2011 Tennessee Titans season


The 2011 season was the Tennessee Titans' 42nd in the National Football League, their 52nd overall and their 15th in the state of Tennessee. It was also their first season under head coach Mike Munchak, replacing longtime head coach Jeff Fisher, who resigned on January 27 after 17 seasons. The team improved on their 6–10 record from 2010 [Tennessee Titans season|2010] and finished tied with the Cincinnati Bengals for the last playoff spot, but lost the tiebreaker due to their 24–17 loss to the Bengals in Week 9, missing the playoffs for a third consecutive season.

Offseason

2011 draft class

RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollege
18Jake LockerQBWashington
239Akeem AyersLBUCLA
377Jurrell CaseyDTUSC
4109Colin McCarthyLBMiami (FL)
5142Karl KlugDEIowa
6175Byron StingilyTLouisville
7212Zach ClaytonDTAuburn

Preseason

Schedule

The Titans' preseason schedule was announced on April 12, 2011.
WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueRecap
1August 13Minnesota VikingsW 14–31–0LP Field
2August 20at St. Louis RamsL 16–171–1Edward Jones Dome
3August 27Chicago BearsW 14–132–1LP Field
4September 1at New Orleans SaintsW 32–93–1Louisiana Superdome

Regular season

Game summaries

Week 5: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Coming off their road win over the Browns, the Titans flew to Heinz Field for a Week 5 intraconference duel with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Tennessee threw the game's opening punch in the first quarter with a 29-yard field goal from kicker Rob Bironas, but the Steelers answered with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger completing an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Heath Miller. Pittsburgh added onto their lead in the second with Roethlisberger completing a 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Hines Ward and a 1-yard touchdown pass to fullback David Johnson.
The Steelers continued their dominating performance in the third quarter with Roethlisberger completing a 5-yard touchdown pass to Ward. The Titans would respond with a 1-yard touchdown run from running back Chris Johnson, yet Pittsburgh came right back in the fourth quarter with kicker Shaun Suisham getting a 19-yard field goal. Tennessee tried to rally as quarterback Matt Hasselbeck found wide receiver Damian Williams on a 19-yard touchdown pass, but the Steelers closed out the game with Roethlisberger completing a 40-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mike Wallace.
With the loss, the Titans fell to 3–2.

Week 14: vs. New Orleans Saints


Week 16: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

With the win the Titans improved to 8–7. In order to secure a playoff spot the Tennessee Titans need a win at Houston in Week 17, combined with a Bengals loss, a Broncos win, and Raiders win. If either Cincinnati wins against Baltimore or Denver loses against Kansas City, the Titans will be eliminated from postseason contention.

Week 17: at Houston Texans

With the win, the Titans finished the season 9–7 and would secure their first winning season since 2008. However, they were eliminated from postseason contention due to the Denver Broncos losing against the Kansas City Chiefs 7–3.