NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- In a game of wild momentum swings, the Indianapolis Colts had one more in them than did the Tennessee Titans in a wild 35-33 win over the home team at Nissan Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The Titans, up 13 midway through the fourth quarter, seemed to be in control after pinning the Colts at their 2 with 12:20 to play. But quarterback Andrew Luck marched the Colts downfield and hit wide receiver Phillip Dorsett with a 35-yard scoring toss, and then after Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota threw an interception, Luck hit wide receiver Donte Moncrief with an 11-yard toss with 5:53 left.


"Defense played well. Unfortunately, I put them in a bad spot in the fourth quarter," Mariota said. "For the most part, they are a good, solid unit. We'll continue to lean on them throughout the year and they'll make plays for us."

It was quite the turnaround for Luck, whose two interceptions helped put the Colts behind earlier.

"(Luck's play was) big time. He's a gritty guy and he's able to move past the bad plays, put them behind him and put something together like he did today," Colts coach Chuck Pagano said.

One Titans' three-and-out later, the Colts marched to the Tennessee 6, where running back Frank Gore ran in with 2:57 left to extend the Indy lead to eight.


The Titans weren't done, with Mariota leading a drive capped by fullback Jalston Fowler's 1-yard scoring run with 47 seconds left. A pass interference penalty on the 2-point play gave Tennessee a second try from the 1, where the Titans went to Fowler once again.

But Indianapolis stuffed the play inside, forcing Fowler to retreat back to the 17 where he was snowed under by a host of Colts. Tennessee's onside kick was unsuccessful, and the Colts (1-2) walked away with their first win of the season.

"You don't ever feel like you're out of it," said Colts safety Dwight Lowery, who had one of the biggest plays of the day. "I wouldn't even say the last two games we lost, we felt like we were out of it. ... You're never really out of a football game. So many crazy things can happen and players make plays, especially when you have a have a quarterback like Luck, you're always in the game."

All this came after the Titans (1-2) had rallied from 11 down to score three touchdowns in a 5:38 span between the end of the first half and the start of the second.

After Tennessee forced a punt on the first possession of the second half, Mariota led the Titans to the Colts' 8, where running back Antonio Andrews rushed for a score on the next play, putting the Titans up for the first time all day at 17-14.

On the Colts' next offensive snap, Titans cornerback Perrish Cox jumped a route on the right sideline and picked Luck at the Indy 30, returning it to the 3. One play later, Mariota found rookie wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, who knocked Colts cornerback Vontae Davis to the turf before hauling in a scoring pass near the right side of the end zone.


Then, the Colts' temporary nightmare got worse. Luck didn't see Zach Brown in coverage on Indianapolis' next drive, and the linebacker picked it and rumbled 45 yards to the Colt 13. That materialized into a 21-yard Ryan Succop field goal.

The Colts struck first when Luck connected with wide receiver T.Y. Hilton on a 48-yard throw down the right sideline, setting up Gore's 1-yard scoring run with 5:42 left in the first quarter.

Early in the second, Mariota threw a strike to tight end Delanie Walker around the Colts' 30, but Walker was belted by cornerback Josh Thomas as he turned to run upfield. The ball went right into the hands Lowery, who weaved his way through multiple Titans for a 69-yard touchdown return.

The Titans answered with a 38-yard Succup field goal, and then, Mariota inched the Titans closer with a 7-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Kendall Wright with 19 seconds left in the first half, whittling the Colts' lead to 14-10 at the break.

The win is the Colts' eighth straight in the series, and their 13th in the last 14 meetings between the teams. That left a young Titans team feeling frustrated afterwards.

"Oh yeah, it's getting old, but we had plenty of chances to win the game. We had the lead at one point. We've just got to finish the game," Wright said.

NOTES: Titans TE Delanie Walker, inactive with a wrist injury last week, started Sunday. ... Colts S Dwight Lowery's TD return was ruled an interception, though Walker appeared to have brief possession of the ball. It was the first interception of QB Marcus Mariota's career. ... Titans LT Taylor Lewan went down with 10:05 left in the third quarter with what appeared to be a shoulder injury, but returned within the quarter. ... Colts QB Andrew Luck came into the game leading the NFL in interceptions, and added two more, giving him a total of seven in three games.