NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Maybe Allen Iverson was on to something: practice is practice.

Just ask Steve McNair. Or, better yet, watch him.

The Tennessee Titans quarterback ignored his nagging injuries, pumped himself up with enough pain killers to impress Keith Richards and took the field Monday night despite not having practiced for more than three weeks.

And he wasn't a lame duck out there, either. McNair looked like the player who should be going to Hawaii as the AFC's starting QB with another dazzling performance in a 24-7 victory over New England. For the Titans, it marked eight wins in nine games and gave them a lofty AFC South-leading 9-5 mark.

In front of Hank Williams Jr. and 68,809 of his Rowdy Friends at the Coliseum, Air McNair's contributions couldn't exactly be measure statistically. His passing stats were an ordinary 136 yards (11-for-24), with no touchdowns. He even underthrew Derrick Mason to give up an easy interception to Terrell Buckley in the second quarter.

But he still got the job done, largely because of his two clutch runs for touchdowns in the second quarter. And because his nimbleness in escaping the pocket and patience in dealing with the always-clever Patriot defense. One play showed it all clearly.

At the beginning of the second quarter, McNair stood staring at blanketed coverage on third-and-8 from the Patriots' 11-yard line.

"I couldn't find anybody downfield," McNair said. "The offensive line did a great job in getting me a lane to at least try to get some positive yards. Once I got into the open, there was a guy to my right and he tried to snag me down, but I just kept my balance and got into the end zone."

It was obvious to all watching that both Ty Law and Buckley were hesitant when they tried to stop the 6-foot-2, 229-pounder at the goal line on that run. Who can blame them?

"When a quarterback like Steve breaks from the pocket, it's like having a running back," said Titans running back Robert Holcombe, who rushed for a career-high 85 yards on 10 carries. "He's a big strong guy who'll make people miss. I'm sure it is scary for any secondary guy to see him break."

"We just couldn't tackle the guy," Patriots safety Victor Green said. "He's so strong and he's fast. He's another running back back there and if you don't get up there and wrap his legs up, you can be in for a long day."

Don't think McNair took his success against the Patriots' vaunted defense lightly. In fact, he said he used his time out of practice with injuries to study the last four New England games. His conclusion? Forget about what he saw entirely.

"It wasn't about trying to figure out what they were going to do, because we couldn't," McNair admitted. "It was about going out there and executing and doing what we do best."

And that meant running the ball more. The Titans' game plan featured more counters to both Eddie George and Holcombe than they had shown in a long time. It also meant going after Ty Law by passing to Mason (6 catches for 86 yards), since the Titans felt the small, quick receiver could cause Law problems.

Still, the focal point was McNair. He didn't allow the Patriots' defense to stymie him as it did Drew Bledsoe a week ago. And he earned even more respect from teammates, who knew McNair's pregame inflammatory shot wore off in the second half and his ribs were aching terribly.

"You can't say enough about him," Mason said. "As Steve goes, this team goes. Not just the offense, but the defense and the special teams all feed off of what Steve's doing. He played a great game. When he had to pull it down and run, he ran. When he had to scramble out and make a play with his arm, he did that too. To have a guy like that on the squad, and to have him lining up at quarterback really brings confidence to your whole team."

Said Holcombe: "He's our leader, and we'll go as far as he'll take us."

When fullback Greg Comella was asked to compare McNair to Michael Vick, he gave an answer that might raise some eyebrows.

"Michael Vick is the next Steve McNair, not the other way around," said Comella, who had one rush for 9 yards. "Michael Vick hopes to one day have the poise and experience that Steve McNair has."

What Vick does not want to have is the bad luck with injuries that McNair has had the last two seasons. The laundry list of ailing injuries for McNair now includes not only turf toe, a hurt shoulder and bruised ribs, but also a jammed middle finger suffered Monday night when he hit it on a defender's helmet on a follow-through; he was forced to grip a ball on the sideline all night to keep his hand from tightening up.

When he finally made it to the podium as the last Titan to get dressed, McNair was candid about what on his body hurts.

"Everything," he said. "Head to toe."

It will make practice hell on Wednesday as the Titans prepare for a trip to Jacksonville to play the 6-8 Jaguars on Sunday.

But then again, McNair probably won't practice again this week.

And unlike the case with Iverson, the Philadelphia 76ers' star whose much-publicized tirade regarding the unimportance of practice last spring caused a stir, no one will complain.