Looking Back At First 20 Years Of Titans Franchise '99-'18

[MIKE75]

Well 2018 will be the 20th anniversary of the Titans franchise overall. They plan on bringing out new uniforms to celebrate and the uniforms will most likely have a patch with two XX's just like the 10th anniversary had an X patch and the 15th had an XV one.

 

Would you consider the first 20 years a success?  As for myself overall i definitely enjoyed it and in that span they were 13th overall of 32 teams with 155 wins and 4 wins from being in the top ten. They also had 9 winning seasons,7 postseason appearances,6 postseason victories,3 division titles,3 13 win seasons,2 times NFL best record,2 AFC title and 1 Super Bowl appearance. Not bad at all.

 

Looking at what we accomplished the first 20 years sure we weren't the best but we were right outside the top ten overall and i do think we did pretty good all things considered.

 

I'm also very proud of how far the Titans have came the last two seasons with two straight winning seasons and a trip to the playoffs as well as a playoff win and the main man responsible for putting it together is GM Jon Robinson. I'm not very happy with the extension of Mularkey or how blind he is bringing back all staff cough cough Robiskie cough cough

 

However looking back at our first victory in our first game September 12,1999 a one point win 36-35 at home against the Cincinnati Bengals it was a close one but we would have a lot of those in the coming years indeed.

 

Which led me to choose my top ten wins over the past two decades from our beloved Tennessee Titans.......

 

10. December 3,2006 Indianapolis Colts at Tennessee Titans--Great game in which Indy had a 14-0 lead in the second quarter but all the glory would be ours in the end when our kicker Rob Bironas booted a 60 yard FG to win the game 20-17 with only 7 seconds left.

 

9. December 18th, 2016 Tennessee Titans at Kansas City Chiefs-Whats crazy is this was another December game where we were losing 14-0 in the second quarter.  With no time left kicker Ryan Succop kicked a 53 yard FG in very cold weather to win 19-17.

 

8. January 11th, 2003 Pittsburgh Steelers at Tennessee Titans-This was a divisional round playoff game from fifteen years ago but one we actually won and it was also a wild win as many of our postseason wins are. Again this one as well as the first two above was won on a FG kick in OT as Joe Nedney nailed a 26 yard FG and the Titans won. Actually due to running into our kicker we actually got a second chance on the FG try which worked out to our advantage.

 

7. November 29th, 2009 Arizona Cardinals at Tennessee Titans-This was the game where Vince Young ended it with a 99 yard walkoff where he hit WR Kenny Britt with a ten yard TD pass with time expiring to win the game. That was the best TD drive of VY's career.

 

6. December 1st, 2002 Tennessee Titans at New York Giants -The Giants were winning 26-14 at the start of the 4th quarter and were winning 29-21 at the two minute warning. With 9 seconds left McNair hit Wycheck with a TD pass and got the 2 point conversion to go to overtime. Then Nedney hit a 38 yard FG in OT to win it 32-29.

 

5. January 3rd, 2004 Tennessee Titans at Baltimore Ravens- The Titans kicker Gary Anderson hit a 46 yard FG with 29 seconds left and Tennessee defeated Baltimore 20-17.

 

4. November 26th, 2006 New York Giants at Tennessee Titans -Going into the 4th quarter the Titans were losing 21-0 and all of a sudden in the last quarter the Titans scored 24 points including Bironas hitting the game winning 49 yard FG with 6 seconds left as the Titans shocked the Giants 24-21.

 

3. January 6th, 2018 Tennessee Titans at Kansas City Chiefs-Going into halftime the Titans were losing 21-3 and going into the 4th quarter they were losing 21-10 but they found a way and came back to win the playoff game 22-21 by one point.

 

2. January 8th, 2000 Buffalo Bills at Tennessee Titans -Nearly 20 years later i never get tired of watching this especially the last 15 seconds where Buffalo had just kicked a FG were leading and thought they had it in the bag but we hit them with home run throwback and in the end Dyson was the hero forever immortalized and the Titans won 22-16 in the Music City Miracle a great playoff game.

 

1. January 23rd, 2000 Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars -We won the AFC championship that day and went to the Super Bowl a very sweet victory i will never forget and forever cherish. We were trailing 14-10 at halftime but afterwards once we got a TD drive and then sacked QB Brunnell for a safety it was all over and we won 33-14.

 

Honorable Mention: October 21,2007 Tennessee Titans at Houston Texans- I will always remember watching this game a 38-36 thriller that we won in the final seconds and Bironas set a new record kicking 8 field goals!!!

 

 

As far as players i had lots of favorites on both sides of the ball. I really don't have a favorite player but quite a few i do like a lot......

 

 

One thing i miss dearly is the Titans defense which used to be the teams identity for a long time. Three players i absolutely loved on our 2008 defense were Albert Haynesworth,Kyle Vanden Bosch and Jevon Kearse. We had it in the bag that year but it slipped from our grasp.Our GM hit the bullseye in '99 when he drafted Kearse and again in '02 with Big Al. I think Vanden Bosch was one of our best free agency pickups ever.

 

 

These two will always be immortalized together as the biggest reason the early Titans teams came so close more than once at going all the way. In '99 they led us to the big game but time ran out. In '00 we should've won it but the Ratbirds caused havoc. In '02 we made it all the way back to the AFC championship. In '03 we were a Drew Bennett catch from beating the Pats and going back to the AFC championship again. I feel with the right RB a better offense and coaching that Mariota could do these things as well.

 

 

In the playoff game recently against Kansas City RB Derrick Henry paid homage to former Titans RB Chris Johnson in his TD celebration. I honestly think CJ was one of the most electric players the team ever had. He broke a lot of records including the all purpose yardage in one season,he was only the 6th back in history to go for 2,000 yards. He also had the most carries over 80 yards for any back with a total of six in all. Henry had a couple huge runs himself this season that went over 70 yards. I think both are good RB's.

 

 

 

WR Derrick Mason was my favorite receiver the team ever had with Nate Washington a very close second place. Looking back one of the biggest mistakes we ever made was letting him go because he would've been very beneficial for us especially in '07 and '08.

 

 

Our GM Floyd Reese as he had many times before hit the nail on the head when he took a pair of tackles in the 2005 NFL Draft in the second round he picked Michael Roos and in the fourth round he picked David Stewart and both were great bookend tackles who ended up playing a decade in Tennessee.

 

 

Out of all the free agency pickups this team has had over the past 20 years i have to say this one ranks at the very top. Although overall he had a very spotty term as GM here Ruston Webster absolutely nailed this one. TE Delanie Walker has been a security blanket for every QB he has played with here in Tennessee. He is easily a top 5 TE in the NFL.

 

 

I think that RB Demarco Murray was a very good addition to the team when he was brought in before the 2016 season. If i'm correct he was the leading rusher in the AFC that year and was a big factor in helping lead the Titans to back to back winning seasons. However i think now is time to replace him. Bringing him back could be a mistake.

 

 

As far as QB Marcus Mariota goes i think he can do some great things if we are able to put him in the right offense. All of us fans see clear as day that Mularkey has served his purpose and going forward will not be beneficial to Mariota at all. Bottom line though is Mariota IS the future and Mularkey is not.

 

 

There is zero doubt that GM Jon Robinson is the best one we have had here since Floyd Reese in the early days. Robinson wasted no time and got to work not only bringing in RB Demarco Murray but also setting up a deal to trade our number one pick for a boatload of picks and that turned out to be a wise decision as the extra loot helped bring in some talented players. In his first two years here the team has had winning seasons in both years and a playoff appearance and win. Not bad at all for his first two years. I can't wait to see who he drafts this year. My one wish was that he had more power because he would've already kicked Mularkey's ass to the curb.

 

 

Make no mistake that if our offense starts off on a bad foot next season i don't think it will take long and we will see heads roll hopefully Robiskie and possible even Mularkey. I think our GM has drafted well and will continue to bring in more talent. I posted below how all the teams did in the NFL from 1999 through 2018. The Titans franchise was close to top ten in wins for the first twenty years........

 

 

 

1999 through 2018   Overall Records

 

1. New England-222-82

2. Pittsburgh-194-109-1

3. Indianapolis-193-111

4. Green Bay-186-117-1

5. Philadelphia -177-126-1

6. Denver-175-129

7. Baltimore -174-130

8. Seattle-170-133-1

9. New Orleans-160-144

10. Dallas Cowboys—158-146

11. Minnesota—157-146-1

12. NY Giants—156-148

**13. Tennessee—155-149**

14. Atlanta—155-148-1

15. L. A. Chargers—153-151

16. Carolina—153-150-1

17. Kansas City—151-153

18. Miami–146-158

19. NY Jets—145-159

20. Chicago—143-161

21. Cincinnati—141-160-3

22. Tampa Bay—137-167

23. LA Rams—135-168-1

24. Arizona—135-168-1

25. San Francisco—135-168-1

26. Buffalo—132-172

27. Washington—132-171-1

28. Jacksonville—130-174

29. Oakland—122-182

30. Detroit—113-191

31. Houston-110-146

32. Cleveland-88-216

 

 

 

Playoff Victories  '99-'18

 

New England-26

Pittsburgh-15

Baltimore-15

Seattle-13

Green Bay-12

Indianapolis-12

Philly-11

N.Y. Giants-10

New Orleans-8

Carolina-8

Denver-7

**Tennessee-6**

San Francisco-6

Atlanta-6

L.A. Rams-6

N.Y. Jets-6

Arizona-5

Minnesota-5

Oakland-4

Tampa Bay-4

San Diego-4

Jacksonville-4

Chicago-3

Houston-3

Miami-2

Washington-2

Buffalo-0

Cincy-0

Cleveland-0

Dallas-0

Detroit-0

Kansas City-0

 

 

 

Edited January 17, 2018 by MIKE75

[earlers]

1960

[MIKE75]

4 minutes ago, earlers said:

1960

Different things to different fans.

 

Won't deny lots of ex Oilers in fact i'd say a good half of the fanbase is the ones who stuck with them when they changed over to Titans.

 

I started following them in 1999 year one as Titans

 

Most Tennessee residents began following them in '99

 

They do include the Oiler days starting in '60

 

They also celebrate the Titan years as welll this year is year 20 in 2018.

 

In the past in '08 they celebrated with an X on the jersey. In '13 it was an XV

Edited January 15, 2018 by MIKE75

[scine09]

They've only been the Titans for 19 years.  This will be the 20th season in 2018.  So it's hard to evaluate the first 20 years when only 19 have happened.

 

But for the first 19 years?  I'd say a B-/C+, something in that neighborhood.

Edited January 15, 2018 by scine09

[TitanRein27]

Hey Mike, I gotta tell ya - and I'm being straight up and serious here... It's nice to see such passion and dedication from a true fan point of few stating such history. Thank you bro.

[titanruss]

this is great... you shouldve waited a day or two cause this shits gonna get lost. 

[MIKE75]

 

1999 through 2018-----Overall Records plus playoff wins

 

1. New England-222-82------26 playoff victories

2. Pittsburgh-194-109-1-----15 playoff victories

3. Indianapolis-193-111-----12 playoff victories

4. Green Bay-186-117-1------12 playoff victories

5. Philadelphia -177-126-1-----11 playoff victories

6. Denver-175-129-------7 playoff victories

7. Baltimore -174-130-----15 playoff victories

8. Seattle-170-133-1--------13 playoff victories

9. New Orleans-160-144---------8 playoff victories

10. Dallas Cowboys—158-146--------0 playoff victories

11. Minnesota—157-146-1--------5 playoff victories

12. NY Giants—156-148----------10 playoff victories

**13. Tennessee—155-149**------------6 playoff victories

14. Atlanta—155-148-1---------------6 playoff victories

15. L. A. Chargers—153-151-----------4 playoff victories

16. Carolina—153-150-1----------------8 playoff victories

17. Kansas City—151-153----------0 playoff victories

18. Miami–146-158---------------2 playoff victories

19. NY Jets—145-159----------------------6 playoff victories

20. Chicago—143-161-------------------3 playoff victories

21. Cincinnati—141-160-3--------------0 playoff victories

22. Tampa Bay—137-167-------------------4 playoff victories

23. LA Rams—135-168-1------------------6 playoff victories

24. Arizona—135-168-1------------------5 playoff victories

25. San Francisco—135-168-1--------------6 playoff victories

26. Buffalo—132-172--------------------------0 playoff victories

27. Washington—132-171-1--------------2 playoff victories

28. Jacksonville—130-174-----------------4 playoff victories

29. Oakland—122-182-------------------------4 playoff victories

30. Detroit—113-191-----------------------0 playoff victories

31. Houston-110-146----------------------3 playoff victories

32. Cleveland-88-216------------------0 playoff victories

 

 

As a fan i am very satisfied with how we did so far in our near 20 years with the Titans franchise. We are just 3 wins from being a top ten team in wins compared to other teams since we first started back in '99 through today. The team also had two or three wild and crazy wins in the postseason as well Buffalo '99,Pitt '02 and KC '17 come to mind. Honestly i wouldn't trade places with any other team and believe me teams like Cleveland,Chicago,Buffalo,Detroit,etc. would all love to have had our success we had in the regular and postseason.

 

Also looking for a new head coach also shows me this team is doing whatever they can to  be better and they are not merely content to be happy with what we do have they want to improve and this was proven with the dismissal of Mularkey. We all knew with him coming back we were guaranteed to trend downward but his departure has the arrow pointing firmly up.

[MIKE75]

On 1/15/2018 at 10:47 AM, TitanRein27 said:

Hey Mike, I gotta tell ya - and I'm being straight up and serious here... It's nice to see such passion and dedication from a true fan point of few stating such history. Thank you bro.

I decided to pick my top ten games ever. Curious how others feel.

 

Anyone have a top 5 or 10 games list all time regarding Titans post 'em

[MIKE75]

On 1/15/2018 at 10:46 AM, scine09 said:

They've only been the Titans for 19 years.  This will be the 20th season in 2018.  So it's hard to evaluate the first 20 years when only 19 have happened.

 

But for the first 19 years?  I'd say a B-/C+, something in that neighborhood.

I would give them a B- as well.

 

Compared to other teams i think our first 19 years were a success overall. We were a couple wins from being in the top ten overall with 155 wins compared with how other teams did. Also we had 6 playoff wins thats more than quite a few others including Dallas,Minnesota,Kansas City,etc.

 

They also had 9 winning seasons,7 postseason appearances,6 postseason victories,3 division titles,3 13 win seasons,2 times NFL best record,2 AFC title and 1 Super Bowl appearance.

 

Edited January 16, 2018 by MIKE75

[SB35]

Great post! That was very enjoyable, thanks for putting so much effort into that. Really good stuff.

 

If I reflect on how 20 years have gone with the Titans, my instinct is to say that it's been more good than bad. But I know that is colored by 1999-2000. However, the fact that we only have 3 division titles in 20 years is brutal.  Getting to the Super Bowl carries a lot of weight, but losing your division year after year is not a good barometer of success. 

 

 

[MIKE75]

Also for the very first time it seems like this organization wasn't content to be happy with what had been achieved and strived for more. This was shocking as i think most here thought like i did that they would be happy we won a playoff game and decide to keep Mularkey around due to that. Mularkey was delusional he actually thought his OC did a good job so we would've been stuck not only with the OC but it looked like he told Murray he'd be back as well. Thank goodness Amy came to her senses.

 

In my opinion besides ownership the three most important positions in a football franchise are....1. QB, 2. GM,  3.HC

 

The QB is the leader of the team on the field and the better your QB is the farther you go in the standings. The leader off the field is the GM he puts the team together and the better your GM is at picking players the better your team is. As far as HC he is responsible for setting the tone,getting the team ready and the X's and O's.

 

The two people i am impressed with mostly are Mariota and Robinson. Both joined forces in 2016. Both come from winning backgrounds Mariota was 36-4 at Oregon and Robinson was at 135-41 in a decade at New England so they were came from winning backgrounds and were used to winning. Well in two years together they have two winning seasons and already have a winning a playoff game on their resume.

 

I'm not discounting what Mularkey did at all BUT the biggest part of all was Robinson getting all the collective talent together the last couple seasons and wheeling and dealing to bring in the best players possible. More talent was brought in and that along with Mariota gaining experience helped the team win games.

 

Heading into 2018 Mariota and Robinson have two straight winning seasons together. Robinson will look for a new head coach and hopefully this HC will utilize Mariota correctly and the offense can improve.

 

 

[MIKE75]

One thing i am very happy this team did this season is make the postseason because had we missed the postseason we would've been right next to Cleveland as the team with the longest postseason drought that would've made us look terrible. Before the playoffs started the teams with the longest postseason drought were......Buffalo '99,Cleveland '02,L.A. Rams '04,Jacksonville '07,Tampa '07 and Tennessee '08.

 

Well Buffalo,L.A. Rams,Jacksonville and Tennessee all made the postseason so a lot of bad history got wiped out.

 

Now the teams with the longest postseason drought are Cleveland 2002,Tampa 2007,N.Y. Jets 2010,Chicago 2010.

 

 

[Tex in a Can]

The run and shoot era, what a blast, the talent during some of those years was unbelievable the only offset were the heart breaking play off losses.

[MIKE75]

On 1/17/2018 at 6:31 AM, Tex in a Can said:

The run and shoot era, what a blast, the talent during some of those years was unbelievable the only offset were the heart breaking play off losses.

Before Tennessee got a team my favorite NFL franchise was the L.A. Raiders. I loved the Lions in the 90's because of Barry Sanders. Warren Moon was one of my favorite QB's ever and loved to watch him play back in the day.

[MIKE75]

We were a borderline top ten team our first 20 years if you look at the overall record as well as postseason wins we have had. Teams like Cleveland would give their right nut to experience what we have in our first 20 seasons. Better yet just picture how bad their 20 seasons were,lol. Last and only postseason appearance 2002. Last winning season 2007.