Verner picks his spots

ARLINGTON, Texas_ Rookie cornerback Alterraun Verner is no stranger to the road.

In the first half two weeks ago, at New Meadowlands in New York, Verner had to jump into the fray when starting cornerback Jason McCourty left the game with a broken forearm.

He recovered a key fumble in the victory over the New York Giants that day.

On Sunday, Verner was a road warrior again, intercepting a Tony Romo pass and returning it 12 yards to set up a go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter.

“I want to do everything I can to help this team,” Verner said. “It was definitely a good outing for us, getting those sacks and getting those turnovers.”

The defense finished the day with six sacks including two apiece from the Jasons [Jones and Babin].

For the third week in a row, the opposing quarterback has thrown for over 300-yards against the Titans defense; including the 406 yards by Tony Romo on Sunday.

“Obviously we gave up a lot of yards, big chunks, big plays here and there,” Verner added. “We have to shore up that stuff. It’s not anything that we can’t fix, that’s the encouraging thing.”

In the fourth quarter with the game tied at 20, and Dallas at its own 16, Romo stepped back to pass and tossed his second interception of the day into the hands of Verner. He returned it 12 yards before being tackled at the one yard line.

“That’s the frustrating thing, one yard away,” as Verner smiled. “I wanted it so bad.”

The pass was actually deflected at the line by defensive end Dave Ball.

“If it wasn’t tipped, it probably would have gotten there a lot faster, so I probably would have just been there to make the tackle. But the tip allowed me to readjust and get in a position to make a catch,” Verner said.

With McCourty being sidelined for at least a couple of more weeks, Verner will continue to get the start at corner and continue to try to impress.

“His play is not surprising, he made more plays than anybody in training camp,” defensive coordinator Chuck Cecil said. “He’s going to do that and keep doing that, that’s what he does. He’s just a good football player.”

Verner finished the day with six tackles and two assist, and a win 34-27.

“3-2 sounds a lot better than 2-3 on the road against the Dallas Cowboys. It was a definitely a quality win for us to pull this out, I’m very proud of this team,” Verner said.

The Titans have now won 11 consecutive games against NFC teams, which is a franchise record and the longest current inter-conference winning streak in the NFL.