Jaguars Top Titans At Gun

Fernando Bryant figured a groundbreaking win deserved a high-flying celebration. He named it the Jaguar Jump.

The Jacksonville Jaguars snapped a five-game stretch of futility against the Tennessee Titans when Mike Hollis hit a 38-yard field goal with no time left Sunday for a 16-13 victory.

Bryant's postgame antics were as memorable as Hollis' kick, or the 28-yard attempt Titans kicker Al Del Greco missed one drive earlier.

Bryant needed help getting over the high wall on the north side of Alltel Stadium. The fans gave him a lift, and the second-year cornerback danced in the stands, as the Jaguars (5-7) finally celebrated a big win in a season of disappointments.

"They were talking about how this is their house, how they own us," Bryant said of the Titans. "You take that to heart. They're coming in and talking about how this is their second home and everything. Jacksonville is my home. Those are my fans. More than disrespecting us, they're disrespecting our fans. You take that seriously."

Fisher likened Alltel to Tennessee's home away from home, and for good reason. The Titans (9-3) brought a three-game Alltel winning streak to town, including a 33-14 thumping in last season's AFC title game.

"Nothing will ever make up for that," said Jaguars running back Fred Taylor, who ran for 104 yards. "But we're playing for pride. We're playing so they don't get home-field advantage. I'm not going to tal too much trash, but it feels good."

The Titans fell one game behind the Raiders in the race for the AFC's best record and saw their AFC Central lead over Baltimore shaved to one-half game.

Once again, Del Greco must shoulder the blame.

He missed a 28-yard field goal with 3:08 remaining, eight plays after Derrick Mason's 35-yard punt return put the Titans in position to win. That error goes with a missed extra point and field goal that cost Tennessee a game two weeks ago in Baltimore.

"I don't know what to say," Del Greco said. "Twenty-eight yards. Inexcusable? Is that a good word? It wasn't a good kick and I folded."

While the Titans have the postseason to think about, the Jaguars are merely holding onto hopes of a winning season, and a very remote chance at the playoffs. If neither pans out, this will surely be the highlight of their year.

"You saw the reaction," quarterback Mark Brunell said. "We were pretty thrilled. Del Greco doesn't miss many of those. It's nice to get a break. We haven't gotten many this year."

This time, not only did they get the break, they capitalized on it.

Brunell moved the Jaguars 61 yards toward the winning score, a drive that included three pinpoint passes.

The first, on third-and-10, was an improvisational 30-yard strike to Keenan McCardell, who adjusted his route and started streaking downfield to keep the drive going. Brunell then hit Jimmy Smith for a pair of 15-yard gains, setting up Hollis, who went 3-for-3 and remained the NFL's third most accurate field goal kicker ever.

The Titans had outscored Jacksonville 101-41 in their last three victories, and didn't even expect to be in a close game.

"We didn't go into this one thinking it was going to come down to the end," Fisher said. "We were expecting to score points and move the ball and try to dominate in the same fashion we had the last couple matchups. We just couldn't."

It was no fault of Eddie George, who caught a career-high 107 yards in passes, or Samari Rolle, who added two interceptions to bring his career total against Brunell to six.

Tennessee's Steve McNair overcame a sore thumb on his throwing hand to pass for 228 yards and run for 46 more.

Jacksonville won despite giving up the game's oly turnovers on Rolle's interceptions, which both led to Titans field goals. The second tied the game 13-13 on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Notes