Titans QB Mason Rudolph gets another chance at starting, this time against the Jags

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Coach Brian Callahan is sticking with Mason Rudolph at quarterback for a second straight game to see if the Tennessee Titans can build on the veteran who's played in four of their highest scoring games this season.

Callahan said Tuesday that he thinks Rudolph earned another chance to play despite a 38-30 loss to Indianapolis.

“Obviously the one interception was probably his only really poor moment," Callahan said. "The rest of it was pretty well executed on his part and operated in a drop-back passing game and had to fight his way back through it. And it was good to see, so we’ll let him take another crack at it.”

Rudolph is 2-4 in the six games he's played in this season. That includes coming in for an injured Will Levis on Sept. 30 in a 31-12 win at Miami, and he tried to rally the Titans in a turnover-plagued 37-27 loss to Cincinnati before being selected as the starter last week.

Rudolph, who is in Tennessee on a one-year deal, was 23 of 34 for 252 yards with two touchdown passes and three interceptions. One went off running back Tony Pollard's hands with the final pick coming on the last play of the game after Rudolph led a rally from a 38-7 deficit in the final 18 minutes.

Rudolph's ability to avoid sacks is a key piece of sticking with him over Levis, the 33rd pick overall in the 2023 draft.

The quarterbacks' stats are similar with Rudolph having eight TD passes and eight interceptions, completing 63.8% of his passes with a 78.8 passer rating. That’s similar to Levis completing 63.7% of his passes with 12 TD passes and 12 interceptions.

But Levis has been sacked 40 times compared to just seven for Rudolph.

“He’s got the ability to avoid the negative play when it comes to sacks," Callahan said of Rudolph. “He gets the ball out. He knows where to go with it quickly.”

That means Rudolph gets a chance Sunday when the Titans (3-12) visit the Jacksonville Jaguars (3-12) to see if he can guide the offense to more than the six points Levis managed against their AFC South rival in a 10-6 loss on Dec. 8 in Nashville.

Rudolph said he knows he put the Titans defense in a bad spot with some turnovers.

"I’m ready to prove that I can take care of the ball better and keep scoring points,” Rudolph said.

The Titans held a walk-through Tuesday with Callahan giving the team Wednesday off for Christmas. An injury report won't be released until Wednesday, and Callahan said it'll likely be lengthy. RG Dillon Radunz, who was knocked out of last week's game with an injury, will be on that report.

Lineman Jaelyn Duncan, who hurt a hamstring badly enough early in his first start at right tackle Oct. 20 that he wound up on injured reserve, will be available. Callahan said he is excited to see Duncan play.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Tennessee Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) is sacked by Indianapolis Colts defensive end Kwity Paye (51) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Tennessee Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) throws a pass over Indianapolis Colts defensive end Laiatu Latu (97) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tennessee Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) throws during the second half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan looks onto the field during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tennessee Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) warms up before an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

MOSCOW (AP) — An Azerbaijani airliner has crashed in the Kazakhstani city of Aktau with Kazakhstan’s Emergency Ministry now saying that at least 28 people survived the crash, which could mean that over 30 people are likely dead. 4 bodies have been recovered.

The ministry confirmed in a Telegram statement Wednesday that 67 people, including five crew, were on board the plane. It added that 28 of them survived the crash and have been hospitalized. Russian news agency Interfax cited the ministry as saying that there may be more survivors.

The Embraer 190 aircraft made an emergency landing 3 km from the city, Azerbaijan Airlines said earlier.

Kazakhstan’s Emergency Ministry initially said 25 people survived the crash, later revising that number to 27 and then to 28 as the search and rescue operation continued at the site of the crash, bringing the supposed death toll down.

The plane was originally scheduled to travel from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus.

A spokesperson for Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency said that preliminary information showed that the pilot had chosen to divert to Aktau after a bird strike on the aircraft led to “an emergency situation on board”.

Mobile phone footage circulating online appeared to show the aircraft making a steep descent before smashing into the ground in a fireball. Other footage showed part of its fuselage ripped away from the wings and the rest of the aircraft, lying upside in the grass. The footage corresponded to the plane’s colors and its registration number.

Flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24.com showed the aircraft making what appeared to be a figure-right once nearing the airport in Aktau, its altitude moving up and down substantially over the last minutes of the flight before impacting the ground.

FlightRadar24 separately said in an online post that the aircraft had faced “strong GPS jamming” which “ made the aircraft transmit bad ADS-B data”, referring to the information that allows flight-tracking websites to follow planes in flight. Russia has been blamed in the past for jamming GPS transmissions in the wider region.

Embraer did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Wednesday morning. In a statement, Azerbaijan Airlines said it would keep members of the public updated and changed its social media banners to solid black.

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo)

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo)