NASHVILLE, Tenn. — If the Tennessee Titans can point to one thing more than any other that kept them from reaching the postseason last year, it was their failures inside the AFC South.
The Titans finished the season 9-7 tied for first in the division with the Houston Texans, but lost out on the division tiebreaker because of their 2-4 record inside the division.
So, the fact that Tennessee defeated five eventual playoff teams a year ago went by the boards as a statistical anomaly because they could not take care of business in the AFC South.
The most hurtful of all those losses was a week 15 loss in Jacksonville, 38-17, to a struggling Jaguars team that had just fired its head coach, Gus Bradley. When that game was over, the Titans’ playoff hopes had been all but destroyed and they had lost quarterback Marcus Mariota to a leg injury that he would spend the entire offseason rehabbing after surgery.
Now, the Titans head back to Jacksonville and go into this game at 0-1 overall, while the Jaguars, normally a division doormat, are 1-0 with a win in hand over Houston and looking for more.
“The goal for us is to win our division, and it’s got to start somewhere. This Sunday is a great opportunity for us,” Mariota said.
As the Titans head into this game, it will be difficult not to think about last year’s disaster. And while they won’t dwell on it, it might serve as motivation to try and prevent a repeat of last season.
“They definitely whipped our tails last year, but last year is last year. It’s a new year and a new team, just like them. So we’ve just got to be ready to play for anything,” guard Josh Kline said.
So, if the Titans are to accomplish the goal of reaching the playoffs, it has to happen through improved play inside the division.
“We didn’t play very well. That’s something for a lot of guys lingered throughout the offseason,” Mariota said. “Obviously we want to play better and play to our potential. It all started today and as we go throughout this week.”
SERIES HISTORY: 45th regular-season meeting. Titans lead series, 24-20. These two teams have split the regular-season meetings in each of the past six years. The worst of those losses for Tennessee was a Christmas Eve 38-17 beatdown that cost the Titans their chance to win the division crown.
–Strong safety Da’Norris Searcy found himself demoted in the offseason to a backup role after the acquisition of Johnathan Cyprien from the Jaguars. That lasted all of one game, as Cyprien came up with a hamstring injury that figures to sideline him for several weeks. So that means that Searcy is back in the starting lineup for now.
“It’s a great opportunity. It’s another chance to go out there with the starting guys again. I’m just going to go out there and make the most of it for however long I’m in there,” said Searcy, who accepted a pay cut in the offseason to remain on the roster.
–Third-string running back David Fluellen made his official NFL debut last Sunday against the Raiders after three full seasons of waiting. Fluellen came into the league in 2014 as an undrafted rookie with the Eagles. He spent a bit of time in camp there and with the Colts, but spent the better part of three seasons on the Titans practice squad. Fluellen was on the active roster for four games last year, but was a healthy scratch each week.
But Sunday, Fluellen finally made it.
“It was kind of a surreal moment for me during the anthem,” said Fluellen, who said he tried to treat it like he did in the preseason. “That’s where a lot of emotions started going on, and I was like, ‘Yeah, this is for real for me.’”