The Long Road Ahead

A breakdown of what other teams that have played at least 13 straight games to finish a season have experienced.

Thirteen.

Barring any other coronavirus-related interruptions, that is how many consecutive games the Tennessee Titans will play to finish the 2020 regular season. The long haul starts on Tuesday night against the 4-0 Buffalo Bills.

While uncommon, it has been done. In fact, Titans coach Mike Vrabel was part of a New England Patriots team that played 14 straight regular season games in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks. Vrabel and the Patriots finished the regular season with an 11-5 record en route to a Super Bowl victory over the Carolina Panthers.

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak within the organization, the NFL rescheduled the Titans’ Week 4 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. During the team’s unexpected bye, Vrabel said he wanted his team to mentally and physically prepare themselves “for a push for the rest of the season.”

Since 2010, there have been 24 teams that have played 13 consecutive games or more due to Week 4 byes or early season postponements. Her is a look at how those teams fared and what lies ahead for the Titans.

TO SUM IT UP

The results have been mixed. Of the 24 teams, 11 qualified for the postseason (Green Bay twice) and four made it to conference championship games. The Seattle Seahawks (2014) and San Francisco 49ers each reached the Super Bowl and lost. Most other teams finished with sub-.500 records and missed the playoffs. Two teams made coaching changes in the middle of the season.

2010

• Dallas Cowboys (Week 4 Bye): The Cowboys started the season 1-2 and continued to play mediocre-at-best football after their Week 4 Bye. Jason Garrett took over for Wade Phillips as head coach in November of that season after winning just one game. The Cowboys won five games under Garrett and finished the season with a 6-10 record.

• Kansas City Chiefs (Week 4 Bye): The Chiefs finished with a 10-6 record and won the AFC West. However, they lost in the widl to the Baltimore Ravens.

• Minnesota Vikings (Week 4 Bye): Just like the Cowboys, the Vikings finished 6-10 in 2010 and made a coaching change after a lousy start (3-7) under Brad Childress. The team played .500 football (3-3) that season under Leslie Frazier, who took over for Childress.

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Week 4 Bye): This team was exceptional. However, its 10-6 record was not enough to qualify for the postseason.

2012

• Indianapolis Colts (Week 4 Bye): The Colts went 11-5 and qualified for the postseason as a wild card. The Colts won 10 of 13 games after their bye. However, the Ravens defeated the Colts in the wild card round.

• Pittsburgh Steelers (Week 4 Bye): The Steelers were the definition of ordinary in 2012. They finished 8-8 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2006.

2013

• Carolina Panthers (Week 4 Bye): The Panthers were spectacular in 2013. They finished the regular season 12-4 and won the NFC South. The Panthers lost just two games after their bye. Momentum ran out in the postseason, though, as the San Francisco 49ers defeated the them in the divisional round.

• Green Bay Packers (Week 4 Bye): Aaron Rodgers was injured for most of the season, but he came back just in time to squeak the Packers into the playoffs at 8-7-1. Their stay in the postseason did not last long. The San Francisco 49ers took care of Green Bay in the wild card round at Lambeau Field.

2014

• Arizona Cardinals (Week 4 Bye): The Cardinals went 11-5 in 2014 and made the playoffs as a wild card team. The Panthers defeated the Cardinals in the wild card round.

• Cincinnati Bengals (Week 4 Bye): The Bengals finished 10-5-1 and qualified for the playoffs as a wild card team. They were bounced in their postseason opener round by the Colts. All five of the Bengals’ losses came after their bye.

• Cleveland Browns (Week 4 Bye): The Browns were a mediocre 7-9. They lost five consecutive games to close the season and missed the playoffs.

• Denver Broncos (Week 4 Bye): The Broncos won the AFC West at 12-4. They won 10 of 13 games following their bye.

• St. Louis Rams (Week 4 Bye): The Rams went 6-10 in 2014, finishing in the basement of the NFC West.

• Seattle Seahawks (Week 4 Bye): The Seahawks (12-4) won the AFC West. They played the Patriots in the Super Bowl and famously lost the game when Malcolm Butler intercepted quarterback Russel Wilson’s pass on the goal line in the final minutes.

2015

• New England Patriots (Week 4 Bye): The Patriots finished 12-4, won the AFC East and lost in the AFC Championship game against the Denver Broncos.

• Tennessee Titans (Week 4 Bye): The 2015 season was one to forget for the Titans. After a 1-6 start, Mike Mularkey took over for Ken Wisenhunt as head coach. Tennessee won just two games after their Week 4 bye, both after Mularkey took over.

2016

• Green Bay Packers (Week 4 Bye): The Packers finished 10-6 and won the NFC North. Green Bay lost five of seven games after their bye but ended the season on a six-game win streak and reached the NFC Championship game, where they lost to the Atlanta Falcons.

• Philadelphia Eagles (Week 4 Bye): The Eagles finished the season 7-9 and missed the playoffs.

2017

• Miami Dolphins (Week 1 game canceled due to Hurricane Irma): The Dolphins a Week 1 Bye and played 16 consecutive games in 2017. They finished the season 6-10.

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Week 1 game vs. Miami canceled due to Hurricane Irma): The Buccaneers also played 16 straight games in 2017 due to Hurricane Irma. They finished the season 5-11.

2018

• Carolina Panthers (Week 4 Bye): The Panthers finished third in the NFC South at 7-9. The Panthers had a 6-2 record midway through the season but imploded down the stretch, losing seven of eight to close out the season to miss the postseason.

• Washington Football Team (Week 4 Bye): Washington also finished 7-9 in 2018. The team was in good shape at 6-3 but lost six out of its last seven. They did not make the playoffs.

2019

• New York Jets (Week 4 Bye): The Jets finished 7-9 and missed the postseason. All seven of their victories occurred after their bye.

• San Francisco 49ers (Week 4 Bye): The 49ers finished 13-3 and earned the NFC’s No. 1 seed. They lost in the Super Bowl to the Kansas City Chiefs.

THE TITANS SCHEDULE

The Titans (3-0) will play three straight October home games to kick off their 13-game stretch. Tennessee will play five AFC South opponents, including the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans twice. Two of their final 13 contests are primetime games, one of which is a Sunday night game at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers in December.

It will be important for the Titans to pick up where they left off before the coronavirus outbreak. As it stands now, only four of their opponents have losing records and appear to be non-factors in the playoff race.