Raiders at Titans: Highlights, score, and recap

The improving Tennessee Titans almost came back, but ultimately lost to the Oakland Raiders on Sunday.

Once again, the Oakland Raiders defense surrendered plenty of yards.
But this time, Jack Del Rio’s club was pretty stingy when it came to allowing points. And Ken Norton Jr.’s unit came up big when it had to in a 17-10 victory in Nashville against the Tennessee Titans.

After surrendering a combined 69 points in their first two outings of the season, the Silver and Black buckled down when it had to and stopped Marcus Mariota and company deep in Oakland territory in the closing seconds.

The Raiders are now 2-0 on the road this season (0-1 at home).

Del Rio’s defenders did allow 393 total yards, including 181 on the ground (114 by DeMarco Murray), but the team’s two veteran offseason additions, cornerback Sean Smith and free safety Reggie Nelson, each picked off Mariota once.

All told, the Raiders forced three turnovers in the victory and their defense limited Tennessee to just 2-of-12 on third-down conversions.

Meanwhile, Oakland quarterback Derek Carr threw for 249 yards and a score (to Seth Roberts) and was picked off once in the seven-point win. Del Rio and company beat the Titans on the road for the second consecutive year.

Highlights

Three Stars

1. Michael Crabtree

Teammate Derek Carr threw for 249 yards and fellow wideout Seth Roberts caught the quarterback’s lone touchdown pass of the game. But Crabtree was targeted 11 times and finished the afternoon with eight receptions for 102 yards as the Raiders escaped with a win.

2. DeMarco Murray

Murray continues to show that 2015 was simply a nightmare. The move from the City of Brotherly Love to Nashville has been solid. The versatile performer totaled 155 yards from scrimmage in Tennessee’s 17-10 loss, including 114 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

3. Karl Joseph

The 2016 first-round pick from West Virginia made his initial NFL start on Sunday and responded with a team-high 10 tackles in Oakland’s win. After surrendering 34 and 35 points, respectively, in their first two games this season, Joseph and the Raiders defense came up with the necessary plays when it counted most.

must read: NFL Week 3: Picks and Predictions

Odds

After opening the week as a 1-point home favorite, the Tennessee Titans were a slight underdog (-1) by Sunday against the Oakland Raiders.

MORE FROM FANSIDED:

10 Best NFL QB/Head Coach combos
10 craziest NFL fan bases
Each NFL team’s best draft pick

Next Week

The Oakland Raiders hit the road for the third time in four weeks when they travel to Baltimore to face the Ravens. The Tennessee Titans play their first AFC South rival of the season as Mike Mularkey’s club squares off with the Texans in Houston.