It's been 25 years since Tennessee's NFL team changed its name to the Titans in the final stages of its move, but for some reason the franchise is still stuck in its prime teenage years. This Sunday, the Titans will wear one of the best and most iconic throwback jerseys ever owned by the Houston Oilers, and they're intentionally doing it again against the Texans.
As per the organization's pattern, the Titans will once again wear throwback uniforms against their AFC South rival. This will be the only time Tennessee will wear this jersey during the 2024 NFL season, and rather than some kind of burn, it's a reminder of how little history and memorable contributions this franchise has made to the league over the past 25 years. It's highlighted. .
This jersey choice comes as the Titans (3-13) mock the Texans (9-7) for relocating their team. It's certainly a choice when playing for a team that's at the bottom of the AFC South and on the verge of winning its division, but how should the Titans relinquish Houston's history to the Texans when Houston returns to the NFL? It also proves the truth. Just as the New Orleans Pelicans decided to move their team's history back to the Charlotte Hornets during a rebrand, memories of Larry Johnson, Muggsy Bogues, and the beloved team of the '90s We made sure it belonged in the city of Charlotte and not some greedy owner who ran the world. team.
It would be a different story if the Titans simply chose to wear an Oilers throwback against literally any team in the league, but intentionally wearing Oilers against Houston is a sad middle finger for seemingly no reason.
As with most team moves, the reason the Oilers left Houston was greed. Owner Bud Adams wanted 75 percent public funding for the construction of the city's new stadium, which he privately owns and shares with the Houston Rockets. Desperate to keep the Oilers alive, the city of Houston was wary of making large-scale public investments in new sports venues, especially in the wake of the oil crisis of the mid-1980s, which caused significant economic damage to the city.
Rather than work with the city of Houston on incremental improvements to the Astrodome, Adams let the Oilers shop around, and Nashville ultimately agreed to pony up the money for the stadium, which Houston didn't want. did.
This is the sad reality of sports, and in some ways you can't blame Adams for running his team. The Astrodome in the early 1990s. rough But everyone who took part in that debacle is now retired or deceased. The only people hurt by repurposing the Oilers' identity are the fans who remember the team most fondly and remember winning back-to-back AFL championships with George Blanda and Earl Campbell, one of the NFL's most dynamic running backs in recent years. I was alone. The rise of Warren Moon in the 1970s and 1980s.
These titles, records and legends were created in Houston. This team was created during Houston's economic boom caused by oil money, and was dismantled as oil money declined. It's part of this city's DNA, and you have to make sure you don't get thrown around as a joke in Week 18 when you're the worst team in the division and the Texans are the best team.
Trying to capture this old glory in Nashville is a reminder of just how little the team has been above mediocrity since entering the league. The 1999 Music City Miracle was legendary, but that was 25 years ago. Since then, the Titans have made the playoffs just nine times and made it past the wild-card round just six times. The average length of a coach's tenure is four years, but aside from Steve McNair, the team hasn't had a consistently exciting quarterback in Tennessee.
I'm sure there are fans in Houston who have turned the page but don't really want to see Oilers history come back now. Still, when I wear it, against The Texans are just another sad move by a team trying to stir up controversy to distract from the Titans' myriad problems in football over the years. The Addams family was clever at making money and building stadiums – did they win? There aren't that many.
This week, Oilers jerseys will be worn again like gloves to slap Houston in the face. Really, it's like an edgy teenager who wears an offensive shirt to high school and hopes someone will notice.
