10 greatest Titans teams of all time

After a 3-2 start to the season, the Titans rallied for six straight wins. They got derailed with close losses to the Jets and Colts, but finished the regular season with a mark of 12-4.

In the playoffs, they rode the combination of running back Eddie George and quarterback Steve McNair to a tight 20-17 win over the Ravens in the divisional round. Gary Anderson’s 46-yard field goal with 29 seconds remaining was the game-winner.

Unfortunately, the rising New England Patriots were up next. The Patriots and Tom Brady had one Super Bowl in their pocket and were on their way to back-to-back titles. Adam Vinatieri’s 46-yard field goal with 4:11 in the fourth quarter gave the Pats the win.

9. 2002 Titans

A 1-4 start didn’t keep the Titans out of the playoffs. They won 10 of their last 11 games and held off the Steelers in overtime to reach the AFC title game.

Against the Raiders, the Titans worked their way to a 17-14 lead in the second quarter. They fell behind, but pulled within three points, 27-24, on McNair’s 13-yard scoring run late in the third quarter. But a pair of Raiders’ touchdowns sealed the deal. McNair had 247 total yards and accounted for all three Titans’ touchdowns.

8. 1962 Oilers

After winning back-to-back AFL titles, the Oilers had a strong regular season with a record of 11-3. They closed with seven straight wins, and a third consecutive title seemed to be in the cards.

But in the championship game, the Dallas Texans had other ideas and burst out to a 17-0 halftime lead. The Oilers rallied behind George Blanda, who threw a touchdown pass and kicked a 31-yard field goal. Charley Tolar’s 1-yard scoring run sent the game into overtime. The Texans prevailed when Tommy Brooker nailed a 25-yard field goal.

7. 1960 Oilers

This team will always have a special place in Titans/Oilers history. Not only was it the first-ever team in franchise history, but they also rolled to the first American Football League title.

After a 10-4 regular season, the Oilers faced the Chargers for the championship. Blanda changed the tone from a tight 10-9 halftime score by hitting Bill Groman for a 7-yard touchdown. The Chargers pulled within one point in the third quarter.

However, Blanda hit Billy Cannon for a remarkable 88-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. Blanda finished with 301 yards passing and three touchdowns.

6. 1961 Oilers

It seems like it’s always tougher to repeat, so the 1961 team gets the slight edge over the previous bunch.

After closing the regular season with nine straight wins, the Oilers faced the Chargers once again. This time it turned out to be a defensive battle, but Blanda and Cannon made the difference once again. Cannon caught a 35-yard scoring strike from Blanda in the third quarter for a 10-0 lead. And the Oilers held on for a 10-3 decision.

Blanda finished with a little over half of his passing yards total from the 1960 game. But the Oilers defense picked off Jack Kemp four times and kept the Chargers out of the end zone.

5. 1993 Oilers

Once again, the Oilers entered the postseason with high hopes. They closed the regular season with 11 straight wins after a 1-4 start.

Unfortunately, the Chiefs had acquired Joe Montana. And naturally, he came through in the clutch. Trailing 13-7 in the fourth quarter, Montana threw scoring strikes to J.J. Birden and Willie Davis for a 21-13 lead. Moon hit Ernest Givins with a 7-yard score to close within one point, but a Marcus Allen touchdown run sealed the outcome.

4. 1979 Oilers

It turned out to be an up-and-down regular season for the Oilers, but they battled their way to an 11-5 record. In the playoffs, they knocked off the Broncos in the Wild Card game, 13-7. Then they bumped off their old AFL rival, the Chargers, in a 17-14 divisional round decision.

For the second straight year, the Oilers faced the Steelers. And this time, a controversial decision by the officials hurt their chances. Mike Renfro appeared to catch a game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter, but the officials ruled no catch in the corner of the end zone. Replays clearly showed it should have been ruled a touchdown. Watch for yourself.

The Oilers settled for a field goal, and the Steelers eventually earned a 27-13 victory. Pittsburgh stuffed Earl Campbell in the game, holding him to 15 yards on 17 carries.

3. 1991 Oilers

With Warren Moon leading the way, the Oilers nearly beat one of the best teams in NFL history. They lost a tough 16-13 decision to Washington, which went on to roll to the Super Bowl title with a record of 17-2.

Reaching the playoffs with a record of 11-5, the Oilers turned away the Jets in a 17-10 Wild Card game decision. They faced the Broncos in the divisional round, and it was quite a battle.

Houston jumped out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead and stretched it to 21-6 in the second quarter. The Oilers still led in the fourth quarter, moving their advantage to 24-16 on Al Del Greco’s 25-yard field goal.

However, the Broncos got a 1-yard touchdown run from Greg Lewis and a game-winning 28-yard field goal from David Treadwell to earn a 26-24 victory.

Warren Moon threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns in the tough loss.

2. 2000 Titans

This team had the look of a real Super Bowl contender. Coming off the Super Bowl loss, the Titans lost three regular-season games by a combined total of seven points. They entered the playoffs with a 13-3 record.

Unfortunately, the mighty defense of the Ravens awaited in the divisional round. Tennessee scored first on a 2-yard run by Eddie George, and the game was tied entering the fourth quarter.

Al Del Greco lined up for a 37-yard field goal attempt, but the Ravens blocked it. Anthony Mitchell plucked it out of the air and raced 90 yards for a touchdown. If that wasn’t bad enough, the Ravens sealed the win when McNair’s pass slipped through the hands of George. Ray Lewis caught the deflection in stride and raced 50 yards for a touchdown.

The Ravens won despite quarterback Trent Dilfer completing only five of 16 pass attempts. Also, the Titans outgained the Ravens, 317-134 yards. Salt in the wounds came when the Ravens brushed aside the Raiders in the AFC title before humiliating the Giants 34-7 in the Super Bowl.

1. 1999 Titans

The greatest Titans team of all time has to live with it being one that got away.

A tremendous regular season sent the Titans into the playoffs with a record of 13-3. However, it appeared the Titans would be one and done as the Bills took a 16-15 lead with 16 seconds left in the game. Then this happened.

The “Music City Miracle” gave the Titans a 22-16 win on Kevin Dyson’s 75-yard kickoff return, with an assist from Frank Wycheck. The Titans then beat the Colts by a score of 19-16 before hammering the upstart Jaguars, 33-14, in the title game.

Unfortunately for the Titans, the “Music City Miracle” had a sad companion on the final play of the Super Bowl.

The Rams held on for a 23-16 win when Dyson fell inches short of pulling off an even more dramatic play. After catching a pass from McNair, he was tackled at the 1-yard line as time expired.

The Titans thought they had another miracle left, according to tennesseetitans.com.

“You could feel it,” Wycheck said. “We were rolling. And we were going to win the game.”

Dyson said he could feel the end zone.

“That yellow paint was so close,” Dyson said. “I thought I could reach out and get it across. It felt so close. It was a good play. But at the end of the day, they made the play and we didn’t.”

Receiver Joey Kent recalled the locker room message from Jeff Fisher.

“The finality of it hit us all,” Kent said. “I remember coach Fisher saying we didn’t lose the game, we just ran out of time. It was hard for a lot of guys to deal with after how hard everyone had worked, especially the guys who went from playing in Memphis to Vanderbilt to Adelphia Coliseum.

“That entire 2-3 year period was bottled up in that one moment after the game, and I think it hit a lot of people. We knew that was it, and that team would never be the same again.”