Written by Special Contributor John Glennon
It's all over until next season for the Titans, who completed their season with a 24-17 win over the Houston Texans on Sunday.
There wasn't much on the line for the Titans, who'd been eliminated from playoff contention when they lost in Jacksonville the previous week.
Still, here are five things we learned from the 2016 season finale:
Titans are winners – It had been half a decade since the Titans had last posted a winning record, as the team had gone 18-46 over the past four seasons following a 9-7 mark in 2011. Tennessee wasn't breaking out the bottles of champagne after beating Houston to secure a 9-7 record this year, but a winning mark is yet another sign that the Titans have made big strides. Remember, the Titans had won a combined five games over the past two years. Tennessee recorded quality wins this year over Miami, Green Bay, Denver, Kansas City and Houston.
“I think the biggest thing is that it's been awesome for our fans,” Titans cornerback Jason McCourty said. “To have to sit through the past two years … and now to actually come out to a game and actually go home and feel good about it, and feel like a winner, talk trash to the opposing teams' fans, I think it was special for them.”
The streak is over – The Texans had beaten the Titans five straight times coming into the contest, and four of those games had been decided by at least 14 points. Go back a little further and the Titans had lost eight of their last nine contests to Houston. The Titans certainly didn't beat the Texans at full-strength on Sunday, as Houston was resting six of its starters – and lost quarterback Tom Savage in the first half. Still, a win is a win. A Titans team that was badly in need of confidence against AFC South opponents finally broke through against Houston, something Tennessee hopes it can build on looking ahead.
“It's always good to beat a conference opponent and it's good to beat someone in your division,” Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey said. “That's what it takes to get to the playoffs. We'll start with this win and we'll get ready for2017.”
Matthews proved to be a steal – Remember those games early in the season when it looked like wide receiver Rishard Matthews was struggling to find chemistry with Marcus Mariota and the Titans' offense? Seems like soooo long ago. Heading into the Houston contest, Matthews had produced eight touchdown catches in the last 12 contests, which was tied for third in the NFL during that period. He added another touchdown catch in the second quarter against the Texans, giving him nine this season – the most by a Titan since Kenny Britt recorded that total in 2010. Matthews finished the game with nine catches for 114 yards, the third time this season he's gone over 100 yards. His 65 catches, 945 yards and nine touchdowns were all career high.
“Just learning a new offense and learning things differently, I had to adjust and learn things in the run game more,” Matthews said. “I still feel I'm short of what I came to do, but it is what it is. You want to end the season with a `W' and that is what we did today.”
Quiet farewell? – When wide receiver Kendall Wright was benched against Denver after being late for a team meeting, it seemed highly unlikely that the former first-round draft pick would be returning in 2017. Wright's future in Nashville looks even bleaker following the Titans' win over Houston, as Wright – despite being healthy – was inactive for the contest. In his absence, Tre McBride played. A pending unrestricted free agent, Wright had one big game this year, catching eight passes for 133 yards against Cleveland. He only had 21 receptions in his 10 other games.
Another Titans veteran, McCourty, was also inactive, though his absence was due to chest and shoulder injuries. McCourty, a six-year veteran, lost his starting job earlier this season. He's under contract for one more year at a base salary of $7 million.
Building a home-field advantage – The Titans had been nothing short of horrendous at home in recent years. They were a combined 2-14 at Nissan Stadium in the previous two seasons, and hadn't posted a winning mark in Nashville since 2011. But the Titans' win over Houston on Sunday gave Tennessee a 5-3 home record this year, including three straight victories here – against Green Bay, Denver and Houston – to finish the season.
“It's a good start. We haven't had a lot of success here my first two years,” Titans coach Mike Mularkey said. “To finish up today, that was an important to have a winning record at home. We wanted to bring our fans back here. They have come back. They're part of why we've had success here.”
-- Reach John Glennon at jg1sport@aol.com and follow him on Twitter @glennonsports.
