The

2021 season 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

was the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

' 52nd season in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL), their 62nd overall, their 25th in the state of

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, and their fourth under

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

Mike Vrabel Michael George Vrabel ( ; born August 14, 1975) is an American professional American football, football coach and former linebacker who is the head coach of the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba ...

. After a 34–3 win over the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

in Week 17, the Titans clinched the

AFC South The American Football Conference – Southern Division or AFC South is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It was created before the 2002 NFL season, 200 ...

for the second consecutive season. It would be the first time since

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

–

1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...

that the franchise would win its division in back-to-back seasons. The Titans finished 12–5, improving on their 11–5 record from the prior year and earning the AFC's No. 1 seed in the playoffs for the first time since

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

. The season ended with a 19–16 loss to eventual AFC champion

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

, the third consecutive playoff loss.

Offseason

Coaching changes

On January 15, 2021, Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith was hired by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

to be their head coach after Smith helped the Titans reach franchise-high offensive production in 2020. Smith had been the Titans offensive coordinator for the previous two seasons and had been with the team since 2011. On January 29, 2021, tight ends coach Todd Downing was promoted to offensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach

Shane Bowen Shane Andrew Bowen (born December 9, 1986) is an American professional football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the defensive coordinator for the Tenne ...

was promoted to defensive coordinator. Bowen had been the ''de facto'' defensive coordinator in 2020, but his defense that season was ranked 30th in sacks and 28th in yards allowed per game.

Roster changes

Reserve/future free agent contracts

The Titans signed 14 players to futures contracts on January 11, 2021. Tight end Jared Pinkney was signed to a futures contract later on January 13, 2021. Linebacker

Davin Bellamy Davin Jamaurie Bellamy (born December 27, 1994) is an American professional football defensive end for the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Georgia. He signed with the Houston Texans after going und ...

and defensive lineman Daylon Mack were signed to futures contacts the next day on January 14, 2021. Wide receiver Mason Kinsey was signed to a futures contract on January 21, 2021. Finally, defensive back Maurice Smith was signed to a futures contract on February 1, 2021.

Free agents

Departures

Draft

Pre-draft Notes/Trades * Titans received their 100th pick as a compensatory selection for the loss of

Jack Conklin Jonathan Jackson Conklin (born August 17, 1994) is an American professional football offensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans. Early life Conkli ...

to the free agency market. *

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

traded a sixth-round selection (185) to Tennessee in exchange for a seventh-round selection (249) and linebacker

Kamalei Correa Kamalei Correa ( ; born April 27, 1994) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Boise State Broncos. He was selected by the Baltimore Rav ...

. *

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

traded a sixth-round selection (215) to Tennessee in exchange for a 2020 seventh-round selection originally acquired from

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

via

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

. * Sixth-round selection from Jacksonville was traded to the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

in exchange for the cornerback Desmond King. *Titans sent Isaiah Wilson and a 2022 seventh-round pick to the

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

for a 2021 seventh-round selection (232).

Undrafted free agents

Source:

Staff

Final roster

Team captains

Ryan Tannehill Ryan Timothy Tannehill III (born July 27, 1988) is an American professional football quarterback. He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies, playing wide receiver until his junior year, and was selected eighth overall by the Miami Dol ...

(QB) *

Derrick Henry Derrick Lamar Henry Jr. (born January 4, 1994) is an American professional football running back for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "King Henry", he is known for his imposing style of play and larger build t ...

(RB) *

Jeffery Simmons Jeffery Bernard Simmons Jr. (born July 28, 1997) is an American professional football defensive tackle for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Mississippi State Bulldogs and was selected ...

(DT) *

Kevin Byard Kevin Leon Byard III (born August 17, 1993) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Middl ...

(FS) * Brett Kern (P) Source:

Preseason

Regular season

Schedule

The Titans'

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

schedule was announced on May 12. Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Arizona Cardinals

The Titans began 0–1 for the first time since 2018, giving up six sacks on

. Cardinals outside linebacker

Chandler Jones Chandler James Jones (born February 27, 1990) is an American professional football defensive end. He played college football for the Syracuse Orange and was selected by the New England Patriots in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft. He has ...

alone had five sacks, tying a Cardinals franchise record and earning him NFC Defensive Player of the Week. The Cardinals got up 17-0 in the second quarter before Tannehill ran in for a touchdown, however the extra point was missed by new kicker

Michael Badgley Michael Badgley ; (born July 28, 1995), nicknamed "the Money Badger", is an American professional football placekicker. He played college football at Miami and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Indianapolis Colts in 2018. Badgley has ...

. The Cardinals continued dominating on both sides of the ball, with

Kyler Murray Kyler Cole Murray (born August 7, 1997) is an American professional football quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). Following one season of college football with the Texas A&M Aggies, Murray played for the ...

throwing for 289 yards and four touchdowns, and the defense holding

to 58 yards on 17 carries. Badgley would go on to miss a field goal as well, being waived the next day. The Titans only scored one touchdown, a pass from Tannehill to

A. J. Brown Arthur Juan Brown (born June 30, 1997) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ole Miss Rebels and was selected by the Tennessee Tit ...

, in the entire second half. The Titans would lose 38-13.

Week 2: at Seattle Seahawks

The Titans started the game slow, down 24-9 in the third quarter and 30-16 in the fourth. However they came back to tie, with

scoring on a one-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left, making it 30-30 and forcing the game into overtime. New kicker

Randy Bullock Randolph Richard Bullock (born December 16, 1989) is an American professional American football, football placekicker. He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies football, Texas A&M Aggies, and was recognized as the nation's best colleg ...

, kicked a game-winning 36-yard field goal in overtime to win 33-30. Henry rushed 35 times for 182 yards and two touchdowns, including a 60-yard TD in the fourth quarter. Henry would also catch a career high six receptions for 55 yards, winning AFC Offensive Player of the Week and FedEx Ground Player of the Week for his performance. Wide receiver

Julio Jones Quintorris Lopez "Julio" Jones Jr. ( ; born February 8, 1989) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the Atlanta Falcons. He played college foo ...

caught six catches for 128 yards in his first 100-yard game with the Titans. Bullock made four of his five kicks, and would remain the Titans kicker for the rest of the season.

Week 3: vs. Indianapolis Colts

The Titans continued their season by beating the Colts 25-16, dropping the Colts to their first 0-3 start since

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

. The Titans offense turned the ball over three times, however the Titans defense only allowed the Colts to score one touchdown in the game and force them to try four field goal attempts. The Titans defense also held the Colts to just 25% on third down conversions and sacked

Carson Wentz Carson James Wentz (born December 30, 1992) is an American professional football quarterback. He played college football for the North Dakota State Bison, where he won two consecutive NCAA FCS national championships as the starter. Wentz was s ...

two times with 10 quarterback hits.

completed 18-of-27 passes for 197 yards, while also rushing for 56 yards on five carries.

rushed 28 times for 113 yards, once again winning the FedEx Ground Player of the Week. The Titans suffered several injuries in the game, with LB Bud Dupree already sidelined prior, WR

exiting the game in the first quarter, WR

being unable to play in the final stages, and losing CB

Kristian Fulton Kristian Michael Shaw Fulton (born September 3, 1998) is an American professional football cornerback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers and was selected by the Tenness ...

for a stretch.

Week 4: at New York Jets

The game lead tied or changed five times as

, overcoming seven sacks, completed a two-yard score to Cameron Batson that forced overtime. After a Matt Ammendola field goal in overtime

missed a 49-yard attempt. It was Tennessee’s fifth loss in the last nine meetings with the Jets and first overtime game against New York since a 31-28 loss in 1980.

Week 5: at Jacksonville Jaguars

Week 6: vs. Buffalo Bills

The Titans edged the Bills 34–31, winning on a fourth down stop of Bills quarterback

Josh Allen Joshua Patrick Allen (born May 21, 1996) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wyoming Cowboys football, Wyoming Cow ...

at their 3-yard line in the final thirty seconds. The game lead changed seven times as

rushed for three touchdowns and 143 yards; he also caught two passes for thirteen yards.

ran in a touchdown and completed eighteen passes for 216 yards; he completed fourteen of his last seventeen passes after starting with just four of his first twelve.

Week 7: vs. Kansas City Chiefs

This was the 55th career meeting between the two teams since founders

Bud Adams Kenneth Stanley "Bud" Adams Jr. (January 3, 1923 – October 21, 2013) was an American businessman who was the founder and owner of the Houston Oilers of the American Football League (AFL), of which he was also a co-founder. The franchise eve ...

and

Lamar Hunt Lamar Hunt Sr. (August 2, 1932 – December 13, 2006) was an American businessman most notable for his promotion of football, soccer, and tennis in the United States. With his brothers, he also attempted to corner the silver market. He was t ...

co-founded the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, AFL–NFL merger, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Foot ...

but only the fifth meeting in Tennessee. It was also the twelfth meeting since they were the Houston Oilers. With the win the Titans moved to a 9-2 lifetime record against Chiefs coach

Andy Reid Andrew Walter Reid (born March 19, 1958) is an American professional American football, football coach who is the head coach for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). Reid was previously the head coach of the Philadelphi ...

Week 8: at Indianapolis Colts

The Titans rallied to the overtime win and only their third sweep of the Colts since formation of the AFC South. But running back

was lost for the rest of the regular season with a foot injury that necessitated surgery and also the signing of

Adrian Peterson Adrian Lewis Peterson (; born March 21, 1985) is an American former professional football running back who played 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football hist ...

Week 9: at Los Angeles Rams

In their first game without Henry, the Titans accounted for just 194 total yards on offense, but won due to a strong performance by their defense, which set up several short fields and intercepted Rams quarterback

Matthew Stafford John Matthew Stafford (born February 7, 1988) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs football, Georg ...

on two consecutive plays in the second quarter, with the second pick being returned for a touchdown.

Week 10: vs. New Orleans Saints

A Saints red zone interception was negated by a questionable roughing the passer call, which set up the Titans with 1st & Goal at the one yard line, resulting in a touchdown for Tennessee

Week 11: vs. Houston Texans

Week 12: at New England Patriots

Week 14: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

Week 15: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 16: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week 17: vs. Miami Dolphins

With this win, moving the Titans to 11-5, the Titans would clinch back-to-back division titles for the first time since

–

, when the Titans were still in the Eastern Division of the

Week 18: at Houston Texans

With this win, the Titans would finish the season 12-5 and would clinch the #1 seed in the AFC for the first time since 2008.

Standings

Division

Conference

Postseason

Game summaries

AFC Divisional Playoffs: vs. (4) Cincinnati Bengals

Statistics

Team

Individual

''Statistics correct as of the end of the

2021 NFL season The 2021 NFL season was the 102nd season of the National Football League (NFL). The season was the first to feature a 17-game regular season schedule as the league expanded the season from 16 games. The regular season started on September 9, ...

References

External links

* {{2021 NFL season by team

Tennessee Titans seasons AFC South championship seasons

2021 in Nashville, Tennessee