4-game skid and porous run defense create more frustration for Titans after 38-30 loss to Colts

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tennessee defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons sat at his locker Sunday afternoon and took offense to the playful attitudes around him following a fourth consecutive loss.

He didn't think it was the time or place for such light-heartedness, and the two-time Pro Bowler wasted no time expressing his exasperation to the reporters gathering around him.

"At this point, and I said this a couple weeks ago, it’s like, ‘What are we really playing for? We’re building for next year,’” Simmons said after a 38-30 loss to division rival Indianapolis. "If I see guys who want to quit, I don’t want to be their teammate.”

For a franchise that started this season with such promise — a new coach, a young quarterback with a seemingly bright future and a defense that has held up its end of the bargain most of the season — things seem to be unraveling rapidly.

And it's become increasingly frustrating to Simmons and others.

Tennessee (3-12) has now lost six of seven and has allowed two of its past four opponents to rush for 200 or more yards. On Sunday, Jonathan Taylor handled the Titans for 218 yards and three scores on 29 carries as the Colts rushed for 335 records, breaking a team record that was set in 1956.

How bad was it? The Titans allowed their highest rushing total since the franchise moved from Houston to Tennessee, and Simmons found nothing funny about it.

“Every week when we turn on the tape, it’s the same (thing),” Simmons said. "Guys are out of position, they’re not where they should be, the instincts aren’t there. Stopping the run is not hard. But it does take all 11 guys. It’s not just the defensive line. That’s where it starts, but it just feels like the pieces aren’t fitting right.”

Simmons emphasized that last point more than once, and he knows it will be exposed again on the latest film.

Taylor went virtually untouched on a 65-yard sprint down the right side of the field to give Indy a 14-7 lead in the first half.

Then, after making halftime adjustments, the Titans returned to the field and on the first play watched Taylor sprint 70 yards down the left side of the field to make it 31-7. His third TD run, a 1-yard plunge midway through the third quarter put Tennessee in a 38-7 hole.

“Just look at the tape, there's no secret,” said rookie defensive tackle T'Vondre Sweat, who left the game midway through the first quarter when he was inadvertently poked in the right eye by Taylor.

Sweat returned later in the half.

But the problems didn't go away.

Tennessee committed three more turnovers to the league-high 29 it had entering the game, which was a primary reason first-year coach Brian Callahan benched Will Levis and started Mason Rudolph.

Rudolph threw for 252 yards and two scores, but his interception late in the first half allowed Indy to extend a 17-7 lead to 24-7 at the half. His final interception, as time expired, sealed the outcome.

“We need to play cleaner,” Callahan said. "The down-to-down consistency just isn’t there. We put ourselves in a hole early but it’s been an issue all year. It showed up again.”

In between the errant throws, Taylor and Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson ran wild — something Simmons found so upsetting, he spoke out.

"It’s frustrating as hell, 3-12? I didn’t expect this,” he said. "Coming out of camp, I felt like we had a great camp. At this point, we have to figure out what we’re fighting for. Every guy in the locker room, every coach, needs to ask themselves what we’re playing for.”

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Indianapolis Colts running back Trey Sermon (27) runs the ball past Tennessee Titans linebacker Cedric Gray (51) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Josh Downs (1) scores a touchdown past Tennessee Titans cornerback Daryl Worley (35) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) runs the ball past Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (98) and linebacker Otis Reese IV (41) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson, second from right, runs for a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr. (29) and linebacker Arden Key (49) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (28) scores a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

CINCINNATI (AP) — Dorian Thompson-Robinson didn't put to rest any questions about the Browns' long-term future at quarterback with his performance on Sunday.

Making his first start of the season and fourth of his career, the second-year player was sacked five times and threw two interceptions in Cleveland's 24-6 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. He passed for 157 yards and rushed for 49.

“Yeah, I thought he made some plays with his feet,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. “We got the quarterback out of the pocket a few different times, so I thought he made some plays. Obviously, they pressured him.”

Stefanski said Thompson-Robinson will remain the starter next week against Miami.

Thompson-Robinson took over for Jameis Winston, who was benched after throwing eight interceptions in his past three games. Winston was inactive Sunday with a shoulder injury. Deshaun Watson tore his Achilles tendon earlier this season after playing poorly for seven games, and his $230 million guaranteed contract continues to loom over the franchise.

Thompson-Robinson started three games last season as a rookie, going 1-2.

“I actually told Jameis, ‘I need you to tell me what I’m doing bad, even if I’m not doing something bad, get on me,’” Thompson-Robinson said. “I don’t like to be told what I’m doing good. I need to know what I’m doing bad. The good is going to come.”

There was some good and some bad on Sunday.

Thompson-Robinson showed his ability to extend plays when he scrambled away from pressure and tossed a 12-yard pass to David Njoku on fourth-and-8 in the fourth quarter.

He had an 11-yard touchdown run called back by a holding penalty in the fourth quarter. Four plays later, he was intercepted in the end zone by Geno Stone.

“It wasn’t a good game," Thompson-Robinson said. “I know we had good moments, but good moments don’t win football games. We were harping all week on turnovers. I had two myself.”

The Browns (3-12) didn't help him much. Their protection broke down on several occasions and they had five penalties for 41 yards, some in crucial moments.

“It was a tough game for everybody,” said receiver Jerry Jeudy, who had two catches for 20 yards after topping 100 yards three times in the past five games with Winston throwing him the ball. “It's only one game. We'll look at the mistakes and move on from there. We were on the goal line and got pushed back 20 yards on pre-snap penalties. We can't be doing that.”

Thompson-Robinson tweaked his calf in the first quarter on a play when D'Onta Foreman fumbled on the 1-yard line. Backup Bailey Zappe warmed up on the sideline, but never entered the game. Stefanski said Thompson-Robinson appeared healthy afterward.

“The quarterback is there to play a complete full game and lead his team to victory,” Thompson-Robinson said. “I did not do so today. At the end of the day, we lost this game on turnovers. I have to do a better job.”

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Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Joseph Ossai (58) sacks Cleveland Browns quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Cincinnati. The Bengals won 24-6. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Cleveland Browns quarterback Jameis Winston (5) stands on the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) sacks Cleveland Browns quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (17) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)