Raiders Could Kick Themselves After Loss

Sebastian Janikowski’s suddenly unreliable foot allowed the Tennessee Titans to keep their playoff hopes afloat.

Tennessee’s Joe Nedney kicked his second short field goal with 1:48 left, and Oakland’s Janikowski missed his third of the night in the final seconds as the Titans beat the playoff-bound Raiders, 13-10, Saturday night.

Tennessee (7-7) became only the second visiting team to win at Oakland (10-4) this season.

The winning points came after a late drive led by Steve McNair, who nearly didn’t play because of a lower back strain. McNair, who completed 15 of 27 passes for 178 yards, completed two long third-down passes to Derrick Mason during the go-ahead drive.

The Raiders quickly moved the ball inside Tennessee’s 30, but Janikowski was wide left on a 42-yard attempt with 11 seconds to play.

“The way [Janikowski’s] luck was going, I didn’t really think we were going into overtime,” Mason said. “He was having a hard day, and I think his groin was bothering him. When you put a kicker in that position, it’s tough.”

Janikowski, who didn’t practice all week because of a groin strain and missed one day for personal reasons, also missed from 40 and 33 yards.

In Oakland’s first 13 games, he missed just twice in 23 attempts--one was blocked, and the other was from 59 yards.

“I hit it pretty solid, but the ball took off to the right for the second time,” Janikowski said of the late kick. “The field was in perfect shape. The setup was perfect. The whole season was perfect.

“I think I was going a little too fast.”

The Titans, who have home games against Cleveland and Cincinnati left, need plenty of help to make the playoffs.