Titans blow down Dolphins
MIAMI — An approaching hurricane failed to faze the Tennessee Titans, and the Miami Dolphins’ offense didn’t give them much trouble, either.
Tennessee made three interceptions Saturday, including one in its end zone and another returned 37 yards for a touchdown by former Washington State player Lamont Thompson, during a 17-7 win over Miami.
To avoid bad weather associated with Hurricane Ivan, kickoff was moved up 24 hours, which scrambled the Titans’ itinerary. But Tennessee improved to 43-30 on the road under coach Jeff Fisher.
“We knew early in the week that the game could be changed, so we were ready,” cornerback Andre Dyson said. “You have to be ready for anything, and we were.”
Both Jay Fiedler and A.J. Feeley struggled to move the Dolphins. Fiedler threw two interceptions, drew boos and was replaced at halftime with Miami trailing 7-0. Feeley, under pressure from a blitzing Keith Bulluck, was intercepted by Thompson for Tennessee’s second TD.
“He threw it right to me,” Thompson said. “That worked out easy for me, because all I had to do was catch it and run with it.”
The Dolphins, who tied a franchise record with 14 penalties, averted a shutout when Feeley threw a 15-yard TD pass to Randy McMichael with 3 minutes, 22 seconds left.
Chris Brown, making his first start as Eddie George’s replacement, set up a TD with a 52-yard run, the Titans’ longest since 1998. Brown gained 100 yards in 16 carries but sat out the second half with a sprained left ankle.
Steve McNair threw 14 passes – one for a score – and the Titans outrushed the Dolphins 182-65.
“When you’ve got a great running back in Chris, and when you have a passing attack like we’ve got, what do you defend?” said McNair.
The Dolphins had no answer – and relatively few fans. Miami announced 69,987 tickets sold, but the schedule switch limited the actual crowd to half that.
It wasn’t the start sought by the Dolphins, who hoped to bounce back from a tumultuous summer that included the loss of three top players – Ricky Williams to retirement, David Boston to injury and Adewale Ogunleye in a trade following a contract dispute.
Miami’s best drive in the first half reached the Tennessee 20, but Samari Rolle intercepted Fiedler in the end zone.
“We just knew that if we challenged their receivers and suffocated the running game, we didn’t think any of those quarterbacks could get anything,” Rolle said.
Fiedler led his team to three first downs before getting the hook from coach Dave Wannstedt. He went 5 for 13 for 42 yards, while Feeley went 21 for 31 for 168 yards.
Fiedler, Miami’s starter the past four years, said he was disappointed and frustrated to be benched so quickly.
“We were down one touchdown,” he said. “I’ve been in a lot of games where I’ve struggled early and come back and won games. I didn’t lack any confidence to be able to do that again.”