Jaguars vs. Titans: Score and Twitter Reaction for Thursday Night Football

The Jacksonville Jaguars entered Thursday night's AFC South clash with the Tennessee Titans in desperate need of a complete performance, but they received the opposite in a 36-22 loss at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

According to NFL Research, the Titans have scored at least 26 points in four straight games—marking the first time they've done so since 2003.

With their offense and defense mired in turmoil, the Jaguars saw themselves outgained by 124 yards as the Titans rode quarterback Marcus Mariota and a strong rushing attack to a comfortable win. 

Mariota finished 18-of-22 for 270 yards and two touchdowns, while DeMarco Murray (123 yards, one touchdown) and rookie Derrick Henry (60 yards, one touchdown) combined to gash Jacksonville on the ground.

NFL.com's Chris Wesseling broke down Mariota's impressive stats over the last month: 

Mariota completed seven of his first eight passes for 100 yards, and he helped the Titans take a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter, when Kendall Wright snared a 36-yard touchdown pass, as the NFL showed:

The Jaguars tried to counter with a passing attack led by Blake Bortles, who went 33-of-54 for 337 yards and three touchdowns, but the results were discouraging. Bortles opened 2-of-7 for 18 yards, and Jacksonville couldn't move the chains.

Big Cat Country posted an illuminating statistic that illustrated how much the Jaguars struggled over the contest's first 15 minutes:

As Jacksonville sputtered, Tennessee continued to pour it on.

Mariota marched the Titans back into the red zone, and Henry capped off the eight-play possession with the first rushing touchdown of his career.

The NFL provided a field-level view of Henry's jaunt to paydirt from six yards out:

Pro Football Focus' Nathan Jahnke took note of Henry's increased workload in Tennessee's offense midway through the second quarter:

Murray added to the Jags' misery with a 14-yard scoring scamper roughly three minutes later. Following the ensuing extra point, Tennessee led 24-0, and NBC Sports' Ross Tucker questioned Jacksonville's leadership:

Considering the team brought aboard head coach Gus Bradley to overhaul Jacksonville's defensive identity, the lack of urgency was unbecoming of a unit that has struggled to contain opponents all season, according to Over the Cap's Jason Fitzgerald:

Jacksonville got on the board when Bortles found tight end Julius Thomas for a 10-yard touchdown four minutes into the third quarter, but the Titans responded with a touchdown of their own to squash the Jaguars' sliver of momentum.

Tennessee proceeded to kill the clock with its power approach, and the Jaguars could only watch Bortles pile up garbage-time statistics with time working against them. 

Thursday's win thrust the Titans to 4-4, and an Indianapolis Colts loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday would give Tennessee sole possession of second place in advance of next week's meeting with the San Diego Chargers.

Jacksonville, on the other hand, is fading fast.

The Jaguars are in the cellar of the AFC South at 2-5, and their regression on offense a year after they showed potential has been a cause for concern.

Not only that, but the Jags' inability to slow opponents under Bradley's guidance with promising defensive talent has left the team grasping at straws.

Unfortunately for Jacksonville, things won't get easier. A date with Kansas City looms next Sunday, and the Chiefs' swarming defense should pose problems for a unit that has appeared listless for the last three weeks.

Postgame Reaction

Once Bradley faced reporters at the podium, questions started flying in regarding his job security. 

According to ESPN.com's Michael DiRocco, the head coach was open about his expectations: 

Ryan O'Halloran of the Florida Times-Union later spoke to Jaguars owner Shahid Khan, who confirmed the team will not make a coaching change. 

However, Khan didn't exactly hide his displeasure with the way Jacksonville's season has gone. 

"Actions speak louder than words," he said, per O'Halloran. "Very little for me to say."

On the winning side, the way the Titans executed encouraged Mariota. 

"Today was really the first day that all three phases played a good game," he said, per the team's official Twitter account. "That's all you can ask for."

"We built a rhythm; we ran the ball well," he added, according to ESPN.com's Paul Kuharsky. "Line played really well."

Finally, head coach Mike Mularkey sounded happy with the way his team has battled en route to a 4-4 start. 

"I think we have to feel confident with what we've done," he said, according to the Tennessean's Jason Wolf.