NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have a new coach and yet another loss featuring too many of the issues that have plagued this franchise this season.
Five sacks allowed and two turnovers, including a fumble returned for a touchdown, led the Titans to being blown out 31-13 by New England and former coach Mike Vrabel in a final score that could've been worse if not for the Patriots taking a knee late.
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Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) looks to throw during the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans wide receiver Chimere Dike (17) celebrates a touchdown catch with offensive tackle JC Latham (55) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/John Amis)
Tennessee Titans interim head coach Mike McCoy watches during the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) is tackled by New England Patriots linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson (44) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) is tackled by New England Patriots linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson (44) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/John Amis)
They also lost three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons early to an injured hamstring, and cornerback L'Jarius Sneed followed in the second half with a quadricep injury.
“No one’s trying to make a mistake,” interim coach Mike McCoy said. “No player is out there trying to make a mistake, but we also have to coach them and talk about the little things, the fine little details that it takes to get over this hump.”
McCoy added coaches are trying to put the Titans into the best position: “We’re not going to make any excuses.”
The Titans did look different in the first quarter following Monday's firing of coach Brian Callahan six games into his second season.
A team that had been outscored 47-9 in the first quarter through the first six games took an early 3-0 lead, then scored only the fourth touchdown this season. Cam Ward found fellow rookie Chimere Dike for a 38-yard TD and a 10-3 lead.
It was their biggest lead since Week 16 of last season when the Titans also led the Colts by seven.
Ward completed 10 of his first 11 passes and had 148 yards passing by halftime. That alone would've ranked as his total passing yardage for two complete games.
“We got off to a better start,” McCoy said. “I think the way we played the first half as a whole until the last couple minutes, I think we did a nice job there.”
The Patriots went up 17-13, leaving the Titans 49 seconds with the ball and three timeouts. McCoy didn't use a single timeout, and Ward wound up throwing the ball away as time expired. Kicker Joey Slye had made a 50-yarder into the wind putting the Titans up 13-10 with 1:48 left.
McCoy said the wind was howling and they didn't want to give the ball back to the Patriots. Ward took blame for not taking a completion that put both coaches and the offense in a bad situation.
“I just got to be better,” Ward said. “We got to be better as a whole, and then at the end of the day, we’ve got to win games. We have to start next week by winning a football game.”
This time the Titans fell apart in the second half starting when Ward simply lost the ball midway through the third quarter just before being sacked. K'Lavon Chaisson picked it up and scored.
This is the second game in a row that's happened to the No. 1 overall pick.
“Got to hold on to it tighter,” Ward said of the ball. “But really, just got to continue to emphasize it within myself. Got to be better at it. I know that’s something that I can’t continue to let happen. I got to cut that out next week.”
One sign of improvement came with penalties. The Titans were flagged only three times for 15 yards — a season low in both categories. Yet they left with a seventh straight home loss and their most recent win at Nissan Stadium was Nov. 3, 2024, against the Patriots. It was the Titans' only home win of that season.
Safety Amani Hooker said they have to fix all the little things across the board to do what they want most.
“We’ve just got to find a way to win,” Hooker said.
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Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) looks to throw during the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans wide receiver Chimere Dike (17) celebrates a touchdown catch with offensive tackle JC Latham (55) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/John Amis)
Tennessee Titans interim head coach Mike McCoy watches during the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) is tackled by New England Patriots linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson (44) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) is tackled by New England Patriots linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson (44) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/John Amis)
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s government is expected to approve a “mega” Chinese Embassy close to London’s financial district after years of controversy and political wrangling over the potential security risks it poses to the U.K.
Lawmakers from across the spectrum have urged planning officials to reject China’s application for the new embassy. Critics fear the proposed new building, on a huge site close to London’s financial district and crucial data cables, will be used as a base for espionage. Others say the supersized embassy — set to be the biggest Chinese Embassy in Europe — will pose a heightened threat of surveillance and intimidation to Chinese dissidents in exile.
The decision was initially slated for October, but it was repeatedly postponed after multiple allegations of Chinese spying and political interference piled pressure on the British government.
British media have reported that the decision to approve the embassy will come this week, ahead of Prime Minister Keir Starmer's expected trip to China. The closely watched visit would be the first made by a British prime minister since 2018.
A final decision on the embassy is expected by Jan. 20, the deadline set by the government.
Here's a look at why the embassy has been the focus of protests and Sino-British tensions for years:
The proposed embassy at Royal Mint Court — the former site of the U.K.’s coin maker, near the Tower of London — will cover about 20,000 square meters (215,278 square feet) and replace several Chinese official buildings across London.
Critics say the new site sits too close to underground fiber optic cables carrying sensitive financial information between London’s two main financial districts.
Conservative Party lawmaker Alicia Kearns said that risks handing over access to data that would give China’s government “a launchpad for economic warfare against our nation.” She cited news reports that the building complex would include 208 secret basement rooms close to the data cables.
Dissidents have also been among hundreds of people who have protested the plans, saying a mega-embassy housing large numbers of officials would further China’s repression of activists abroad.
Lawmakers from the governing Labour Party who oppose the plan say concerns include “the recent track record of Chinese espionage cases, interference activities and issuing of bounties against U.K.-based Hong Kongers.”
The site was bought by China’s government for 225 million pounds ($301 million) in 2018, but plans for the embassy have been delayed since.
Local officials rejected the initial application over concerns that the embassy would attract many large protests, affecting the safety of residents and tourists. China resubmitted its proposals after the Labour government took power last year.
Bronwen Maddox, director of the London think tank Chatham House, said she believed Britain's government should approve the proposed mega-embassy “given that MI5 and MI6 (U.K. intelligence agencies) have said they are not worried about the city cables underneath it."
“I guess that you could see why there is cause for concern, but what I think the government should be much tougher on is what exactly is China going to do with that embassy, never mind the building; what about the people in it? Why does it need so many? What are they going to do?"
China has complained about the seven-year delay in approving the project, saying the U.K. was “constantly complicating and politicizing the matter.”
“The development scheme of the new Chinese Embassy is of high quality and has been highly recognized by local professional bodies,” the Chinese embassy said in a statement in October. “The application complies with diplomatic practice and local regulations and procedures.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian has warned that if the embassy isn’t approved, “the consequences arising therefrom shall be borne by the U.K. side.”
Recent high-profile cases involving alleged Chinese espionage have raised alarms about the embassy.
In November, the domestic intelligence agency, MI5, issued an alert to lawmakers warning that Chinese agents were making “targeted and widespread” efforts to recruit and cultivate them using LinkedIn or cover companies.
Authorities believe the alleged “headhunters” were trying to gain access to sensitive information about Parliament and Britain’s government.
Beijing has strongly denied the claims, calling them “pure fabrication and malicious slander.”
Earlier, Britain’s government faced questions on whether it had interfered in the trial of two alleged Chinese spies in order to preserve good ties with China.
Former parliamentary researcher Christopher Cash and academic Christopher Berry were charged last year with spying for Beijing. But their trial collapsed at the last minute because the U.K. government refused to brand China a threat to national security, the country’s chief prosecutor said.
Facing criticism that he is not taking a tough enough stance on the security risks, Starmer has stressed that while protecting national security is non-negotiable, Britain needs to keep up diplomatic dialogue and cooperation with the Asian superpower.
“This is not a question of balancing economic and security considerations. We don’t trade off security in one area, for a bit more economic access somewhere else,” he has said.
Last year, Starmer said Chinese President Xi Jinping personally raised the matter during a phone call.
Opposition lawmaker Priti Patel derided Starmer as “Beijing’s useful idiot in Britain.”
“Starmer’s ‘reset’ with Beijing is a naive one-way street, which puts Britain at risk while Beijing gets everything it wants,” she said.
Associated Press writer Danica Kirka contributed to this report.
A general view of Royal Mint Court where is planning site for the new London Chinese embassy, near London's financial district, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
A general view of Royal Mint Court where is planning site for the new London Chinese embassy, near London's financial district, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
FILE - Protesters hold umbrellas, placards, and flags as they demonstrate against the proposed building of a new Chinese embassy, and to mark the 11th year of the Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong, in London, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Joanna Chan, file)
FILE - Protesters hold umbrellas, placards, and flags as they demonstrate against the proposed building of a new Chinese embassy, and to mark the 11th year of the Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong, in London, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Joanna Chan, file)
