50 Fun Facts About Tennessee Titans

Under what name did the franchise begin play in 1960?

Bud Adams founded the club in 1959 as one of the AFL's eight charter members after failing to land an NFL expansion team.

The Oilers won the AFL's first two championships, both against which team?

George Blanda quarterbacked them to the first three AFL title games; the third was a double-overtime loss to the Dallas Texans.

The Oilers became the first pro football team to play in an indoor stadium when they moved where in 1968?

They had previously played at Jeppesen Stadium and Rice Stadium.

Whom did the Oilers take with the first overall pick of the 1978 draft?

He won Offensive Player of the Year in each of his first three seasons and led the NFL in rushing every time.

Which hometown nickname did the Oilers' star running back of the Luv Ya Blue years carry?

He grew up in Tyler, won the Heisman at Texas, and has his number retired by both the Longhorns and the Titans.

Which team beat the Oilers in both the 1978 and 1979 AFC Championship Games?

It was the height of Bum Phillips' 'Luv Ya Blue' era, three straight wild-card playoff runs powered by Campbell.

Before signing with the Oilers in 1984, Warren Moon won how many consecutive Grey Cups in the CFL?

Undrafted out of Washington, he went to Edmonton and won titles from 1978 to 1982, then became the first undrafted quarterback in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In the 1992 playoffs the Oilers blew a lead of how many points against Buffalo?

They led 35-3 in the third quarter and lost 41-38 in overtime. Moon was traded to Minnesota after the following season.

Who replaced Jack Pardee as head coach during the 1994 season and later took the team to the Super Bowl?

A former Bears defensive back, he coached the franchise from 1994 to 2010, the longest tenure in its history, and was its first coach in Tennessee.

Where did the Tennessee Oilers play their home games in 1997, their first season after leaving Houston?

The team was based in Nashville and commuted. Two games drew fewer than 18,000 fans, some of the worst NFL attendance since the 1950s.

Where did the team play in 1998, its second season as the Tennessee Oilers?

They went 6-2 at home and 2-6 on the road for an 8-8 finish.

The name 'Titans' was chosen as a nod to what nickname for Nashville?

The city's classical architecture and its many colleges earned the label. The new name was unveiled on November 14, 1998.

What was the Titans' 1999 stadium, later renamed Nissan Stadium, originally called?

It took the Nissan name in 2015; an indoor replacement, also named Nissan Stadium, was scheduled to open in 2027.

What was the Titans' regular-season record in their Super Bowl season of 1999?

Rookie Jevon Kearse had 14.5 sacks and led the league with eight forced fumbles on the way to Defensive Rookie of the Year.

In the Music City Miracle, who threw the lateral across the field to Kevin Dyson?

The play was called 'Home Run Throwback' and Isaac Byrd was actually the primary option, with Dyson trailing behind him.

How much time was left when the Bills kicked the field goal that set up the Music City Miracle?

Steve Christie, who had also kicked the winner in the 1993 Comeback, put Buffalo up 16-15. Kevin Dyson ran the return 75 yards.

Which Titans special teams coordinator designed the Home Run Throwback play?

The Titans opened the scoring that day with a Jevon Kearse safety on Bills quarterback Rob Johnson.

Who tackled Kevin Dyson one yard short of the goal line on the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV?

The Titans lost 23-16 at the Georgia Dome. The play is known as 'One Yard Short' and 'The Tackle'.

Who was named MVP of Super Bowl XXXIV after throwing for a record 414 yards against the Titans?

He was the first undrafted quarterback to win a Super Bowl and had 45 attempts without an interception, another record.

Where did Steve McNair play college football before the Oilers drafted him third overall in 1995?

He won the Walter Payton Award there in 1994 and became the franchise's starter by his third season.

With whom did Steve McNair share the NFL MVP award in 2003?

He led the league in passer rating that year and was the first African American quarterback to be named MVP.

How did the Titans honor Steve McNair on their helmets in 2009?

He had died that July. He spent his last two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens after 11 with the franchise.

Eddie George won the 1995 Heisman Trophy at which school?

He rushed for a school-record 1,927 yards that season and majored in landscape architecture. He spent his last NFL year with Dallas.

Which Titans quarterback was 2006 Offensive Rookie of the Year before injuries and coach clashes derailed him?

He led the team to a 2007 playoff berth, was benched for Collins in 2008, and returned to win eight of ten in 2009.

Chris Johnson ran a then-record time in the 40-yard dash at the 2008 combine. What was it?

The East Carolina back had run 10.38 in the 100 meters in high school and went to Tennessee in the first round.

Whose single-season record for yards from scrimmage did Chris Johnson break in 2009?

His 2,509 total yards and 2,006 rushing yards earned him the nickname CJ2K and Offensive Player of the Year.

The Titans are the only NFL team with two 2,000-yard rushers. Who are they?

Johnson did it in 2009 and Henry in 2020, when he won Offensive Player of the Year.

Derrick Henry set the national high school career rushing record in which Florida town?

He broke Ken Hall's mark that had stood almost 60 years, and remains the only player with a 2,000-yard season in high school, college and the NFL.

When did the Titans select Derrick Henry in the 2016 draft?

The 2015 Heisman winner from Alabama made four Pro Bowls in Tennessee before joining Baltimore in 2024.

With which pick did the Titans draft Marcus Mariota in 2015?

He came after a league-worst 2-14 season and quarterbacked three straight 9-7 years before being benched for Ryan Tannehill in 2019.

In the 2017 playoffs the Titans overcame what halftime deficit to beat Kansas City 22-21?

It was their first playoff win since 2003. Coach Mike Mularkey was let go anyway after a divisional-round loss to New England.

Mike Vrabel won three Super Bowls as a linebacker with which team before coaching the Titans?

He was 2021 Coach of the Year with Tennessee, then returned to New England as head coach in 2025 and won the award again.

The Titans' 2019 AFC Championship run under Vrabel was their first since which season?

Ryan Tannehill had replaced Mariota after a 2-4 start, and Henry led the league in rushing yards and touchdowns.

Whom did the Titans select with the first overall pick of the 2025 draft?

He started all 17 games as a rookie, but the team went 3-14 again and fired Brian Callahan after six games.

Whom did the Titans hire as head coach in January 2026?

The former Jets head coach and 49ers defensive coordinator took over from interim coach Mike McCoy.

What animal is the Titans' mascot T-Rac?

He debuted at the first preseason home game in August 1999 against Atlanta and appears at every home game.

The stars in the Titans' logo represent what?

The 1999 logo put a large T with a comet-like trail of flames inside the circle.

Why are flames tied to the Titans, according to the team?

Fans in the end-zone 'Flame Pit' wore flame headgear and became known as Flameheads during the early-2000s run.

After every Titans first down at home, the jumbotron plays a chant from which film?

Fans answer King Leonidas's 'What is your profession?' three times. In the fourth quarter, office linebacker Terry Tate warns that the pain train's coming.

What was the Oilers' original logo, nicknamed 'Ol' Riggy' until 1974?

Except for minor color changes it lasted until the 1999 rename. The 2023 throwback uniforms brought back the powder blue.

Bud Adams was fined $250,000 in 2009 for what?

He and Bills owner Ralph Wilson were the last living original AFL owners. Adams was a member of the Cherokee Nation who made his fortune in oil.

Which team has the Titans franchise played more than any other?

They were AFC Central rivals from the merger until realignment. Pittsburgh leads the all-time series 49-32.

Where is the Titans' training facility, Saint Thomas Sports Park?

The 31-acre site is home to team headquarters as well as practice fields.

The Oilers' main colors before the move to Tennessee were Columbia blue and white with what trim?

The head coach discarded the light blue road pants in 1995, two years before the move.

Which quarterback led the Oilers to each of the first three AFL championship games?

Blanda played for Houston from 1960 to 1966; the team won the AFL's first two titles but lost the third.

In which NFL division have the Titans competed since the 2002 realignment?

Their divisional rivals are the Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts.

Who did the Oilers lose to 56-7 in the 1969 AFL divisional playoffs?

It was the team's last AFL season; after the 1970 merger the Oilers were placed in the AFC Central.

To which team was Warren Moon traded after the 1993 season?

Hall of Fame lineman Mike Munchak retired the same offseason to start a coaching career, ending the seven-year playoff run.

Which team ended the Titans' 12-5 season of 2021 with a 19-16 divisional-round win?

The Titans had won their division and earned a first-round bye before the upset in Nashville.

Which head coach was fired after just six games of the Titans' 3-14 season in 2025?

The former Bengals offensive coordinator was replaced on an interim basis by Mike McCoy; Robert Saleh was hired in January 2026.