25-19 with a 28-yard field goal with 11:34 left in regulation.
–Field Level Media
