Titans 26, Colts 20: Saleh’s First Win Comes Off a Blocked Punt

October 18, 2026 - Indianapolis - The first play after halftime was Jonathan Taylor with the ball. Jeffery Simmons punched it out and fell on it. The Tennessee Titans were still down 13-0. Twenty-six unanswered points later, they were not.

The Indianapolis Colts are 2-4. Tennessee is 1-5. Robert Saleh had his first win as Titans head coach. The club called it the franchise's 500th victory, regular season and postseason combined. Cam Ward handed him the ball.

The AP recap's lede mixed up who was rallying. The scoreboard did not. Tennessee scored 26 in the second half. Indianapolis scored 7.

13-0, then Simmons, then Slye from 56

Indianapolis had 232 yards to Tennessee's 64 at the break, the AP wrote, and still only 13 points. Two field goals. One touchdown. Daniel Jones went 22 of 42 for 269 yards, one score, and two interceptions. Taylor ran 21 times for 94 and a 4-yarder that later tied it. He also caught two for 57. Keenan Allen had eight for 82. nflverse has Mo Alie-Cox with the 1-yard receiving score.

Amani Hooker ended the Colts' first scoring chance with an interception at the Indianapolis 6, the Titans notes said. It did not become points. Joey Slye still had to wait until after Simmons's strip.

Slye from 29 made it 13-3. From 56 with 3:21 left in the third, 13-6. The Titans listed that 56-yarder as tied for the fifth-longest kick in franchise history. nflverse has him 4 of 4: 29, 56, 49, 44, plus both extra points.

Ward was 11 of 22 for 102 yards, one touchdown, one pick. Tony Pollard ran 19 times for 76. Tennessee finished with 186 yards, 11 first downs, and 3 of 10 on third down, Jim Wyatt wrote. The Titans still won while being outgained by 213, their worst yardage margin in a win since 2006 against Jacksonville, the club said.

Dike, Tate, then a blocked punt that felt like country

Chimere Dike returned a punt 58 yards early in the fourth. Ward found Carnell Tate from 8. 13-13. Tate finished six for 70 and his first NFL touchdown. Wyatt noted three of Tennessee's four longest offensive gains went to him.

Indianapolis punted. Julius Chestnut and James Williams Sr. got to Rigoberto Sanchez. Oladejo scooped it. Fourteen yards. 20-13 with 10:17 left, the AP wrote. Oladejo told Wyatt he practiced scoop-and-scores: country, you pick it up and run. It felt like country. The Titans said it was their first blocked-punt touchdown since Patrick Bailey and Jason McCourty against Indianapolis in 2011, and the first blocked-punt score in the NFL this season.

Taylor answered from 4. 20-20. A 36-yard pass-interference flag on Cam Taylor-Britt helped Ward move into range. Slye from 49 with 2:03. From 44 with 43 seconds after Indianapolis turned it over on downs. Jones could not connect on the last heaves.

Jermaine Johnson II had two sacks. Jacob Martin had one. Tony Adams had one. The Titans notes called it six sacks, three takeaways, and a blocked punt in the same game, the first NFL club to do that since the Colts at Minnesota in 2022. Cordale Flott intercepted Jones in the third. Camryn Bynum had one for Indianapolis.

Sanchez hurt his foot on the block. Sauce Gardner left with a calf. Anthony Gould went into concussion protocol. Tyler Warren was inactive with a groin. Hooker played through a concussion designation and led Tennessee with 13 tackles plus the pick, the notes said.

Shane Steichen said turnovers, blocked punts, and kick returns all have to get fixed in a hurry. Saleh said the tape was not spectacular. He also said they made plays.

AthX Engine on a six-sack, three-takeaway night

AthX Engine NFL scoring already has the Week 6 line in. Simmons's two sacks, forced fumble, and recovery land at 81.00, the top total in this game. Johnson is 66.00. Hooker is 61.50. Taylor is 42.75. Flott is 41.50. Slye is 40.00. Tennessee's team line is 68.00. Indianapolis's is 8.50.

Fantasy points measure the box. Price is what traders will pay for a defensive tackle who just wrecked a pocket for the first Titans win, and for a Colts back who still ran for 94 in a loss. They move together. They are not the same number.

Track Simmons, Ward, Taylor, Slye, and both clubs on the marketplace. Cleveland visits Tennessee next Sunday. Indianapolis visits Minnesota.

*Sources: ESPN recap, AP, Titans postgame notes, Titans six things. ESPN, the Titans, and nflverse agree on 26-20. The AP recap's opening sentence swapped which club rallied; the scoring summary and both clubs list Tennessee as the winner. AthX Engine Week 6 lines scored from nflverse weekly stats (CC-BY 4.0). Information only; not financial advice.*