NASHVILLE — It was not vintage Aaron Rodgers, but the Jets will take it.
Rodgers delivered a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter to give the Jets their first win of the season, a 24-17 close one over the Titans at Nissan Stadium.
Rodgers struggled early, but delivered just enough clutch throws to make the Jets 1-1 after their two-game road trip to open the season.
Titans quarterback Will Levis helped the Jets out with a fumble and an interception, and the Titans fell to 0-2.
Rodgers finished the game 18 of 30 for 176 yards and two touchdowns.
But the only thing people will remember from this one is the seven-play, 74-yard drive he orchestrated in the fourth quarter to win the game.
The fourth quarter opened with the game tied at 17-17.
Each team punted on their first two possessions of the fourth and then the Jets broke through.
The Jets took over at their own 26 with 8:41 left in the game.
The first big play of the drive came on third-and-1 when Rodgers found Garrett Wilson for a 26-yard gain that set the Jets up at the Tennessee 39.
After a six-yard loss on a run by Breece Hall, Rodgers found Mike Williams for a 19-yard catch on a 50/50 ball that Williams was able to pull in at the Titans’ 19 yard line for his first catch as a Jet .
Rookie running back Braelon Allen then scored his second touchdown of the day.
This one was a 20-yard run after he scored on a reception earlier in the game.
The Allen touchdown put the Jets up 24-17 with 4:31 left in the game.
The Jets defense then had to hold off one last drive from the Titans.
They made it all the way to the Jets’ 8 after a 13-yard scramble by Levis when it looked like he was about to be sacked.
Jets defensive end Will McDonald record his third sack of the game on third down and then Levis’ pass was knocked out of Tyler Boyd’s hands by Jets safety Tony Adams on fourth down.
The Jets played a much better second half than first half, when they made too many mistakes and looked uninspired.
The Jets had six accepted penalties in the first half, five on defense.
Safety Chuck Clark had two huge personal fouls — one for a horse collar tackle and another for unnecessary roughness.
Jermaine Johnson also had a personal foul for roughing the passer, although that one looked like a questionable call.
The Jets came out sluggish on both sides of the ball.
On offense, they punted on their first three drives and looked out of sync.
Rodgers looked skittish early on and was not seeing the field well.
On defense, the Jets struggled to slow down the Titans until Levis began coughing up the ball.
Tennessee put together a nine-play, 58-yard drive that ended with Calvin Ridley scoring on an end around from the 10-yard line that put the Titans up 7-0.
It looked like the Titans were ready to take a two-score lead as they drove all the way to the Jets’ 6-yard line but then Levis committed his first major mistake of the game.
He scrambled and then ran into Jets defensive end Will McDonald, who was on the ground.
Instead of just going down, he flipped the ball backwards and the fumble was recovered by Jets linebacker Quincy Williams.
The Jets failed to capitalize on that turnover and ended up punting but Levis handed the ball right back to the Jets.
He threw an interception to Brandin Echols on the first play after the punt.
This time, Rodgers took advantage of the turnover.
The Jets drove 73 yards on 12 plays and Rodgers threw a short pass to Allen for a 12-yard touchdown.
It was a nicely designed play where Rodgers faked a throw to Hall to the right and then went left to Allen for Allen’s first NFL touchdown.
Former Jet Nick Folk made a 41-yard field goal just before halftime to put the Titans up 10-7.
The Jets got the ball to open the second half and after helping the Titans by committing penalties in the first half, they got a big one in return.
Rodgers third-and-15 pass intended for Mike Williams was incomplete and it looked like the Titans had gotten off the field, but Jeffery Simmons was flagged for roughing the passer, giving the Jets 15 yards and a first down.
On the next play, Hall rushed for 30 yards and then Rodgers hit Hall for a 26-yard touchdown pass and a 14-10 Jets lead.
It was a beautiful leaping catch over Titans linebacker Kenneth Murray by Hall for the score.
Irv Charles, who had a tremendous game on special teams, blocked a punt from Ryan Stonehouse with 8:18 left in the third quarter, giving the Jets the ball at the Titans’ 30.
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But the Jets offense could not punch it into the end zone after the special teams play.
Instead, they had to settle for a 33-yard field goal from Greg Zuerlein that stretched the lead to 17-10.
The Titans answered on the ensuing drive with a game-tying touchdown by Ridley on an unbelievable catch.
The score was set up by a 21-yard scramble by Levis on third-and-1 that kept the drive going.
Levis then threw a ball down the right sideline to Ridley, who was covered closely by Sauce Gardner and Clark closing on the ball.
Gardner never turned to see the ball, though, and Ridley made a diving catch for the touchdown to tie the game at 17-17 with 3:22 left in the third.
On the Levis run, the Jets suffered a major injury. Defensive end Jermaine Johnson injured his right Achilles tendon in pursuit of Levis. If the tendon is torn, Johnson likely will miss the rest of the season.
