The Tennessee Titans continue their December woes with a 38-30 loss to the Indianapolis Colts that was considerably worse than the final score line despite a fourth-quarter comeback attempt.

Indianapolis led 38-7 at one point in the third quarter after the Colts scored 38 straight, but 23 unanswered points by the Titans forced Indianapolis to run a four-minute offense to close the game out.

Tennessee (3-12) was done in by the Colts’ 24-point second quarter. Jonathan Taylor finished with 218 rushing yards and three touchdowns as Tennessee’s defense allowed 335 rushing yards overall.

Here are three key moments from the Titans’ Week 16 game:

Tennessee Titans vs. Indianapolis Colts key moments

Scenario: Titans give Colts good field position after missed 53-yard field goal

Brayden Narveson’s first field goal attempt for the Titans, stepping in for the injured Nick Folk, was from 53 yards in the first quarter with the Titans leading 7-0 with 14:16 left in the second quarter.

Tennessee could have taken a 10-point lead. But Narveson’s kick was short and wide right, giving the Colts the ball near midfield.

The Colts drove down the field after the missed field goal, tying the game on an Anthony Richardson 5-yard touchdown run.

Scenario: Jonathan Taylor’s first touchdown run of the game gives Colts the lead

In a 7-7 game, Colts running back Jonathan Taylor took off for the first of several big runs on Sunday.

Taylor sprinted on zone left run, then cut back and sprinted for a 65-yard touchdown run with 7:25 left in the second quarter. Indianapolis took the lead and never looked back.

Scenario: Kenny Moore’s interception leads to a Josh Downs TD catch, Colts’ 24-7 halftime lead

Mason Rudolph’s telegraphed pass was picked off by Kenny Moore with 1:25 left in the first half, and the Colts quickly took advantage.

Josh Downs took a quick pass on a bubble route and raced past two Titans defenders for a 27-yard touchdown catch just before halftime. Indianapolis led 24-7 at the break, and the Titans’ woes continued.

What Nico Iamaleava said after Tennessee football’s loss at Ohio State

On if he expected to run the ball 20 times 

On what disappointed him most about the performance 

On what team can take away from loss

On what Tennessee needs to do to beat better teams on the road 

On Dylan Sampson and Dont’e Thornton Jr. dealing with injuries, how it effected the game 

On the difference between running an offense at home and on the road 

On what personnel Tennessee can add to open up the offense 

On large contingent of Tennessee fans that were at Ohio Stadium  

The Ohio State Buckeyes’ loss to the Michigan Wolverines now feels like ages ago.

Ohio State went into its first-round College Football Playoff matchup against the Tennessee Volunteers with major question marks.

Will Howard was under fire. The play calling was in the crosshairs. Ryan Day’s job security had become a regular topic of discussion.

But then, the Buckeyes hammered Tennessee by a score of 42-17 to advance to the Rose Bowl for a chance for revenge against the Oregon Ducks.

Ohio State put together arguably its best performance of the season against a very tough Tennessee opponent. The Buckeyes scored 21 points in the first quarter, immediately sending a message to the Volunteers—and the country—that they meant business.

Howard, who looked like a deer in headlights in the regular-season finale against Michigan, stepped up with a significant performance. Yes, there was the red zone interception, but in the end, it was no harm, no foul (he probably shouldn’t do that against Oregon, though).

Jeremiah Smith looked every bit of the phenom we all thought he was heading into 2024. The defense was tremendous. Day? He coached a terrific game.

But the most impressive part of this showing by Ohio State was the resolve that it demonstrated, picking itself up off the mat after a soul-crushing defeat to the Wolverines earlier in the month.

I have to admit: I wasn’t sure if the Buckeyes had this in them. Not after they mustered just 10 points against a far inferior Michigan opponent, a game in which they were physically beaten up.

And considering that Tennessee’s defense was even stingier than Michigan’s this year, I certainly didn’t anticipate that Ohio State would drop 42 points.

Nevertheless, here we are.

A couple of weeks ago, it was beginning to look like the Buckeyes wouldn’t even have a chance against Oregon. Heck, there were some who felt that the Volunteers would beat them.

It wasn’t due to a lack of talent, either. It was more due to the thought that Ohio State lacked an identity and didn’t seem to have the mental fortitude required to win a national championship.

Remember: the Buckeyes also lost to the Ducks earlier in the season as a result of some mental erros and not being able to seal the deal.

So the concerns surrounding Ohio State heading into the College Football Playoff were legitimate.

But the Buckeyes appear to have flipped a switch, and it appears that their tenacity has finally matched their excessive talent.

Now, we’ll see if Ohio State can exact revenge on Oregon in the Rose Bowl.