The Comeback: 1998 Wild Card vs. Tennessee Titans

Lore & Background

Originally known as the Houston Oilers, the team was founded in 1959 by Houston oil tycoon Bud Adams. The Oilers won the first two AFL championships and joined the NFL as part of the AFL–NFL merger in 1970. The team moved to Tennessee in 1997, playing as the Tennessee Oilers for two seasons before becoming the Titans in 1999. The Titans played in Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000, losing 23–16 to the St. Louis Rams.

In Their Own Story

The Georgia Dome hummed with a nervous energy, the air thick with anticipation and the faint smell of popcorn. On the field, the scoreboard glowed red: Titans 17, Falcons 3. The clock ticked down in the fourth quarter, and silence seemed to fall over the home crowd until a blur of motion broke the stillness. A rookie quarterback, barely out of college, took the snap, his eyes scanning the defense with a predator's focus. He didn't just run; he exploded through gaps that shouldn't have existed, juking defenders into confusion. The roar that erupted was primal, a collective release of tension as the Falcons clawed their way back from the brink, turning despair into triumph in a matter of minutes.

Reader's Guide

The Titans are the only NFL team to have two players rush for 2,000 yards in a season: Chris Johnson (2009) and Derrick Henry (2020). The team's training facility is in Saint Thomas Sports Park in Nashville.

Did You Know?

• The Titans were originally the Houston Oilers, founded in 1959.
• The team changed its name to the Titans in 1999.
• The Titans lost Super Bowl XXXIV to the St. Louis Rams.