2002 Tennessee Titans season

The 2002 season was the Tennessee Titans' 33rd in the National Football League and 43rd overall. The team improved upon their previous season's output of 7–9, managing eleven victories.^[1] After starting 1–4, the Titans won 10 of their next 11 games. They qualified for the playoffs with a first-round bye, but were unable to reach the Super Bowl, losing to the Oakland Raiders in the AFC Championship. The Titans would not return to the AFC Championship again until 2019.

2002 Tennessee Titans season
Owner	Bud Adams
General manager	Floyd Reese
Head coach	Jeff Fisher
Home stadium	The Coliseum
Results
Record	11–5
Division place	1st AFC South
Playoffs	Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Steelers) 34–31 (OT) Lost AFC Championship (at Raiders) 24–41
Pro Bowlers	DE Kevin Carter
← 2001 Titans seasons 2003 →

The season also marked the first time that the Titans would return to Houston, in a week 17 match against the Texans since relocating 5 years earlier.

As of 2024, this was the last time the Titans won a home playoff game, having gone 0–3 since.

Offseason

Signings	Departures
S Rich Coady (Rams)	DT Josh Evans (Jets)
FB Robert Holcombe (Rams)	DT Jason Fisk (Chargers)
FS Lance Schulters (49ers)	C Bruce Matthews (retired)
	OLB Eddie Robinson (Bills)

NFL draft

2002 Tennessee Titans draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	12	Albert Haynesworth *	Defensive tackle	Tennessee	from N. Y. Giants
2	45	Tank Williams	Safety	Stanford
3	77	Rocky Calmus	Linebacker	Oklahoma
4	110	Mike Echols	Cornerback	Wisconsin	from N. Y. Giants
4	115	Tony Beckham	Cornerback	UW–Stout
4	133	Rocky Boiman	Linebacker	Notre Dame
5	151	Jake Schifino	Wide receiver	Akron
6	187	Justin Hartwig	Center	Kansas
7	225	Darrell Hill	Wide receiver	NIU
7	240	Carlos Hall	Defensive end	Arkansas	from Green Bay
Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted free agents

2002 undrafted free agents of note

Player	Position	College
Brad Kassell	Linebacker	North Texas
John Simon	Running back	Louisiana Tech

Personnel

Coaching staff

2002 Tennessee Titans staff

Front office Founder/owner/chairman of the board/CEO – Bud Adams President/chief operating officer – Jeff Diamond Executive VP/general manager/director of football operations – Floyd Reese Director of player personnel – Rich Snead Director of college scouting – Mike Ackerley National coordinator of college scouting – C. O. Brocato Head coaches Executive vice president/head coach – Jeff Fisher Assistant head coach/offense – George Henshaw Assistant head coach/linebackers – Gunther Cunningham Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator – Mike Heimerdinger Quarterbacks – Craig Johnson Running backs – Sherman Smith Wide receivers – Steve Walters Offensive line – Mike Munchak Offensive assistant/quality control – Ned James

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Jim Schwartz Defensive line – Jim Washburn Defensive backs – Everett Withers Defensive assistant/quality control – Chuck Cecil Special teams coaches Special teams – Alan Lowry Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning – Steve Watterson Assistant strength and conditioning – Sammy Cribb

Roster

2002 Tennessee Titans roster

Quarterbacks (QB)  9 Steve McNair 14 Neil O'Donnell  7 Billy Volek Running backs (RB) 34 Greg Comella FB 27 Eddie George 20 Mike Green 35 Robert Holcombe 45 John Simon Wide receivers (WR) 83 Drew Bennett 82 Eddie Berlin KR 80 Darrell Hill 85 Derrick Mason PR 86 Justin McCareins 81 Chris Sanders Tight ends (TE) 88 Erron Kinney 84 Shad Meier 89 Frank Wycheck

Offensive linemen (OL) 67 Tom Ackerman G 64 Gennaro DiNapoli C 77 Justin Hartwig G 72 Brad Hopkins T 68 Matt Martin T 76 Jason Mathews T 71 Fred Miller T 75 Benji Olson G 69 Zach Piller G Defensive linemen (DL) 93 Kevin Carter DE 92 Henry Ford DT 97 Carlos Hall DE 91 Albert Haynesworth DT 90 Jevon Kearse DE 98 Robaire Smith DT 94 Juqua Thomas DE 78 John Thornton DE/DT

Linebackers (LB) 50 Rocky Boiman OLB 53 Keith Bulluck OLB 54 Rocky Calmus MLB 57 Frank Chamberlin MLB 56 Randall Godfrey MLB 55 Brad Kassell OLB 59 Peter Sirmon OLB Defensive backs (DB) 24 Tony Beckham CB 29 Rich Coady FS 22 Andre Dyson CB 30 Donald Mitchell CB 28 Aric Morris SS 21 Samari Rolle CB 31 Lance Schulters FS 37 Dainon Sidney CB 25 Tank Williams SS Special teams (ST) 60 Aaron Graham LS 15 Craig Hentrich P  6 Joe Nedney K

Practice squad 79 Kevin Aldridge DE 96 James Atkins DT 49 Chad Hayes TE 62 Mike Malano G Reserve 87 Kevin Dyson WR (IR) 36 Mike Echols CB (IR) 16 Orlando Iglesias WR (NF-Inj.) 99 Kris Kocurek DT (IR) 32 Bobby Myers S (IR) -- Jake Schifino WR (IR) Rookies in italics 53 active, 6 reserve, 4 practice squad

Preseason

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record
1	August 10, 2002	St. Louis Rams	W 28–26	1–0
2	August 15, 2002	Oakland Raiders	W 24–14	2–0
3	August 23, 2002	at Minnesota Vikings	L 10–14	2–1
4	August 30, 2002	at Green Bay Packers	L 20–21	2–2

Regular season

Under the NFL's divisional realignment, the Titans were moved from the AFC Central, where they had played since the NFL–AFL merger in 1970, into the new AFC South. In addition to their home and away games with AFC South opponents, the Titans in 2002 played games against the AFC North and NFC East according to the league's new schedule rotation. They also played one game each against the Patriots and the Raiders based upon standings from 2001.

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	TV	Time (CT)	Record	Attendance
1	September 8	Philadelphia Eagles	W 27–24	FOX	12:00 pm	1–0	68,804
2	September 15	at Dallas Cowboys	L 13–21	CBS	12:00 pm	1–1	62,527
3	September 22	Cleveland Browns	L 28–31 (OT)	CBS	12:00 pm	1–2	68,804
4	September 29	at Oakland Raiders	L 25–52	CBS	3:15 pm	1–3	58,719
5	October 6	Washington Redskins	L 14–31	FOX	12:00 pm	1–4	68,804
6	October 13	Jacksonville Jaguars	W 23–14	CBS	3:15 pm	2–4	68,804
7	Bye
8	October 27	at Cincinnati Bengals	W 30–24	CBS	12:00 pm	3–4	52,822
9	November 3	at Indianapolis Colts	W 23–15	CBS	12:00 pm	4–4	56,752
10	November 10	Houston Texans	W 17–10	CBS	12:00 pm	5–4	68,804
11	November 17	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 31–23	CBS	12:00 pm	6–4	68,804
12	November 24	at Baltimore Ravens	L 12–13	CBS	12:00 pm	6–5	69,365
13	December 1	at New York Giants	W 32–29 (OT)	CBS	12:00 pm	7–5	78,640
14	December 8	Indianapolis Colts	W 27–17	CBS	12:00 pm	8–5	68,804
15	December 16	New England Patriots	W 24–7	ABC	8:08 pm	9–5	68,809
16	December 22	at Jacksonville Jaguars	W 28–10	CBS	12:00 pm	10–5	51,033
17	December 29	at Houston Texans	W 13–3	CBS	12:00 pm	11–5	70,694

Note: Division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Week 1: Philadelphia Eagles at Tennessee Titans

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	14	10	0	0	24
Titans	7	3	3	14	27

at The Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

• Date: September 8, 2002
• Game time: 12:00 PM
• Game weather: Hot and Hazy, 83 °F (28.3 °C)
• Game attendance: 68,804
• Referee: Terry McAulay (77)
• TV announcers (FOX): Dick Stockton and Daryl Johnston
• Recap, Game Book

Game information

First quarter' TEN – Eddie George 14-yard pass from Steve McNair (Joe Nedney kick), 7:10. Titans 7-0. Drive: 8 plays, 80 yards, 5:19. PHI – James Thrash 18-yard pass from Donovan McNabb (David Akers kick), 5:20. Tied 7-7. Drive: 2 plays, 6 yards, 0:53. PHI – Duce Staley 7-yard pass from Donovan McNabb (David Akers kick), 2:36. Eagles 14-7. Drive: 6 plays, 61 yards, 2:44. Second quarter TEN – Joe Nedney 33-yard field goal, 11:00. Eagles 14-10. Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 6:36. PHI – Chad Lewis 7-yard pass from Donovan McNabb (David Akers kick), 5:05. Eagles 21-10. Drive: 11 plays, 80 yards, 5:55. PHI – David Akers 30-yard field goal, 0:48. Eagles 24-10. Drive: 4 plays, 18 yards, 1:00. Third quarter TEN – Joe Nedney 47-yard field goal, 11:06. Eagles 24-13. Drive: 8 plays, 51 yards, 3:54. Fourth quarter TEN – Justin McCareins 2-yard pass from Steve McNair (2PT run failed), 12:49. Eagles 24-19. Drive: 6 plays, 67 yards, 2:21. TEN – Eddie George 2-yard run (Eddie George run), 3:09. Titans 27-24. Drive: 14 plays, 84 yards, 5:41. Top passers PHI – Donovan McNabb – 18/36, 212 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT TEN – Steve McNair – 24/34, 269 yards, 2 TD, INT Top rushers PHI – Brian Westbrook – 8 rushes, 42 yards TEN – Eddie George – 18 rushes, 42 yards, TD Top receivers PHI – Antonio Freeman – 3 receptions, 54 yards TEN – Derrick Mason – 7 receptions, 109 yards

Week 2: at Dallas Cowboys

Week 2: Tennessee Titans at Dallas Cowboys

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Titans	7	3	0	3	13
Cowboys	0	7	7	7	21

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

• Date: September 15, 2002
• Game time: 12:00 PM
• Game weather: Cloudy skies, 81 °F (27.2 °C)
• Game attendance: 62,527
• Referee: Ed Hochuli (85)
• TV announcers (CBS): Kevin Harlan and Randy Cross
• Recap, Game Book

Game information

First quarter' TEN – Frank Wycheck 1-yard pass from Steve McNair (Joe Nedney kick), 0:00. Titans 7-0. Drive: 12 plays, 85 yards, 8:27. Second quarter DAL – Tony McGee 17-yard pass from Quincy Carter (Billy Cundiff kick), 12:00. Tied 7-7. Drive: 6 plays, 71 yards, 3:00. TEN – Joe Nedney 37-yard field goal, 5:31. Titans 10-7. Drive: 13 plays, 55 yards, 6:29. Third quarter DAL – Dexter Coakley 52-yard interception return (Billy Cundiff kick), 3:10. Cowboys 14-10. Fourth quarter DAL – Joey Galloway 38-yard pass from Quincy Carter (Billy Cundiff kick), 11:25. Cowboys 21-10. Drive: 7 plays, 95 yards, 3:22. TEN – Joe Nedney 53-yard field goal, 5:18. Cowboys 21-13. Drive: 8 plays, 28 yards, 2:36. Top passers TEN – Steve McNair – 20/38, 226 yards, TD, INT DAL – Quincy Carter – 14/24, 240 yards, 2 TD Top rushers TEN – Eddie George – 19 rushes, 65 yards DAL – Emmitt Smith – 18 rushes, 59 yards Top receivers TEN – Derrick Mason – 7 receptions, 118 yards DAL – Joey Galloway – 5 receptions, 88 yards, TD

Week 3: vs. Cleveland Browns

Week 15: vs. New England Patriots

Week 15: New England Patriots at Tennessee Titans

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Patriots	0	0	7	0	7
Titans	0	14	7	3	24

at The Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

• Date: December 16, 2002
• Game time: 9:00 pm
• Game weather: Cloudy, 57 °F (13.9 °C)
• Game attendance: 68,809
• Referee: Ron Winter (14)
• TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, John Madden and Melissa Stark
• Recap, Game Book

Game information

Second quarter TEN – Steve McNair 11-yard run (Joe Nedney kick), 12:16. Titans 7–0. Drive: 12 plays, 78 yards, 6:18. TEN – Steve McNair 1-yard run (Joe Nedney kick), 0:32. Titans 14–0. Drive: 12 plays, 58 yards, 6:48. Third quarter NE – Tom Brady 10-yard run (Adam Vinatieri kick), 13:08. Titans 14–7. Drive: 6 plays, 69 yards, 1:52. TEN – Rich Coady 24-yard interception return (Joe Nedney kick), 9:58. Titans 21–7. Fourth quarter TEN – Joe Nedney 28-yard field goal, 9:22. Titans 24–7. Drive: 15 plays, 69 yards, 9:24. Top passers NE – Tom Brady – 14/29, 134 yards, INT TEN – Steve McNair – 11/24, 136 yards, INT Top rushers NE – Antowain Smith – 6 rushes, 31 yards TEN – Eddie George – 31 rushes, 101 yards Top receivers NE – Troy Brown – 8 receptions, 73 yards TEN – Derrick Mason – 6 receptions, 86 yards

Standings

Division

AFC South
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(2) Tennessee Titans	11	5	0	.688	6–0	9–3	367	324	W5
(5) Indianapolis Colts	10	6	0	.625	4–2	8–4	349	313	W1
Jacksonville Jaguars	6	10	0	.375	1–5	4–8	328	315	L2
Houston Texans	4	12	0	.250	1–5	2–10	213	356	L3

Conference

AFC v t e
#	Team	Division	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	SOS	SOV
Division leaders
1[a]	Oakland Raiders	West	11	5	0	.688	4–2	9–3	.529	.531
2[a]	Tennessee Titans	South	11	5	0	.688	6–0	9–3	.479	.474
3	Pittsburgh Steelers	North	10	5	1	.656	6–0	8–4	.486	.451
4[b]	New York Jets	East	9	7	0	.563	4–2	6–6	.500	.500
Wild Cards
5	Indianapolis Colts	South	10	6	0	.625	4–2	8–4	.479	.400
6[c]	Cleveland Browns	North	9	7	0	.563	3–3	7–5	.486	.413
Did not qualify for the postseason
7[c][d]	Denver Broncos	West	9	7	0	.563	3–3	5–7	.527	.486
8[b][c][d][e]	New England Patriots	East	9	7	0	.563	4–2	6–6	.525	.455
9[b][e]	Miami Dolphins	East	9	7	0	.563	2–4	7–5	.508	.486
10[f]	Buffalo Bills	East	8	8	0	.500	2–4	5–7	.473	.352
11[f][g]	San Diego Chargers	West	8	8	0	.500	3–3	6–6	.492	.453
12[g]	Kansas City Chiefs	West	8	8	0	.500	2–4	6–6	.527	.516
13	Baltimore Ravens	North	7	9	0	.438	3–3	7–5	.506	.384
14	Jacksonville Jaguars	South	6	10	0	.375	1–5	4–8	.506	.438
15	Houston Texans	South	4	12	0	.250	1–5	2–10	.518	.492
16	Cincinnati Bengals	North	2	14	0	.125	0–6	1–11	.537	.406
Tiebreakers[h]
Oakland finished ahead of Tennessee based on head-to-head victory. N.Y. Jets finished ahead of New England based on win percentage in common games (8–4 to 7–5) and Miami based on division record (4–2 to 2–4). Cleveland finished ahead of Denver and New England based on conference record (7–5 vs 5–7/6–6) Denver finished ahead of New England based on head-to-head victory. New England finished ahead of Miami based on division record (4–2 to 2–4). Buffalo finished ahead of San Diego based on head-to-head victory. San Diego finished ahead of Kansas City based on division record (3–3 to 2–4). When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.

Playoffs

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
Divisional	January 11, 2003	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 34–31 (OT)	68,809
Conference Championship	January 19, 2003	at Oakland Raiders	L 24–41	62,544

AFC Divisional Playoff vs Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans 34, Pittsburgh Steelers 31

Quarter	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Steelers	0	13	7	11	0	31
Titans	14	0	14	3	3	34

at Adelphia Coliseum, Nashville, Tennessee

• Game time: 4:30 pm EST
• Game weather: Sunny, 34 °F (1.1 °C)
• Game attendance: 68,809
• Referee: Ron Blum
• TV announcers (CBS): Dick Enberg, Dan Dierdorf, and Bonnie Bernstein

This was the Titans franchise's first playoff win over the Steelers in four tries, following three losses as the Oilers in 1978, 1979 and 1989, the last of which was also in overtime. The Titans went to the AFC Championship to the Oakland Raiders and lost 41-24.

AFC Championship Game

Oakland Raiders 41, Tennessee Titans 24

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Titans	7	10	7	0	24
Raiders	14	10	3	14	41

at Network Associates Coliseum, Oakland, California

• Game time: 6:30 p.m. EST/3:30 p.m. PST
• Game weather: Clear, 52 °F (11.1 °C)
• Game attendance: 62,544
• Referee: Ed Hochuli
• TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Phil Simms, Armen Keteyian and Bonnie Bernstein

This was the Titans' last appearance at the AFC championship game until 2019. The Titans were crashed and in 2003 finished 12-4, the same récord as the Colts they win to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Wild Card Round 20-17. But lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion New England Patriots in the AFC Divisional Round 17-14.