NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Chalk up the first game between the NFL’s defending co-MVP quarterbacks to Peyton Manning.

Manning threw for 254 yards and two touchdowns, and Nick Harper intercepted Steve McNair’s pass in the end zone in helping Indianapolis rally for a 31-17 victory over Tennessee on Sunday.

Edgerrin James also ran for two touchdowns and 124 yards as the Colts (1-1) avoided losing consecutive games in the regular season for the first time since the middle of the 2002 season – now a span of 26 games.

The Colts forced two turnovers and sacked McNair three times in winning their third straight game in this series.

The Titans had plenty of chances to bury the Colts in a deep hole before a record crowd of 68,932 in this early AFC South showdown between the only teams to win this division since realignment.

They couldn’t finish what they started. They turned the ball over once on downs at the Indy 4, settled for a field goal on another deep drive into Colts’ territory after two dropped passes in the end zone.

The worst came when Harper took the ball away from Pro Bowl receiver Derrick Mason in the end zone to end another possession in the fourth quarter.

Manning took advantage of the turnover by leading the Colts 80 yards in 11 plays, and James finished it with a 4-yard run for a 24-17 lead that was Indianapolis’ first in the game.

McNair then couldn’t get the Titans past midfield.

Titans coach Jeff Fisher tried to pull a trick with punter Craig Hentrich throwing to Troy Fleming on fourth down only to be stopped for 4 yards when he needed 10.

The Titans finished 0-for-3 on fourth downs.

James, who had only 24 yards in the first half, wound up the scoring with his 30-yard TD run with 2:29 to go.

McNair’s final drive ended when he was sacked and fumbled in the last minute. He had two of his top four receivers deactivated because of injuries and was working behind a line featuring rookie Jacob Bell at left guard and backup Jason Mathews at left tackle in the fourth quarter.

He finished 25-of-39 for 273 yards and ran for a TD.

Manning had only 84 yards passing in the first half as Tennessee wanted to keep him off the field as much as possible. The plan worked almost to perfection in the first half.

Tennessee held the ball for nearly 21 minutes, with Chris Brown running for 104 yards on 19 carries by halftime. Brown finished with 152 yards on 26 carries and a TD.

The defense forced the Colts to go three-and-out on two straight possessions after Mike Vanderjagt capped an opening 12-play drive with a 28-yard field goal.

Manning didn’t complete four consecutive passes until just before halftime, but then Titans tackle Albert Haynesworth poked the ball out of Marvin Harrison’s arms and Samari Rolle recovered the fumble for Tennessee.

Reggie Wayne helped Manning get into rhythm in the second half, and he finished 24-of-33 passing. Wayne caught seven passes for 119 yards.

AP-ES-09-19-04 1634EDT