Titans Have Had Success Against NFC Foes During Vrabel's Time in Nashville
NASHVILLE — Maybe it's a good thing that the Tennessee Titans open the season against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, because they've had a lot of success against NFC opponents during Mike Vrabel's first five years at the helm of the franchise.
The Titans are 15-7 against NFC teams since 2018, Vrabel's first year as head coach. His .682 winning percentage in interconference games is fourth-best in the NFLK during that time.
in the league's rotating schedule, the Titans play the NFC South this year, with road games in New Orleans and Tampa Bay, and home games against the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers. The league expanded to a 17-game schedule in 2021, and their bonus game this year is against the Seattle Seahawks.
Vrabel won his first six games against NFC foes and never had a losing season against the other conference until last year, when the Titans went 2-3 and lost to Philadelphia and Dallas late in the season during their ugly seven-game losing streak.
Here's how the Titans have fared vs. NFC foes since Vrabel took over.
2018 season (4-0)
- Sept. 30 — Beat the Philadelphia Eagles 26-23 in overtime in Nashville
- Nov. 5 — Beat the Dallas Cowboys 28-14 in Arlington, Texas
- Dec. 16 — Beat the New York Giants 17-0 in East Rutherford, N.J.
- Dec. 22 — Beat the Washington Redskins 25-16 in Nashville
2019 season (2-2)
- Sept. 20 — Beat the Atlanta Falcons 24-10 in Atlanta, Ga.
- Oct. 27 — Beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-23 in Nashville
- Nov. 3 — Lost to the Carolina Panthers 30-20 in Charlotte, N.C.
- Dec. 22 — Lost to the New Orleans Saints 38-28 in Nashville
2020 season (3-1)
- Sept. 27 — Beat the Minnesota Vikings 31-30 in Minneapolis, Minn.
- Nov. 8 — Beat the Chicago Bears 24-17 in Nashville
- Dec. 20 — Beat the Detroit Lions 48-25 in Nashville
- Dec. 27 — Lost to the Green Bay Packers 40-14 in Green Bay, Wis.
2021 season (4-1)
- Sept. 12 — Lost to the Arizona Cardinals 38-13 in Nashville
- Sept. 19 — Beat the Seattle Seahawks 33-30 in overtime in Seattle, Wash.
- Nov. 7 — Beat the Los Angeles Rams 28-16 in Inglewood, Calif.
- Nov. 14 — Beat the New Orleans Saints 23-21 in Nashville
- Dec. 23 — Beat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in Nashville
2022 season (2-3)
- Sept. 11 — Lost to the New York Giants 21-20 in Nashville
- Oct. 9 — Beat the Washington Commanders 21-17 in Landover, Md.
- Nov. 17 — Beat the Green Bay Packers 27-17 in Green Bay, Wis.
- Dec. 4 — Lost to the Philadelphia Eagles 35-10 in Philadelphia. Pa.
- Dec. 29 — Lost to the Dallas Cowboys 27-13 in Arlington, Texas
The Titans are 3.5-point underdogs according to the SISportsbook.com gambling website, but the good news is that the Titans have had success on the road against the Saints, posting a 6-2 record in New Orleans. They won their last trip there 34-28 in overtime on Nov. 8, 2015.
This is the second time the franchise has opened the season in New Orleans. In 1993, the then Houston Oilers visited the Saints in Week 1 on Sunday Night Football and lost 33-21.
The Titans are 2-3 in season openers under Vrabel. Last year, they lost at home 21-20 to the New York Giants in heartbreaking fashion. The Giants scored on a 1-yard Daniel Jones touchdown pass to Chris Myarick with 1:06 to go in the game and then, stunningly, went for two points and the win instead of kicking the game-tying extra point.
Running back Saquan Barkley scored the go-ahead two-point conversion for the Giants and then Titans kicker Randy Bullock missed a 47-yard field goal as time expired.
Both of Vrabel's season-opening wins have come on the road, which might be a good sign for Sunday. The Titans beat the Cleveland Browns in 2019 and beat the Denver Broncos in 2020 in Monday night game.
It's a short trip to New Orleans, too, which is the theme of season. Because they are playing the NFC South and AFC North this season, all of their games are in the Central or Eastern time zone, with the exception of their Oct. 15 encounter in London with the Baltimore Ravens.
The Titans last played the Saints on Nov. 14 2021 in Nashville, winning 23-21. In the Titans era of the franchise since 1999, they are 12-12 on opening weekend, and have actually fared better on the road, going 7-5 away from Nashville and 5-7 at home.
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