LIVE BLOG: Follow the Titans' Preseason Game With the Vikings in Real Time
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — It's Week 2 of the NFL preseason, and the Tennessee Titans are spending Saturday night at U.S. Bank Stadium, taking on the Minnesota Vikings.
They've been here all week, arriving Tuesday and then practicing against the Vikings on Wednesday and Thursday. Saturday's game wraps up a good week of work.
Welcome to our live blog, where we'll keep you updated on all the news and views from the game in real time straight from the press box on the third level of this beautiful building. As always, we'll keep our eyes on the quarterbacks, but tonight there's only one for the Titans — second-year man Malik Willis.
He's going to play the entire game after rookie Will Levis was injured in practice Thursday. Veteran starter Ryan Tannehill doesn't play in the preseason, so he won't be available either.
Follow our blog throughout the game. The most recent items are at the top. Enjoy the game.
9:42 p.m. CT — The Vikings go on a long drive and score a touchdown, with DeWayne McBride scoring from one yard out. The scoring drive covered 83 yards in 12 plays. The Titans lead 24-16 now with 5:50 to go in the game.
9:30 p.m. CT — The Titans score again, this time on a 1-yard pass from Malik Willis to Julius Chestnut. The kick by Trey Wolff is good and the Titans now lead 24-9.
9:21 p.m. CT — Mason Kinsey was the Titans' emergency quarterback and he comes in at QB and runs a wildcat play for six yards. Malik Willis comes back in on third down and scrambles for six yards. That's the end of the third quarter. Titans lead 17-9.
9:10 p.m. CT — Julius Chestnut scores from 5 yards out and the Titans take a 17-9 lead now with 4:16 left in the third quarter. Titans over 200 yards rushing now.
8:44 p.m. CT — What a great run by Julius Chestnut for the Titans. Broke free on the right side and scampered 55 yards before being dragged down at the 4-yard line. Titans wasted it though, and had to settle for a field goal. Trey Wolff makes a 22-yarder and the Titans go back ahead 10-9.
HALFTIME NUMBERS: Tyjae Spears with 57 yards rushing and a score for the Titans. Nick Mullens passes for 151 for the Vikings.
8:22 p.m. CT — Another Titans blunder, this time on a punt, and the Vikings get the ball back with 1:50 to go after the turnover. These two teams did a lot of two-minute work earlier in the week, so it'll be interesting to see who wins this one. The Vikings settle for a third straight field goal, and take the lead at 9-7 with 16 seconds to go.
8:13 p.m. CT — Malik Willis has done a lot of nice things this half at quarterback for the Titans, but that interception there was really ugly. Threw it right to Vikings' Troy Dye. Not a good look.
8:07 p.m. CT — The Titans defense is bending a bit here, but not breaking. They keep the Vikings out of the end zone for a second straight threatening drive. Greg Joseph kicks a 33-yard field goal, and it's 7-6 with 6:50 to go in the second quarter.
7:57 p.m. CT — The Titans do some nice things on that drive but it ends on a holding call on Titans guard Justin Murray on fourth down that erases a first down.
7:48 p.m. CT — The first quarter ends, but the Vikings are threatening after a 34-yard completion from Nick Mullens to tight end Ben Sims. We flip fields with the Vikings at the Titans' 34-yard line. The Titans defense stiffens, and Minnesota settles for a 45-yard field goal from Greg Joseph. It's 7-3 Titans now.
7:43 p.m. CT — The Titans' drive stays alive on third down thanks to a Vikings' defensive holding penalty, and then Tyjae Spears shows his explosiveness, bursting through a hole and scampering 33 yards for a touchdown. Caleb Shaduk makes the PAT and it's 7-0 Titans.
7:35 p.m. CT — Vikings forced to punt after a couple of penalties. Titans take over at the 30. Still no score. The Titans get a first down on a nice quick pass from Malik Willis to Mason Kinsey, but then Willis and Chig Okonkwo just miss again on a second pass over the middle. Not on target, but still catchable.
7:30 p.m. CT — Titans wide receiver Kyle Philips has gone to the locker room with an injury. Looks like a knee, and his return is questionable, the Titans say.
7:23 p.m. CT — Titans go three-and-out too. Big miss on second down. Malik Willis found tight end Chig Okonkwo open the middle. He throw was a little high, but it looked catchable. Need to make those plays.
7:18 p.m. CT — Three-and-out for the Vikings. Great third-down pressure by nose tackle Teair Tart, who was right in Nick Mullens' face on the throw. Titans take over at the 24 after the punt. Still no score, with 10:29 to go in the first.
7:11 p.m. CT — All five first-stringers start on the offensive line fore the Titans for the second week in a row. Malik Willis throws to Tyjae Spears in the right flat on third-and-5 but they come up short and are forced to punt. The Vikings will take over on their own 17-yard line. Scored a touchdown on the first drive a week ago against the Bears.
7:05 p.m. CT — Rough start for the Titans. Special teams allows a 38-yard kickoff return and then an 18-yard completion from quarterback Nick Mullens to tight end Nick Muse. But they stiffen from there, and force a fourth-down. The Vikings go for it, but Mullens' pass on an out route was too high. Titans take over at their own 42.
6:55 p.m. CT — The Vikings have won the toss and elected to receive. They'll go first against a Titans defense that outplayed them during the two joint practice sessions.
6:45 p.m. CT — Last week, Malik Willis (42) and Will Levis (30) rotated throughout most of the game against the Bears. Tonight it's all for Willis to step up and show what he can do. He's got the stage all to himself.
6:30 p.m. CT — Rookie quarterback Will Levis is dressed and going through warmups. It was reported by several Nashville news outlets that he wouldn't play tonight. But he is dressed and ready to go, if need be. Now the watch is on.
6:25 p.m. CT — This is my first time to U.S. Bank Stadium, and it's beautiful. It's usually great that it's a dome with a lot of windows because it's so cold outside, but it's helping today because it's so hot in Minneapolis. It's been in the low 90s all day, which is rare for Minnesota. Very comfortable inside, though.
U.S. Bank Stadium about an hour before kickoff.
6:20 p.m. CT — Even on the road, the Titans are favored tonight over the Vikings. Here's the latest line, including the over/under, and a good history on both teams heading into the game. CLICK HERE
6:15 p.m. CT— Here's all the information you need on watching the game tonight. It starts at 7 p.m. CT. It's local only in Nashville, but there are streaming options. We've got it all for you. CLICK HERE
6:10 p.m. CT — Veteran Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill was out on the field, too, and came over to the Titans' sideline to visit with fans for a while. He visited with his parents for about five minutes, then he took pictures and signed autographs for Titans fans.
Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill signs a No. 17 jersey for a young fan, making his day. (AllTitans.com photo by Tom Brew)
Here's another one, with the youngster showing off his signed jersey.
A young Titans fan proudly shows off his newly autographed Ryan Tannehill jersey. (AllTitans.com photo by Tom Brew)
6:05 p.m. CT — Titans rookie quarterback Will Levis walked into U.S. Bank Stadium without a limp, and then actually spent some time throwing a few dozen balls to receivers. It was a good sign seeing him on the field throwing without issues. Hopefully it's just a day-to-day thing. Next up are joint practices with the New England Patriots on Tuesday and Wednesday in Nashville.
6 p.m. CT — Both teams would love to get a win tonight after losing in Week 1. The Titans lost 23-17 to the Chicago Bears and the Vikings lost 24-13 to the Seattle Seahawks. The Vikings have actually lost eight straight preseason games dating back to 2019.
