GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NFL: TENNESSEE (6-3) at DENVER (4-5)

By Tony Desiere
PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer


DENVER (Ticker) -- Three weeks after having their heart broken onthe Monday night stage by a big play, the Denver Broncosfigured turnabout was fair play.


Jay Cutler threw for an efficient 200 yards and two touchdownsand reserve running back Andre Hall broke a long fourth-quarterscoring run to lead the Broncos to a 34-20 victory over theTennessee Titans.


After driving for a late field goal against the Green BayPackers to send the game into overtime on October 29 on MondayNight Football, Denver promptly lost the game on the first playof the extra period when Brett Favre beat Broncos cornerbackDre' Bly with an 82-yard TD pass to Greg Jennings to send theBroncos to a 19-13 defeat.


"The way we lost to Green Bay, we got beat," Bly said. "I gotbeat. That's not the way you want to lose. To play a team likeTennessee who is 6-3 and at the top of their division withIndianapolis. ... I think we dominated them in all phases."

The Broncos were all too happy to be on the giving end of thebig plays as all four of the Broncos' touchdowns in this contestcame from more than 40 yards away.


"We just came out and played like we knew we could," Cutlersaid. "Our guys can make plays and we know that. Tonight, itjust came together."


"It all came down to missed tackles," Titans coach Jeff Fishersaid. "We had missed tackles on the long touchdown run, andmissed tackles on the long pass play. That's the problem withmissed tackles."


On Denver's first possession of the game, Cutler capped asix-play, 80-yard drive with a 48-yard TD strike to BrandonStokley for a quick 7-0 lead. Following a three-and-out by theTitans, Glenn Martinez broke away from the pack on the ensuingpunt return and went 80 yards for Denver's first punt return fora score since 2003 to increase the bulge to 14-0.


"I saw and opening and took off," Martinez said. "I got somegreat blocking up front. It's a real credit to our specialteams. They made that happen."


"They made a lot of plays and we did not," Fisher said. "Thatwas the difference. Dropped passes, foolish penalties,turnovers against Denver does not give you a chance to win theballgame."


After the Titans closed the gap to 20-10 at intermission, Cutlernailed Brandon Marshall from 41 yards away to complete an80-yard drive to open the second half.


Hall, who replaced rookie starter Selvin Young due to a sprainedknee, accounted for the final score when he broke through theleft side of the line on his first carry of the game for a62-yard TD - the first score of his career.


"He was our last tailback and Andre took advantage of hisopportunity," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said. "We needed abig play at that time, and that's one thing about the runninggame. You keep pounding and every once in a while, you breakone of those."


Young returned to the game in the fourth quarter after Hallappeared to suffer an injury. Young finished with 74 yards anda touchdown.


Cutler finished 16-of-21 for the Broncos (5-5), who forged afirst-place tie in the AFC East with the San Diego Chargers(5-5).


"We were down low for a while," Cutler said. "We're not lookingahead to anything. Everything is going well and we need tokeep going."


"It's where we need to be," Marshall said. "It's our division.It's always been our division. Now it's time to take it back."

The Titans (6-4), who have one of the better defenses in theleague, were playing without defensive end Albert Haynesworth,who was out with a hamstring injury. They gave up 344 totalyards to the Broncos who punted only three times in the entiregame, scoring on all but four possessions.


"Losing Albert is tough," Fisher said. "We still need to makeplays but when you don't have a player of his ability, you can'teasily replace him. We still needed to make plays."

Tennessee, which was allowing just 66 rushing yards througheight games this season, has surrendered an average of 157 yardsover the last two weeks without Haynesworth in the lineup inlosses to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Broncos, who rushed for148 yards.


Vince Young went 26-for-41 for 305 yards with a TD and twointerceptions. It was his first career 300-yard passingperformance.


"(It was) a tough night but I thought our guys hung in there,"Young said. "We've got to keep playing and keep working."