The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the AFC South division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The team was originally established as the Houston Oilers in 1959 by businessman Bud Adams, and began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). [1] [2] The Oilers were successful in the early years of the AFL, winning the league's first two championships in 1960 and 1961. [3] [4]
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Following the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, the Oilers became part of the NFL's AFC Central division. [4] [5] [6] In 1997, Adams relocated the franchise from Houston to Tennessee, where it played its inaugural season as the Tennessee Oilers at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis. [7] [8] The team relocated to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville in 1998. [9] The following year, it was rebranded as the Tennessee Titans to coincide with the opening of its new current home stadium, originally named Adelphia Coliseum, now known as Nissan Stadium. [8] [10] The Titans made an immediate impact under their new identity, reaching Super Bowl XXXIV in their first season with the new name, narrowly losing to the St. Louis Rams. [10] [11]
The Titans were placed in the AFC South division following the 2002 NFL realignment. [12] Since 2002, they have made the AFC Championship twice, in the 2002 and 2019 seasons, losing both times. [13] [14] Throughout their history, including their time as the Oilers, the franchise has experienced periods of both success and struggle. Over 65 combined seasons in the AFL and NFL, the team has posted an overall record of 479 wins, 515 losses, and 6 ties. [15] They have qualified for the playoffs 25 times, winning two AFL Championships (1960 and 1961), one AFC Championship (1999), and eleven division titles. [16] [17]