LONGEST GAME IN HISTORY: Two weather delays helped to make the Titans-Dolphins game the longest contest since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. The game, which began officially at 1:02 p.m. EDT, took 7 hours and 8 minutes to complete. With 1 minute and 11 seconds remaining in the second quarter, the contest was suspended due to lightning in the area, and the delay totaled 1 hour and 57 minutes before play resumed. Between the second and third quarters, there was a 3 minute and 30 second halftime. Then, with 6:47 on the clock in the third quarter, play was suspended for a second time. The second delay lasted 2 hours and 2 minutes, and the game finally concluded at 8:10 p.m. EDT. Previously, the longest game since the 1970 merger was when the Baltimore Ravens visited the Chicago Bears on Nov. 17, 2013 and the game lasted 5 hours and 16 minutes.
FIRST GAME: Mike Vrabel made his regular season debut as head coach of the Titans. He is the 19th head coach in franchise history. The all-time record of Titans/Oilers head coaches in their first game with the team is now 8-11.
RECORD-HIGH HEAT: The official game-time temperature at Miami (temperature at opening kickoff) was 89 degrees with 63 percent humidity (heat index of 99 degrees). It tied for the hottest game for the team in the "Titans era" (1999-present). The only other games that were 89 degrees at kickoff were Sept. 25, 2016 against the Oakland Raiders and Oct. 8, 2017 at Miami.
FIRST-DRIVE SCORE: The Titans offense began the 2018 season with a nine-play, 37-yard drive (4:42) that ended with a 47-yard field goal by Ryan Succop, which gave the Titans a 3-0 lead.
STOCKER GOES DEEP: In the first quarter, Luke Stocker caught a 31-yard pass from Marcus Mariota to Miami's five-yard line. The catch was the second-longest reception of Stocker's eight-year career (33 vs. New Orleans on Oct. 21, 2012). Stocker totaled 37 yards on two catches against the Dolphins.
LONG RUN BY LEWIS: Late in the third quarter, running back Dion Lewis rushed for a 26-yard gain. Later during the same drive, Lewis scored on a four-yard run that allowed the Titans to tie the game at 10-10 less than a minute into the fourth quarter. Lewis' first touchdown with the Titans gave him 11 career rushing touchdowns. Lewis led the Titans at Miami with 16 carries and 75 rushing yards (4.7 avg.).
DAVIS TIES CAREER HIGH: Second-year wide receiver Corey Davis led the team with six receptions and 62 receiving yards. His six receptions tied a career high, equaling a mark he reached twice as a rookie in 2017.
GABBERT ENTERS GAME FOR MARIOTA: Starting quarterback Marcus Mariota exited the game in the third quarter due to an elbow injury after completing nine of 16 passes for 103 yards with a pair of interceptions. Blaine Gabbert, making his Titans regular season debut, played the rest of the game and totaled 11 completions for 117 yards on 22 attempts with an interception.
TITANS DOWN TWO TACKLES: Starting left tackle Taylor Lewan was forced from the game in the third quarter due to an injury, leaving fifth-year veteran Kevin Pamphile to enter the lineup in his first career game with the team. The Titans already were missing starting right tackle Jack Conklin due to a knee injury. Dennis Kelly notched the start in place of Conklin.
DEFENSE RESPONDS TO SUDDEN CHANGE: On consecutive possessions in the third quarter, the Titans defense was on the field in its own territory after interceptions but held the Dolphins to only three total points. After the first interception, the Titans defense responded with an interception of its own by Malcolm Butler. On the second sudden change, the defense limited Miami to a field goal. In the fourth quarter, another interception provided the Dolphins offense the ball on Tennessee's 12-yard line, but the Titans defense once again limited the Dolphins to a field goal.
THIRD-DOWN AND FOURTH-DOWN DEFENSE: The Titans defense limited the Dolphins to only two conversions on 10 third-down attempts and also stopped the Dolphins on their only fourth-down attempt of the game. The fourth-down stop came in the second quarter at the Tennessee 15-yard line, when Ryan Tannehill's pass to Kenyan Drake was ruled incomplete.
DEFENDING THE RED ZONE: The Titans defense allowed only one touchdown in five trips by Miami to the red zone. The drives resulted, sequentially, in a touchdown, a turnover on downs, an interception and finally two field goals.
BUTLER RECORDS INTERCEPTION IN TITANS DEBUT: With the Dolphins deep in scoring territory midway throuh in the third quarter, Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler provided a big play in his first regular season game with the team. On a Ryan Tannehill pass to tight end Mike Gesicki in the end zone, Butler tipped the ball in the air and then snared it for his ninth career interception. The fifth-year veteran, who was signed in the offseason as an unrestricted free agent from the New England Patriots, was credited with an interception return of 33 yards, which set a new career long.
VACCARO POSTS INTERCEPTION IN TITANS DEBUT: In his first game as a member of the Titans, safety Kenny Vaccaro notched his ninth career interception. In the fourth quarter, he picked off a Ryan Tannehill pass that was intended for wide receiver Jakeem Grant. Vaccaro was signed during training camp after spending his first five NFL seasons with the New Orleans Saints.
FIRST SACK BY CORREA: In his first appearance in a Titans uniform, outside linebacker Kamalei Correa recorded his fifth NFL start and his first career sack. Correa, who was acquired in a trade on Aug. 28, dropped Ryan Tannehill for an eight-yard loss in the fourth quarter.
JENNINGS SCORES ON KICKOFF RETURN: Second-year wide receiver Darius Jennings handled kickoff return duties for the Titans for the first time, and it paid dividends. In the first quarter, his first return went for 27 yards to Tennessee's 35-yard line, which set up a drive for a field goal. In the fourth quarter, he returned a kickoff 94 yards for his first NFL touchdown. It was the first kickoff return touchdown for the Titans since Darius Reynaud scored on a 105-yard return against the Detroit Lions on Sept. 23, 2012. Jennings' only previous kickoff return experience in the regular season came in 2015, when he returned seven kickoffs as a member of the Cleveland Browns.
SUCCOP HITS 400 POINTS WITH TITANS: Ryan Succop, who entered the game with 396 points since joining the Titans in 2014, became the seventh player in franchise history with 400 career points on an extra point in the fourth quarter. He also had a 47-yard field goal in the first quarter and a 53-yarder in the fourth quarter. His 53-yarder tied for the second-longest field goal of career. He previously connected on four career field goals from 53 yards in addition to his career-long 54-yarder.
BIG RETURN BY JACKSON: In the third quarter, Adoree' Jackson provided a 26-yard punt return to give the Titans offense possession at the Tennessee 49-yard line.
MATTHEWS FILLS IN FOR JACKSON: With Adoree' Jackson temporarily sidelined in the third quarter, wide receiver Rishard Matthews filled in as a punt returner. Matthews, who previously had one career punt return for nine yards in 2015 as a member of the Dolphins, picked up 18 yards on one return for the Titans at Miami.
INACTIVES: The Titans' inactive list at Miami included safety Kendrick Lewis, tackle Jack Conklin, linebacker Rashaan Evans, outside linebacker Harold Landry III, wide receiver Cameron Batson, guard Aaron Stinnie and tight end Anthony Firkser. Lewis (foot), Conklin (knee), Evans (hamstring) and Landry (ankle) were listed on the injury report prior to the game.
