The Tennessee Titans franchise, originally known as the Houston Oilers, was founded by Bud Adams, and the organization began competing in the American Football League in 1960. The Oilers were an original member of the upstart AFL.
Lou Rymkus was hired as the first head coach of the Houston Oilers franchise.
The Oilers first professional football game was played in Oakland, California against the Oakland Raiders. The Houston-based franchise opened up their professional football era with a 37-22 victory over the hometown Raiders. The victory gave the Oilers the impetus they needed to complete their introductory season with an impressive 10-4 regular season record, good enough to clinch the Eastern Division.
In the first ever AFL Championship event, the Oilers defeated the Los Angeles Chargers by a score of 24-16. With that landmark triumph, the Houston Oilers will forever be identified as the first team to capture the AFL Championship trophy.
The following season, the Oilers posted a superb regular season record of 10-3-1 earning them the opportunity to defend their AFL Championship against the Chargers. The now San Diego-based Chargers were once again victims of the Oilers dominance of the early 1960’s. They edged out the Chargers 10-3.
After capturing the first two AFL Championships, the Oilers faced their inner-state rivals, the Dallas Texans, for the 1962 title. Their bid for a third successive championship ended in overtime as a field goal would give the Texans a 20-17 victory.
From 1963 to 1966, the Oilers would stumble below mediocrity. It was not until 1967 when they would post another winning season, 9-4-1. A 45-7 loss to the Oakland Raiders stood in the way of the Oilers appearing in their first Super Bowl.
In 1968, the Oilers began hosting games in the Astrodome. In fact, they were the first professional football team to host games in an enlcosed stadium.
Following the NFL-AFL merger in 1970, the Oilers franchise lingered around the bottom of the NFL standings. They were placed in the AFC Central Division along with the Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
In 1975, the Oilers appeared to be on their way back up the NFL ladder as they won 10 games versus only 4 losses. Despite the winning record, they were shut out of the playoffs due to divisional losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals.
The Oilers clinched their first playoff berth in over a decade in 1978 with a 10-6 regular season record. In the Wild Card match-up with the Miami Dolphins, the Oilers staggered the favored team 17-9. A week later, their jubilation was halted as they were thumped by their divisional foes, the Pittsburgh Steelers, by a score of 34-5.
The 1978 season was momentous for Oilers rookie running back Earl Campbell as he earned Rookie of the Year honors as well as NFL Most Valuable Player.
The Oilers would face the reviled Pittsburgh Steelers again in the 1979 AFC Championship Game. Once again, the Steelers spoiled the Houston Oilers Super Bowl run with a 27-13 defeat.
Following their 27-7 Wild Card loss to the Oakland Raiders in 1980, the Oilers encountered a post-season drought that lasted until 1987.
Once the post-season drought ended, the Houston franchise would go on a tear, earning a post-season berth in each of the subsequent seven seasons. They were led by quarterback Warren Moon.
In 1991, the Oilers would clinch the AFC Central Division title with a respectable 11-5 record. The division title was significant for the franchise because it was their first since 1967. However, they were victims of one of John Elway’s miracle comebacks as the Denver Broncos eliminated the Oilers with a 26-24 victory.
In the 1992 Wild Card match-up, the Oilers faced the Buffalo Bills in what has been considered as an epic battle. Quarterback Warren Moon threw for 371 yards and 4 touchdown passes in the first half alone, guiding the Oilers to a hulking 35-3 lead at halftime. Astonishingly, the eventual AFC Champion Buffalo Bills rallied back to send the game into overtime, and proceeded to kick the game-winning field, sealing the colossal comeback. The 41-38 loss to the Bills is arguably the most devastating loss in the franchise’s long history.
A 12-4 record in 1993 earned the Oilers the AFC Central Division title. Nonetheless, their post-season woes persisted as they were upended by the Kansas City Chiefs 28-20 in the divisional playoff match-up.
Following the agonizing post-season letdown, Oilers owner Bud Adams traded their star quarterback, Warren Moon, to the Minnesota Vikings.
The post-Moon era began with a demoralizing 2-14 record in 1994. With the third overall pick in the 1995 NFL draft, the Oilers selected quarterback Steve McNair out of Alcorn State. McNair was considered to be one of the more mobile quarterbacks, somewhat comparable to Steve Young and Randall Cunningham.
On November 16th, 1995, Oilers owner Bud Adams revealed his intentions to relocate the franchise to Nashville, Tennessee in 1998. They became the second AFC Central team in as many years to relocate. The Cleveland Browns had recently moved to Baltimore, Maryland.
The backlash from the relocation announcement was manifest in 1996 as empty seats were present at practically every home game. At times, meager crowds of 20,000 would show up at the Astrodome. The city of Houston permitted Adams to complete the relocation a year early and professional football in Houston would become absent for the next five years.
The franchise, now located in Tennessee, would retain the nickname ‘Oilers’ for two years before switching to ‘Titans’ in 1999. They posted records of 8-8 in each of their first two years in Tennessee.
Attendance for Oilers games was below par while they played in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. This prompted Adams to move the home games to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville in hopes of increasing fan support. All the while, their new stadium was under construction.
The new stadium, originally called Adelphia Coliseum, was completed in time for the 1999 NFL season. Sporting their new uniforms and logos, the recently renamed Titans marched to a remarkable 13-3 regular season record. Nevertheless, they finished second to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Central Division.
Tennessee’s first playoff home game saw the Buffalo Bills take the field against the hometown Titans. Trailing 16-14 with a mere 16 seconds left on the clock, the Titans Frank Wycheck completed a controversial lateral to Kevin Dyson which resulted in a 75 yard touchdown. The play was dubbed the ‘Music City Miracle’ and it advanced the Titans to the divisional round where they knocked off the Indianapolis Colts. They defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship bout. Finally, the franchise that was established prior to 1960 was Super Bowl bound.
With the St. Louis Rams awaiting, the Titans took to the field for Super Bowl XXXIV. Despite trailing 16-0 in the third quarter, the Titans rallied back to tie the score late in the game. The Rams scored a touchdown to take a 23-16 lead; however, quarterback Steve McNair led his team back down the field. After completing a pass to receiver Kevin Dyson, the Titans would end up 18 inches shy of possibly tying the score. The 23-16 loss was highlighted by the close call.
They returned to the post-season in 2000, but were stymied by the Baltimore Ravens robust defense.
In 2002, the Titans would advance to the AFC Championship Game following their second division title in three years. This time, the Oakland Raiders pounded the Tennessee franchise 41-24, denying the Titans of their second Super Bowl expedition. Prior to the 2002 season, the Titans were reassigned to the AFC South Division due to the NFL’s realignment. They were accompanied by the Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Houston Texans.
A year later, the Titans were edged out by the Indianapolis Colts for the AFC South Division crown. However, McNair was awarded co-MVP along with Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.
In the post-season, the Titans eliminated the Baltimore Ravens 20-17; however they would lose to the eventual Super Bowl champion New England Patriots by a marginal score of 17-14.
Over the next two seasons, the Titans would post dismal records of 5-11 and 4-12 and would begin a rebuilding phase.
In the 2005 NFL draft, the Titans selected quarterback Vince Young out of Texas as the third overall pick. This led to the acrimonious departure of Steve McNair who was ultimately banned from the Tennessee Titans workout facilities.
In 2006, the Titans improved to 8-8; however, they would fail to qualify for the post-season for the third consecutive season.
Reference:
- Tennessee Titans homepage
