The Titans beat the Dolphins 30-17 Sunday and, in the process, displayed their blueprint for winning football.
A physical running game set the tone, and the defense flew around, wearing the Dolphins down under the hot south Florida sun.
It was just what Jon Robinson and Mike Mularkey envisioned the day they were hired and began to build this roster. The two sides of the ball playing in perfect complement to each other.
"We want to complement each other," Mularkey said. "We want the offense to hold (the ball) as long as it can and the defense to get it back. We gave up the one big play on the return, but other than that did a good job."
Rarely do you see a NFL game dominated in the trenches the way this game was.
The Titans set the tone from the start with DeMarco Murray rushing for eight and 12 yard gains on the game's first two plays. For the game, Murray ran for a season-high 121 yards on 27 carries and the Titans piled up 235 yards on the ground.
It was an effort motivated in part by the talk of several Dolphins players this week that they would be able to shut down Murray and the running game.
"They heard it," Mularkey said. "And they took the challenge."
"We were motivated," right tackle Jack Conklin said. "We want to run the ball and you see what happens when we get it going."
The rushing attack opened things up for Marcus Mariota to have his best game of the season as well. The second-year quarterback completed 21 of 29 of 29 passes, throwing three touchdowns and running for another.
"This is the standard," Mariota said. "It's great to get a win and put up points like that."
The Titans came in ranked near the bottom of the NFL in scoring at 15.75 points per game. They nearly doubled that output Sunday, and perhaps even more importantly, finished without a turnover for the first time in 22 games.
And the defense once again did its part, limiting the Dolphins offense to just one touchdown on just 200 yards of total offense. Derrick Morgan, Jurrell Casey and Brian Orakpo each had a pair of sacks as the Titans harassed Ryan Tannehill all afternoon.
"We have the players to be a dominant defense," Casey said. "This is how we can play every game."
Despite allowing just 100 yards in the first half, the Titans found themselves in a tie game just before half due to a pair of big plays. For the second straight week, the Titans surrendered a punt return for a touchdown as Jakeem Grant raced 74 yards to tie the game at 7. And then, a 58 yard pass to Damien Williams set up the score that tied the game at 14.
But the Titans didn't blink.
Mariota directing a 75 yard touchdown drive before halftime, completing all five of his passes on the drive and breaking free for a 21 yard scramble. His 20 yard touchdown pass to Delanie Walker put Tennessee in front for good.
"That was big," Walker said. "We knew we had to finish and we did."
And the defense shut the door in the second half, allowing just three points while forcing a pair of interceptions. The second one by Daimion all but ended the game.
Now that they've displayed the blueprint, the Titans have to figure out how to deliver this winning effort every Sunday. They haven't won back to back games since since 2014, but have a golden opportunity with home games against the Browns, Colts and Jaguars the next three weeks.
"If we can keep playing like this, we'll be tough to beat," Morgan said. "Now we have to start stacking some wins together."
It's only one win. The Titans are still just 2-3 on the season. But Sunday was a glimpse of the team they want to be.
