Colts punt block collapse hands Titans 26-20 road win
Tennessee scored 20 straight points after being shut out for more than a half at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Tennessee’s Oluwafemi Oladejo scooped a blocked punt and ran 14 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter Sunday, breaking a tie and propelling the Titans to a 26-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Julius Chestnut broke through the protection line untouched as punter Rigoberto Sanchez started his motion from the Indianapolis 37-yard line. The ball caromed into the backfield. Oladejo grabbed it before it settled. Tennessee led for the first time all afternoon. Indianapolis never recovered.
The play exposed a protection breakdown head coach Shane Steichen acknowledged seeing twice before. Tennessee nearly reached Sanchez on two prior punts. No schematic adjustment followed.
“It has to be (fixed), and of course we’re going to look at that really freaking hard on this week,” Steichen said.
Indianapolis held Tennessee scoreless for more than 30 minutes. Then the defense and special teams surrendered 20 consecutive points. Blocked punts returned for scores remain statistically rare in the NFL — typically fewer than five occur across an entire regular season — making the failure to correct the blocking assignment after two near-misses particularly damaging in a divisional game.
Daniel Jones engineered one response. The quarterback directed an eight-play, 72-yard drive ending in a touchdown to knot the score again. It was the final points Indianapolis managed. Wide receiver Josh Downs converted a critical first down during the march. Deion Burks hauled in a pass earlier in the contest.
Keenan Allen dropped a pass later in the second half. Running back Jonathan Taylor, who warmed up alongside Jones before kickoff, could not generate enough ground production to sustain drives once Tennessee adjusted its defensive front.
Boos replaced cheers inside Lucas Oil Stadium by the final whistle. Safety Jonathan Owens had greeted his wife, gymnast Simone Biles, on the sideline before the game began. Fan Vicky Parks watched pregame warmups from the stands hours earlier. By late in the fourth quarter, the atmosphere had turned hostile toward the home team.
The loss drops Indianapolis further behind in the AFC South standings heading into Week 7.
