The 2018
Tennessee Titans season was the franchise's 49th season in the
National Football League and their 59th overall. It also marked the franchise's 22nd season in the state of
Tennessee, their first under
head coachMike Vrabel, and the first with new uniforms and blue helmets, as they have worn white helmets since the club was based in
Houston, Texas. This season marked the third of four straight in which the Titans finished 9–7. The Titans failed to qualify for the postseason after losing a Week 17 win-and-in contest against their division rival
Indianapolis Colts.
In Vrabel's first year with the team, the Titans went 3-3 against divisional opponents, sweeping the
Jacksonville Jaguars for the second straight year. The Titans also beat the
New England Patriots for the first time since
2002. Quarterback
Marcus Mariota had a difficult season, going 7-6 as a starter, throwing 11 touchdowns to eight interceptions, and missing three games due to injury. Backup quarterback
Blaine Gabbert started three games, including the season finale against the Colts in which the Titans were eliminated from the playoffs. One major highlight was the breakout season of running back
Derrick Henry, who rushed for 1,059 yards and 12 touchdowns. This would be the first of Henry's three-straight 1,000-yard seasons. In a 30-9 Week 14 Thursday Night win over the Jaguars, Henry would rush for 238 yards (franchise record) and four touchdowns (tied-franchise record) on 17 carries, including an NFL-tying record 99-yard touchdown run.
Coaching changes
In their second full season under head coach
Mike Mularkey in 2017, the Titans reached the playoffs for the first time since 2008. The Titans won their first playoff game since 2003 in an 18-point halftime comeback wild card victory over the
Kansas City Chiefs, winning 22-21.[1] They were then soundly defeated by the
New England Patriots 35-14 in the divisional round.[2] The next day on January 15, 2018, the Titans and Mularkey agreed to part ways, ending his three year tenure as head coach with a record of 20–21.[3] Owner
Amy Adams Strunk stated that Mularkey and the front office "saw different paths to achieve greater success," specifically with Mularkey not wanting to change any of his coaching staff.[4] Five days later, the Titans named former
Houston Texans defensive coordinator
Mike Vrabel as the new head coach.[5] Vrabel became the 19th head coach in franchise history. Two weeks later on January 30, the Titans announce the hiring of new offensive coordinator
Matt LaFleur. LaFleur was with the
Los Angeles Rams in 2017, and was credited for the development of
Jared Goff and a Rams offense that led the league in points on route to an 11-5 record.[6] On the same day, the Titans hired their new defensive coordinator
Dean Pees.[7] Pees had retired two weeks earlier with the
Baltimore Ravens, citing his comeback with the Titans due to missing the game.[8] Pees served as the Ravens defensive coordinator since their 2012
Super Bowl run, and his 2017 defense led the league in shutouts and takeaways.[9] The next day, the Titans announced several additions to the coaching staff, including quarterback coach
Pat O'Hara, secondary coach
Kerry Coombs, outside linebackers coach
Shane Bowen, inside linebackers coach
Tyrone McKenzie, and wide receivers coach
Rob Moore.[10]
On January 11, 2018, the
NFL announced that the Titans would play the
Los Angeles Chargers in one of three
London Games at
Wembley Stadium in
London, England, with the Chargers serving as the home team. It was the Titans' first appearance in the
International Series. The game occurred during Week 7 (October 21), and was televised by
CBS in the
United States. The exact date, along with the network and kickoff time, were announced in conjunction with the release of the
2018 regular season schedule.
^
abKansas City finished ahead of LA Chargers based on division record.
^
abNew England finished ahead of Houston based on head-to-head victory.
^
abcDenver finished ahead of Cincinnati and Buffalo based on strength of victory. Cincinnati finished ahead of Buffalo based on record vs. common opponents. Cincinnati's cumulative record against Baltimore, Indianapolis, the Los Angeles Chargers and Miami was 3–2, compared to Buffalo's 1–4 cumulative record against the same four teams.
^
abNY Jets finished ahead of Oakland based on strength of victory.
^When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.
The 2018
Tennessee Titans season was the franchise's 49th season in the
National Football League and their 59th overall. It also marked the franchise's 22nd season in the state of
Tennessee, their first under
head coachMike Vrabel, and the first with new uniforms and blue helmets, as they have worn white helmets since the club was based in
Houston, Texas. This season marked the third of four straight in which the Titans finished 9–7. The Titans failed to qualify for the postseason after losing a Week 17 win-and-in contest against their division rival
Indianapolis Colts.
In Vrabel's first year with the team, the Titans went 3-3 against divisional opponents, sweeping the
Jacksonville Jaguars for the second straight year. The Titans also beat the
New England Patriots for the first time since
2002. Quarterback
Marcus Mariota had a difficult season, going 7-6 as a starter, throwing 11 touchdowns to eight interceptions, and missing three games due to injury. Backup quarterback
Blaine Gabbert started three games, including the season finale against the Colts in which the Titans were eliminated from the playoffs. One major highlight was the breakout season of running back
Derrick Henry, who rushed for 1,059 yards and 12 touchdowns. This would be the first of Henry's three-straight 1,000-yard seasons. In a 30-9 Week 14 Thursday Night win over the Jaguars, Henry would rush for 238 yards (franchise record) and four touchdowns (tied-franchise record) on 17 carries, including an NFL-tying record 99-yard touchdown run.
Coaching changes
In their second full season under head coach
Mike Mularkey in 2017, the Titans reached the playoffs for the first time since 2008. The Titans won their first playoff game since 2003 in an 18-point halftime comeback wild card victory over the
Kansas City Chiefs, winning 22-21.[1] They were then soundly defeated by the
New England Patriots 35-14 in the divisional round.[2] The next day on January 15, 2018, the Titans and Mularkey agreed to part ways, ending his three year tenure as head coach with a record of 20–21.[3] Owner
Amy Adams Strunk stated that Mularkey and the front office "saw different paths to achieve greater success," specifically with Mularkey not wanting to change any of his coaching staff.[4] Five days later, the Titans named former
Houston Texans defensive coordinator
Mike Vrabel as the new head coach.[5] Vrabel became the 19th head coach in franchise history. Two weeks later on January 30, the Titans announce the hiring of new offensive coordinator
Matt LaFleur. LaFleur was with the
Los Angeles Rams in 2017, and was credited for the development of
Jared Goff and a Rams offense that led the league in points on route to an 11-5 record.[6] On the same day, the Titans hired their new defensive coordinator
Dean Pees.[7] Pees had retired two weeks earlier with the
Baltimore Ravens, citing his comeback with the Titans due to missing the game.[8] Pees served as the Ravens defensive coordinator since their 2012
Super Bowl run, and his 2017 defense led the league in shutouts and takeaways.[9] The next day, the Titans announced several additions to the coaching staff, including quarterback coach
Pat O'Hara, secondary coach
Kerry Coombs, outside linebackers coach
Shane Bowen, inside linebackers coach
Tyrone McKenzie, and wide receivers coach
Rob Moore.[10]
On January 11, 2018, the
NFL announced that the Titans would play the
Los Angeles Chargers in one of three
London Games at
Wembley Stadium in
London, England, with the Chargers serving as the home team. It was the Titans' first appearance in the
International Series. The game occurred during Week 7 (October 21), and was televised by
CBS in the
United States. The exact date, along with the network and kickoff time, were announced in conjunction with the release of the
2018 regular season schedule.
^
abKansas City finished ahead of LA Chargers based on division record.
^
abNew England finished ahead of Houston based on head-to-head victory.
^
abcDenver finished ahead of Cincinnati and Buffalo based on strength of victory. Cincinnati finished ahead of Buffalo based on record vs. common opponents. Cincinnati's cumulative record against Baltimore, Indianapolis, the Los Angeles Chargers and Miami was 3–2, compared to Buffalo's 1–4 cumulative record against the same four teams.
^
abNY Jets finished ahead of Oakland based on strength of victory.
^When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.