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Cooper scores in his Bills debut and Allen shakes off a slow start with a 34-10 win over the Titans

Cooper scores in his Bills debut and Allen shakes off a slow start with a 34-10 win over the Titans

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – Amari Cooper scored the go-ahead touchdown in his Buffalo debut and Josh Allen overcame a sluggish first half by throwing two touchdown passes in his 100th career start, helping the Bills erase a 10-point deficit and defeat Tennessee Beat Titans 34-10 on Sunday.

Cooper's 12-yard TD catch was his first reception for the Bills and came five days after he was acquired in a trade with the Cleveland Browns. Ty Johnson also had a 4-yard catch and James Cook and Ray Davis rounded out the loss with touchdown runs.

After being limited to 4 of 11 for 65 yards in the first half, Allen finished 21 of 33 for 323 yards. It was his 26th career 300-yard game and first of the season. And Allen did so against a Titans defense that was first against the pass and had yet to allow 200 yards passing this season.

Allen improved his career record as a starter to 68-32 and tied four players – Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers – for the sixth-most wins in a quarterback's first 100 starts.

The AFC East-leading Bills (5-2) opened the opener by scoring points on each of their first four possessions of the second half to overcome a 10-7 halftime deficit and, after falling behind 10-0, they opened the game.

The game turned in the opening moments of the second half, starting with the Titans turning the ball over on downs when rookie DeWayne Carter stuffed Tony Pollard for a 3-yard loss on fourth-and-2.

It took Allen six plays to travel 41 yards as he capped the drive with a wide-open Cooper over the middle – and after the receiver appeared, he took advice from rookie receiver Keon Coleman on what the play looked like.

After failing to make his first attempt on a contested catch down the sideline, Cooper finished with four catches for 66 yards and showed glimpses of the field to a patchwork receiver group that was struggling to separate. Stretching skills. Coleman finished the game with four catches for a career-best 125 yards and a receiving touchdown when replays showed his foot was out of bounds.

The Titans continued their free fall, falling to 1-5 – their worst start to the season since opening at 1-6 in 2015. And a quarterback change didn't help an offense that was among the worst in the NFL in numerous categories over the weekend, including failing to reach the 17-point mark for the fifth time this season.

Backup Mason Rudolph started with Will Levis, who was suffering from a right throwing shoulder injury. CBS reported that coach Brian Callahan informed the broadcast team of the decision to rest the second-year senior on Saturday after Levis was able to practice on a limited basis on both Wednesday and Friday.

The Titans started strong with Rudolph's 4-yard TD pass to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Nick Folk's 25-yard field goal giving them a 10-0 lead before being shut out on their final eight drives.

Rudolph finished 25 of 40 for 215 yards with a touchdown, an interception and a lost fumble.

Tennessee has lost 23 of its last 30 games since its 7-3 start in 2023. The Titans also have a 2-12 record in their last 14 road games, with both wins coming in Miami, including a 31-12 victory Sept. 30.

Titans: OL Jaelyn Duncan, who started in place of Leroy Watson, did not return from a hamstring injury. … LB Kenneth Murray did not return with a shoulder injury.

Bills: WR Curtis Samuel was sidelined in the first quarter with a shoulder injury. … LB Terrel Bernard did not return after injuring his ankle in the third quarter.

Titans: Play at the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

Bills: Play at the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

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