Titans visit Raiders seeking back-to-back wins for first time since 2022

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Tennessee Titans opened the season with four consecutive losses and were staring directly at a fifth last weekend before they rallied to beat Arizona.

Which puts them in the unusual situation of trying to win back-to-back games.

Should the Titans beat the Raiders on Sunday, that would be the first time they have posted consecutive victories since Nov. 17, 2022, when they beat Green Bay after topping Denver five days earlier.

“Hey, it has been a long time, and this is our opportunity to do it,” tight end Chig Okonkwo said. “Like we say over here, winning cures everything. So the vibe is high. So now we can just keep this momentum going forward and take it to Vegas.”

The Raiders have their own concerns heading into this matchup of 1-4 teams.

They opened their season with an encouraging victory at New England, with optimism abounding that the franchise might be turning the corner under first-year coach Pete Carroll. Las Vegas hasn't won since.

Quarterback Geno Smith has borne much of the blame for the slow start. He has thrown a league-high nine interceptions.

“Six of the interceptions this year were tipped in the air. Johnny-on-the-spot defensive guy,” Smith said. "Am I going to look at that and say, ‘Well, don’t throw it to the guy who we’re supposed to throw it to?’ I’m going to throw it to the guy I’m supposed to, and at times, things happen.

"People get caught up in results, and they want to look at statistics and try to place blame because that’s just how life goes when you’re in the position I’m in. But I’m a lot smarter than that and I’m aware of the process. I know exactly what I’m doing out there.”

Maybe the Raiders will find the winning formula similar to what the Titans discovered against the Cardinals. Tennessee came back from down 21-6 in the fourth quarter to win 22-21.

“It looked like they were dead and gone,” Carroll said. “They just kept battling and hanging in there, and they really made a bunch of plays to make it happen. They earned every bit of it.”

Rookie quarterback Cam Ward finding tight ends Okonkwo and rookie Gunnar Helm helped the Titans’ offense kick into gear during their comeback in Arizona. Ward targeted the tight ends 10 times for a combined eight catches for 82 yards. Helm had one catch for 3 yards by halftime with Okonkwo shut out.

“I haven’t given them enough chances this year, which I did this past week, and they saw what they can do, especially after the run, getting us those (yards after the catch),” Ward said of his tight ends. “So we got a very talented group of tight ends, but we just got to continue to feed them, continue to get them more involved, and it’s going to continue to help us.”

Okonkwo said he and Helm have been like a “safety blanket” with what they can do, especially after the catch.

“Me and Gunnar complement each other in the ways that we play, so I’m glad that they’re seeing that,” he said.

Michael Mayer is back in the lineup after missing two games with concussion symptoms, and the Raiders need him. Fellow tight end Brock Bowers is still contending with a knee injury that has dogged him nearly all season.

Mayer said he's ready to be the No. 1 tight end if called upon.

“I'm definitely going into the game thinking that for sure,” Mayer said. “I'm going to prep for it, study for it. The decision's ultimately not mine, but I'm going to be ready for it.”

The Titans have tried protect Ward without starting right tackle JC Latham during the past four games.

Latham, who didn’t miss an offensive snap as a rookie in 2024, aggravated a hip issue in the season-opening loss at Denver. The Titans have given up just two sacks in each of the past two games, but Latham is back practicing and poised to return against the Raiders.

Ward still has been sacked 19 times — more than any quarterback. The No. 1 overall pick said getting Latham back should help.

“Just from an athletic standpoint, he’s just different,” Ward said. “The way he moves, the way he takes care of his body, he’s a great leader on this team. He’s someone who’s a standpoint for this offensive line, so we get a chance to get him back he’s going be able to help us for sure.”

Raiders rookie running back Ashton Jeanty is beginning to show why he was drafted sixth overall with two productive games in a row. He has rushed for 349 yards on the season, averaging 4.3 per carry.

Jeanty also is being used in the passing game, and on the Raiders' first offensive play Sunday at Indianapolis, he ran a wheel route for a 29-yard completion.

“It’s a big test for us,” Titans coach Brian Callahan said. “They’ve started to run the ball better and better. I think every week that’s gone on, you see him getting more comfortable with the NFL speed and style and how you have to run in this league.”

AP Pro Football Writer Teresa M. Walker in Nashville, Tennessee, contributed to this report.

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Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll watches during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith throws as a flag is thrown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

Tennessee Titans running back Tony Pollard (20) celebrates his touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

Tennessee Titans punter Johnny Hekker (3) congratulates place-kicker Joey Slye (6) after making a game winning field goal during the second half of an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Six years into his Stuttgart career, Nikolas Nartey finally scored his first goal for the club to seal a thrilling 3-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga on Tuesday.

The Danish midfielder found space between two defenders to direct Josha Vagnoman's low cross into the net and turned away, shouting in celebration.

Nartey had been with Stuttgart since 2019 but barely played for much of that time. He spent two years on loan before a series of injuries wreaked havoc on his career. He didn't play at all in 2023-24 and had little game time the following year but has become a regular starter this season.

Until Nartey's breakthrough, it had seemed like a first-time scorer of a different sort had salvaged a draw for Frankfurt.

Three minutes into his Bundesliga debut off the bench, new signing Ayoube Amaimouni-Echghouyab made it 2-2 to finish off a rapid team move that began with goalkeeper Kaua Santos and went the length of the field. The 21-year-old forward had never before played above the third tier of German soccer.

Frankfurt took the early lead when Rasmus Kristensen scored in the fifth minute, but goals from Ermedin Demirovic and Deniz Undav put Stuttgart ahead 2-1 by halftime. Both teams had plenty of chances as Santos and Stuttgart's Alexander Nübel made crucial saves.

Stuttgart moves up to third with the win. Frankfurt is seventh, with one win from its last eight games in all competitions.

A day after Borussia Dortmund coach Niko Kovac signaled that challenging Bayern for the title is out of his team's reach, Dortmund cut Bayern's lead to eight points with a straightforward 3-0 win over Werder Bremen.

Defender Nico Schlotterbeck headed second-place Dortmund in front in the 11th before Marcel Sabitzer and Serhou Guirassy scored to make sure of the win.

“That we can't attack Bayern, I think everyone can see that,” Kovac said Monday, adding his aim is a top-four finish.

Unbeaten Bayern, which beat Wolfsburg 8-1 last week, can restore an 11-point lead by beating Cologne on Wednesday.

Mainz beat fellow relegation candidate Heidenheim 2-1 for its first Bundesliga win since September. New Mainz coach Urs Fischer is unbeaten in six Bundesliga and Conference League games since he was hired last month. Mainz moves up from last place in the 18-team league to 16th, dropping Heidenheim to last.

Bayer Leverkusen's game at Hamburger SV was postponed at short notice over concerns around the stadium's roof. It's the third game in the Bundesliga to be called off in recent days following heavy snow in northern Germany.

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Mainz's Nadiem Amiri celebrates scoring during the Bundesliga soccer match between FSV Mainz 05 andFC Heidenheim in Mainz, Germany, Tuesday Jan. 13, 2026. (Torsten Silz/dpa via AP)

Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy, second right, celebrates with teammates after scoring the third goal against Werder Bremen during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Werder Bremen in Dortmund, Germany, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Stuttgart players celebrate with their fans after the Bundesliga soccer match between VfB Stuttgart and Eintracht Frankfurt in Stuttgart, Germany, Tuesday Jan. 13, 2026. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)

Frankfurt's Ayoube Amaimouni-Echghouyab celebrates scoring with Arthur Theate, left, and Robin Koch, right, during the Bundesliga soccer match between VfB Stuttgart and Eintracht Frankfurt in Stuttgart, Germany, Tuesday Jan. 13, 2026. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)

Stuttgart's Nikolas Nartey, front, and Frankfurt Aurèle Amenda in action during the Bundesliga soccer match between VfB Stuttgart and Eintracht Frankfurt in Stuttgart, Germany, Tuesday Jan. 13, 2026. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)