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1999 Tennessee Titans season

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1999 Tennessee Titans season
OwnerBud Adams
General managerFloyd Reese
Head coachJeff Fisher
Home fieldAdelphia Coliseum
Results
Record13–3
Division place2nd AFC Central
Playoff finishWon Wild Card Playoffs
(vs. Bills) 22–16
Won Divisional Playoffs
(at Colts) 19–16
Won AFC Championship
(at Jaguars) 33–14
Lost Super Bowl XXXIV
(vs. Rams) 16–23
Pro BowlersG Bruce Matthews
TE Frank Wycheck
RB Eddie George
DE Jevon Kearse

The 1999 Tennessee Titans season was the franchise's 40th season and their 30th in the National Football League (NFL). It was the first year for the team under the name “Titans”,[1] while the nickname “Oilers” was retired by the NFL. The Titans qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1993, and their first since relocating from Houston, as well as their first playoff victory since 1991. They became the seventh Wild Card team to qualify for the Super Bowl.[2] However, after defeating the Bills, Colts, and Jaguars in the postseason, they lost the Super Bowl to the St. Louis Rams, 23–16 on a famous last-second tackle made by Rams defender Mike Jones at the goal line that prevented Titans receiver Kevin Dyson from scoring a potential game-tying touchdown.[3]

The highlight of the season was the Wild Card game against the Buffalo Bills, dubbed the Music City Miracle. In the game's closing seconds, Kevin Dyson caught a lateral on a kickoff and ran all the way down the sidelines for a touchdown. Also notable is the fact that the Titans were the only team to beat the Jaguars in 1999, as the latter finished 14–2 and lost both games to the Titans, and would lose the AFC Championship game to the Titans as well.

With the sixteenth pick of the 1999 NFL draft, the Titans selected defensive end Jevon Kearse of Florida; he had his best years in Tennessee, being named to three consecutive Pro Bowls (1999–2001) and winning the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award.

Offseason

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NFL draft

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1999 Tennessee Titans draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 16 Jevon Kearse *  Defensive end Florida
2 52 John Thornton  Defensive tackle West Virginia
3 81 Zach Piller  Guard Florida
4 114 Brad Ware  Defensive back Auburn
4 117 Donald Mitchell  Defensive back SMU
5 151 Kevin Daft  Quarterback UC Davis
6 186 Darran Hall  Wide receiver Colorado State
7 222 Phil Glover  Linebacker Utah
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[4]

Personnel

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Staff

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1999 Tennessee Titans staff

Front office

  • Founder/owner/chairman of the board/CEO – Bud Adams
  • President/chief operating officer – Jeff Diamond
  • Executive vice president/general manager – Floyd Reese
  • Director of player personnel – Rich Snead

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Steve Watterson


Roster

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1999 Tennessee Titans roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Practice squad

Reserve

Rookies in italics
53 active, 4 reserve, 5 practice squad

Preseason

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 August 15 at Kansas City Chiefs L 20–22 0–1 Arrowhead Stadium Recap
2 August 20 at Arizona Cardinals L 17–27 0–2 Sun Devil Stadium Recap
3 August 27 Atlanta Falcons W 17–3 1–2 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
4 September 2 New Orleans Saints L 11–12 1–3 Adelphia Coliseum Recap

Regular season

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 September 12 Cincinnati Bengals W 36–35 1–0 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
2 September 19 Cleveland Browns W 26–9 2–0 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
3 September 26 at Jacksonville Jaguars W 20–19 3–0 Alltel Stadium Recap
4 October 3 at San Francisco 49ers L 22–24 3–1 3Com Park Recap
5 October 10 Baltimore Ravens W 14–11 4–1 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
6 October 17 at New Orleans Saints W 24–21 5–1 Louisiana Superdome Recap
7 Bye
8 October 31 St. Louis Rams W 24–21 6–1 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
9 November 7 at Miami Dolphins L 0–17 6–2 Pro Player Stadium Recap
10 November 14 at Cincinnati Bengals W 24–14 7–2 Cinergy Field Recap
11 November 21 Pittsburgh Steelers W 16–10 8–2 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
12 November 28 at Cleveland Browns W 33–21 9–2 Cleveland Browns Stadium Recap
13 December 5 at Baltimore Ravens L 14–41 9–3 PSINet Stadium Recap
14 December 9 Oakland Raiders W 21–14 10–3 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
15 December 19 Atlanta Falcons W 30–17 11–3 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
16 December 26 Jacksonville Jaguars W 41–14 12–3 Adelphia Coliseum Recap
17 January 2, 2000 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 47–36 13–3 Three Rivers Stadium Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

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AFC Central
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(1) Jacksonville Jaguars 14 2 0 .875 396 217 W1
(4) Tennessee Titans 13 3 0 .813 392 324 W4
Baltimore Ravens 8 8 0 .500 324 277 L1
Pittsburgh Steelers 6 10 0 .375 317 320 L1
Cincinnati Bengals 4 12 0 .250 283 460 L2
Cleveland Browns 2 14 0 .125 217 437 L6

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Game summaries

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Week 1 vs. Cincinnati Bengals

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Tennessee Titans 36, Cincinnati Bengals 35
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Bengals 7 14 8635
Titans 14 12 01036

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 1:03 p.m. EDT/12:03 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 89 °F (31.7 °C), sunny, wind 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn)
  • Game attendance: 65,272
  • Referee: Mike Carey
  • TV announcers (CBS): Don Criqui, Steve Tasker

In the team's inaugural game as the “Titans”, Steve McNair threw two touchdowns and ran in a third for a 26–15 lead with 2:55 left in the first half, but a Jeff Blake touchdown left the halftime score 26–21 Titans. The Bengals stormed to a 35–26 lead in the fourth before McNair connected with Eddie George for a 17-yard touchdown with 4:30 left in the fourth, then Al Del Greco kicked the game-winning 33-yard field goal of a 36–35 Titans final.

Week 2 vs. Cleveland Browns

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Tennessee Titans 26, Cleveland Browns 9
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Browns 0 3 609
Titans 2 14 3726

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 4:15 p.m. EDT/3:15 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 86 °F (30 °C), sunny, wind 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn)
  • Game attendance: 65,904
  • Referee: Ed Hochuli
  • TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee, Beasley Reece

Week 3 at Jacksonville Jaguars

[edit]
Tennessee Titans 20, Jacksonville Jaguars 19
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Titans 0 0 71320
Jaguars 3 0 14219

at Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida

Neil O'Donnell was forced to start, and he threw a third-quarter touchdown to Eddie George, but an Aaron Beasley interception became a 35-yard Jaguars score and a 17–7 Jacksonville lead. O'Donnell rebounded with a fourth-quarter score to Michael Roan and a 20–19 Titans win as Tennessee surrendered a safety on the game's final play.

Week 4 at San Francisco 49ers

[edit]
San Francisco 49ers 24, Tennessee Titans 22
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Titans 3 7 3922
49ers 0 14 01024

at 3Com Park, San Francisco

  • Game time: 4:15 p.m. EDT/1:15 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 64 °F (17.8 °C), wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h; 4.3 kn)
  • Game attendance: 67,447
  • Referee: Gerry Austin
  • TV announcers (CBS): Kevin Harlan, Sam Wyche

Tennessee suffered its first loss of the year as Jeff Garcia ran in a one-yard touchdown, then connected with Terrell Owens in the fourth quarter. The Titans trailed 24–16 when O'Donnell hit Yancey Thigpen in the end zone with 2:48 left in regulation; the two-point try was stopped, however, and the Niners ran out the clock for a 24–22 Titans loss.

Week 5 vs. Baltimore Ravens

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Tennessee Titans 14, Baltimore Ravens 11
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ravens 3 3 5011
Titans 7 0 7014

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 4:15 p.m. EDT/3:15 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 75 °F (23.9 °C), mostly cloudy, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
  • Game attendance: 65,486
  • Referee: Dick Hantak
  • TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee, Beasley Reece

The Titans committed the highest penalty yardage in league history to that point with fifteen fouls eating up 212 yards; the Ravens, under first-year coach Brian Billick, didn't fare much better with nine penalties for 81 yards. Titans starter Neil O'Donnell completed 24 of 35 passes for 216 yards and a 27-yard score to Yancey Thigpen while Eddie George was limited to just 55 rushing yards.

Week 8 vs. St. Louis Rams

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Tennessee Titans 24, St. Louis Rams 21
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Rams 0 0 14721
Titans 21 0 3024

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 1:03 p.m. EDT/12:03 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 78 °F (25.6 °C), cloudy, wind 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn)
  • Game attendance: 66,415
  • Referee: Bob McElwee

In a Super Bowl XXXIV precursor, Steve McNair threw two touchdowns and ran in a third in the first quarter, then the Titans sweated out three Kurt Warner touchdown throws for a 24–21 win. The Rams coughed up three fumbles to the Titans.

Week 11 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

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Tennessee Titans 16, Pittsburgh Steelers 10
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Steelers 7 0 0310
Titans 14 0 2016

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 1:03 p.m. EST/12:03 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 66 °F (18.9 °C), cloudy, wind 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn)
  • Game attendance: 66,619
  • Referee: Mike Carey

Week 14 vs. Oakland Raiders

[edit]
Tennessee Titans 21, Oakland Raiders 14
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Raiders 0 0 7714
Titans 0 0 71421

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 8:20 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 60 °F (15.6 °C), cloudy, wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn)
  • Game attendance: 66,357
  • Referee: Phil Luckett

Week 15 vs. Atlanta Falcons

[edit]
Tennessee Titans 30, Atlanta Falcons 17
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Falcons 7 7 3017
Titans 14 6 01030

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 12:03 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 57 °F (13.9 °C), cloudy, wind 3 miles per hour (4.8 km/h; 2.6 kn)
  • Game attendance: 66,357
  • Referee: Bill Carollo

Week 16 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

[edit]
Tennessee Titans 41, Jacksonville Jaguars 14
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Jaguars 0 7 7014
Titans 7 17 14341

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

  • Game time: 12:03 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 51 °F (10.6 °C), cloudy, wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn)
  • Game attendance: 66,641
  • Referee: Bill Carollo

The Jaguars had beaten every team on their 1999 slate except the Titans, but the Titans finished a season sweep with a 41–14 rout. Steve McNair exploded to five touchdowns and 328 passing yards while Eddie George ran wild with 102 rushing yards. The Titans defense limited Jaguars quarterbacks Mark Brunell and Jay Fiedler to 196 combined yards and three interceptions.

Week 17 at Pittsburgh Steelers

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Tennessee Titans 47, Pittsburgh Steelers 36
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Titans 7 24 9747
Steelers 7 0 22736

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 4:15 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 70 °F (21.1 °C), wind 23 miles per hour (37 km/h; 20 kn)
  • Game attendance: 48,025
  • Referee: Tom White

The Titans erupted to six touchdowns, a 42-yard Al Del Greco field goal, and a safety after sacking Mike Tomczak in the Pittsburgh end zone for a 47–36 triumph. Jevon Kearse and Denard Walker scored off Steeler fumbles while Steve McNair and former Steeler Neil O'Donnell combined for 203 passing yards and three touchdowns. Tomczak had two touchdown throws while Jerome Bettis and Richard Huntley each ran in a Pittsburgh touchdown.

Playoffs

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AFC Wild Card

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Tennessee Titans 22, Buffalo Bills 16
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Bills 0 0 7916
Titans 0 12 01022

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

Music City Miracle

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Main article: Music City Miracle

The Music City Miracle is a famous play in the NFL Wild Card Playoffs involving the Titans and Buffalo Bills that took place on January 8, 2000 (following the 1999 regular season) at Adelphia Coliseum in Nashville, Tennessee.

Going into the game, Bills coach Wade Phillips created a stir by starting quarterback Rob Johnson, rather than Doug Flutie, who had started 15 games, and who had led the team to the playoffs. Late in the fourth quarter, the stage was set for an exciting finish. Tennessee received the ball with 6:15 remaining. Titans receiver Isaac Byrd’s 16-yard punt return and five carries from Eddie George for 17 yards set up a wobbly 36-yard field goal by kicker Al Del Greco. The Titans took a 15–13 lead with 1:48 to go.

On the ensuing drive, with no timeouts remaining, Bills quarterback Johnson led the Bills on a five-play, 37-yard drive to the Titans' 24-yard line. On the last two plays from scrimmage, Johnson played with only one shoe on, as he had lost one during a scramble, and had no time to put it back on, with the clock running out. With only 16 seconds remaining in the game, Steve Christie, the Bills' kicker, made a 41-yard field goal to put Buffalo in the lead, 16–15.

Moments later, Christie kicked off, and Titans fullback Lorenzo Neal received. Neal handed the ball off to Titans tight end Frank Wycheck, who then lateraled the ball across the field to another Titans player, Kevin Dyson, who then ran down the sidelines for a 75-yard touchdown. The play was named Home Run Throwback by the Titans and was developed by Special Teams Coordinator Alan Lowry.

  • Official review

Per the instant replay rules, the play was reviewed by referee Phil Luckett since it was uncertain if the ball had been a forward pass, which is illegal on a kickoff return. However, the call on the field was upheld as a touchdown, and the Titans won the game 22–16. After the game, however, many Bills players and fans continued to insist that it was indeed an illegal forward pass.

AFC Divisional Playoff

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Tennessee Titans 19, Indianapolis Colts 16
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Titans 0 6 7619
Colts 3 6 0716

at RCA Dome, Indianapolis

Although the Indianapolis Colts, behind second year quarterback Peyton Manning, had posted some gaudy numbers (3rd in points scored compared to Tennessee's 7th) en route to a sterling 13–3 regular season record, the upstart Titans paid them little respect. Running back Eddie George rushed for a team playoff-record 162 yards, including a 68-yard touchdown, to help lead the Titans to victory. Manning completed only 19 of 43 passes in the loss for the Colts.

AFC Championship game

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Tennessee Titans 33, Jacksonville Jaguars 14
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Titans 7 3 16733
Jaguars 7 7 0014

at Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida

The Jacksonville Jaguars had been one of the NFL's best teams in the 1999 season; they were 6th in scoring and first in fewest points allowed while pacing the AFC with a 14–2 record. However, both of those losses came at the hands of their opponents in the AFC Championship game, the Tennessee Titans. The Titans would prove up to the task of beating their division rival once again as the Titans scored a resounding 33–14 victory; the game was at times a chaotic affair as the Titans forced six turnovers and an end zone sack for a safety, all despite giving up four turnovers themselves; the Jaguars also committed nine penalties for 100 yards. The Titans advanced to the first Super Bowl in team history.[6]

Super Bowl XXXIV

[edit]

The Titans took over the ball at their own 10-yard line with 1:54 left in the game after committing a holding penalty on the ensuing kickoff. McNair started out the drive with a pair of completions to Mason and Wycheck for gains of 9 and 7 yards to reach the 28-yard line. Then after throwing an incompletion, defensive back Dre' Bly’s 15-yard facemask penalty while tackling McNair on a 12-yard scramble gave the Titans a first down at the St. Louis 45-yard line. On the next play, St. Louis was penalized 5 yards for being offsides, moving the ball to the 40-yard line with 59 seconds left. McNair then ran for 2 yards, followed by a 7-yard completion to wide receiver Kevin Dyson. Three plays later, with the Titans facing 3rd down and 5 to go, McNair was hit by two Rams' defenders, but he escaped and completed a 16-yard pass to Dyson to gain a first down at the Rams 10-yard line. Tennessee then used up their final timeout with just 6 seconds left in the game, giving them a chance for one last play. McNair threw a short pass to Kevin Dyson down the middle, which looked certain to tie up the game, until Rams linebacker Mike Jones tackled Dyson at the one-yard line as time expired. Dyson tried to stretch his arm and the football across the goal line, but he had already gone down, so it was too late. This final play has gone down in NFL history as simply "The Tackle".[3]

After the game, many sports writers commented on Warner’s rise from an unknown backup to a Super Bowl MVP, but Warner himself wasn't impressed by it. "How can you be in awe of something that you expect yourself to do?" Warner pointed out. "People think this season is the first time I touched a football; they don't realize I've been doing this for years – just not on this level, because I never got the chance. Sure, I had my tough times, but you don't sit there and say, 'Wow, I was stocking groceries five years ago, and look at me now.' You don't think about it, and when you do achieve something, you know luck has nothing to do with it."[1]

Scoring summary

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  • STL – FG: Jeff Wilkins 27 yards 3–0 STL
  • STL – FG: Jeff Wilkins 29 yards 6–0 STL
  • STL – FG: Jeff Wilkins 28 yards 9–0 STL
  • STL – TD: Torry Holt, 9-yard pass from Warner (Jeff Wilkins kick) 16–0 STL
  • TEN – TD: Eddie George 1-yard run (2-pt conv: pass failed) 16–6 STL
  • TEN – TD: Eddie George 2-yard run (Al Del Greco kick) 16–13 STL
  • TEN – FG: Al Del Greco 43 yards 16–16 tie
  • STL – TD: Isaac Bruce 73-yard pass from Kurt Warner (Jeff Wilkins kick) 23–16 STL

References

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  1. ^ Walker, Teresa M. (December 23, 1998). "Oilers getting fresh start with new logo". Bowling Green, Kentucky: Park City Daily News. Associated Press. p. 4B – via Google Books.
  2. ^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 256
  3. ^ a b Riley, Jason (January 31, 2000). "A yard short of the glory". Park City Daily News. Bowling Green, Kentucky. Retrieved February 11, 2024 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "1999 Tennessee Titans Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  5. ^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2
  6. ^ Leskanic, Todd (January 24, 2000). "Unlike Ithers, Titans Did Not Fear Jags". Lakeland Ledger. Lakeland, Florida. p. C4. Retrieved February 17, 2024 – via Google Books.
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