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Johnson, White run wild as Titans stomp Chiefs

Oct 19, 2008 - 11:34 PM By Marc Bowman PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- LenDale White scored three touchdowns as the Tennessee Titans remained the NFL's only unbeaten team with an easy 34-10 win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

The Titans (6-0) wasted little time taking control of the game, scoring on each of their first two possessions while holding the Chiefs to two three-and-out drives.

After a 49-yard field goal by Rob Bironas, White gave Tennessee a 17-0 halftime lead with a pair of short touchdown runs on his way to 149 yards on 17 carries.

"Your running game is a development of the way your team plays," Titans coach Jeff Fisher said. "The defense was getting stops so we could do those kinds of things. Overall, I was pleased with our running game. The backs got a lot of extra yards on their own, after contact."

"A big game running comes from our offensive line, so you have to credit them," White said. "And when the receivers finish their blocks we can go for long runs."

White went 80 yards untouched for his third score as Tennessee took an insurmountable 27-0 lead with 7:45 left in the contest.

"I made one cut and there was nothing but green grass," White said. "The reason why we were able to get long runs was the effort by our receivers on secondary blocking. I told (Titans linebacker) Keith (Bulluck) 'if the blocking is right I can go for 80', and that's what happened."

"He told me if he got the right crease he would go 80," Bulluck. "The offense played great. Anytime you control the line of scrimmage like we did you should have a good game. It was good to get a win off the bye week and it should give us momentum for the rest of the season. It was a big win for our team in a tough place to play."

Chris Johnson added 168 yards on 17 carries, including a 66-yard touchdown run to cap Tennessee's scoring with 4:01 left in the game.

"I was focusing on sticking to my reads," Johnson said. "We've had games where LenDale has a good game and I don't, or where I have a good game and he doesn't. It means a lot for us to really come together like this and have a good game together. We've got a chip on our shoulders and we really want to go out there and show everybody what we've got."

"Chris and I, we're competitors," White said. "C.J. was getting the 10, 11, 12-yard runs. When I see him make a long run it makes me want to get one, too. It's one of those things where you think 'if he can do it, I can do it'. Everything worked out good today and the offensive line did everything today."

The Titans' combined 332 yards rushing set a franchise record, besting the 296 yards they collected as the Houston Oilers, also against the Chiefs, November 27, 1977.

"Anytime you run for the yards that we did, the franchise record, and the two backs over 100, it's impressive," Fisher said. "But we still made some mistakes. I think we can play better. We have an extra day this week to heal up, then we're back in the division."

Tennessee was without starting wide receivers Justin McCareins and Justin Gage, whom they hope will return for their Monday night matchup against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 8.

"I thought we had a real good game plan for our passing game," Fisher said. "We had confidence, not only in Lavell, but also in Paul (Williams) to be able to execute. We just got into a situation where we were having success running it. If you can do that, then why change?"

"I had confidence with the guys that we were going to go with today," said Titans quarterback Kerry Collins, who completed 11-of-18 passes for 123 yards. "We would love to have both Justins (McCareins and Gage) every week, but with the game the way it went we didn't really ask much out of the passing game today."

The anticipated return of Kansas City quarterback Brodie Croyle was short-lived when a sprained left knee sent him to the sidelines for the rest of the game. Croyle directed three drives and passed for 63 yards while completing 9-of-10 attempts.

"He was our guy," Chiefs running back Kolby Smith said. "He went down in the first game and then he goes down again in his first game back. Sometimes it just works that way, so we've just got to come together. To work so hard to come back and then go down again like that, I'm sure it's very frustrating for him."

"We lost our quarterback," Kansas City Head Coach Herm Edwards said. "He's probably done for the year. An MCL (tear), I believe it is and he'll be done for the year. He's been hurt, there's no doubt about that. This is the worst one he's had since he's been here. The other ones he's missed a week or two, but this is a tough one now, tough for him and tough for the team. I feel bad for the kid because he did everything in his power to come back. He had a good week of practice and now his season is over."

Damon Huard took over for Croyle, completing 6-of-19 passes for 96 yards before leaving with a thumb injury in favor of Tyler Thigpen, who led the Chiefs (1-5) to their only scores, including his own 14-yard touchdown run.

"It was nice to get points on the board," Thigpen said. "They were playing soft with a big lead and we're able to get some passes underneath. It's a tough situation when you see your fellow teammates go down, but as a backup guy you've always got to be ready. It's a tough game and a game for men. But, offensively, we don't want to get shut out."

"I hit my thumb on a shoulder pad or helmet," Huard said. "It's beyond frustrating. It's just the kind of season we're having. Obviously, when Brodie got hurt, that's a letdown. It seems like we move the ball at times and do some little things, but we just hurt ourselves with penalties and me taking some sacks. So, it was all in all a tough day, and playing an undefeated football team, too."

With Larry Johnson inactivated by the team due to violation of team rules, Smith served as the primary ball-carrier, rushing 10 times for 20 yards as Kansas City managed just 22 yards rushing through three quarters, and 58 for the game.

"We were looking forward to playing against Larry Johnson," Bulluck said. "He is one of the premier big backs in the AFC. We were looking forward to playing him and he would have definitely brought a different dimension, but at the same time we practiced against the same plays. We feel as though he would have gotten the same treatment."

Nick Novak missed two first-half field goal tries, from 39 and 50 yards before connecting on a 26-yard try with 2:49 left in the game for the Chiefs' first points of the game.