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Titans vs. Patriots is one of the saddest duels in franchise history

Titans vs. Patriots is one of the saddest duels in franchise history

No one will blame you if you’re having a little trouble getting excited about this weekend Tennessee Titans game.

The Titans (1-6) host the New England Patriots (2-6) at Nissan Stadium on Sunday (noon CT, FOX) in a battle between two of the NFL’s worst teams. From combined winning percentageThis game is one of the lowest stakes games in Titans history. Since moving to Tennessee in 1997, this is only the Titans’ fifth game on November 1 or later in which the two teams involved have a cumulative winning percentage of .200 or less.

“They’re a team that’s also a proud organization, and they’re fighting to get some wins for themselves,” Titans coach Brian Callahan said of the struggling Patriots. “They’re tough.”

Will this game be the least important game in the world? Tennessee Titans Story? To assess this answer, let’s take a look at the stakes of the other Bottom Dweller games this franchise has played and try to come to a conclusion.

The Titans haven’t gotten any worse. Their opponents got better.

November 27, 2005: Titans (2-8) vs. San Francisco 49ers (2-8)

Combined Win Percentage: .200

Why This Game Stunk: The Titans were already eight games behind the undefeated Colts in the AFC South. The 49ers were almost as far behind as the 8-2 Seahawks in their division. San Francisco played Ken Dorsey at quarterback instead of No. 1 pick Alex Smith. It had lost three in a row; The Titans had lost five straight. It was late enough in the season to know that neither team would make the playoffs, but a little too early to have a major impact on the NFL’s draft order.

Was there a real reason to watch? Not really. Smith didn’t play. Frank Gore didn’t play. It’s hard to find why this game was so hyped.

Result: Titans 33, 49ers 22

December 11, 2005: Titans (3-9) vs. Houston Texans (1-11)

Combined Win Percentage: .167

Why This Game Stunk: The Texans lost five straight in this game. Star receiver Andre Johnson was in the midst of the worst season of his Hall of Fame heyday. The week’s other AFC South matchup, held at the same time, pitted the 12-0 Colts against the 9-3 Jaguars. Watching the Junk Bowl with a real playoff preview on the sunnier side of the street felt like an insult.

Was there a real reason to watch? The draft positioning began to solidify, and the Texans came into this game one game ahead of the Packers, Jets and 49ers for the No. 1 pick. A Texans win would have put the Titans right in the middle of the contest, adding at least some excitement to the show.

Result: Titans 13, Texans 10

December 14, 2014: Titans (2-11) vs. New York Jets (2-11)

Combined Win Percentage: .154

Why This Game Stunk: It was the middle of the Charlie Whitehurst era in Nashville. The running game was terrible and journeyman Derek Hagan started the game at receiver. The most exciting young player on the field was Jets defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson. Meanwhile, there were a whopping four games in the lunchtime window, featuring two teams with winning records. Almost every other game on TV was better than this one.

Was there a real reason to watch? Clearly, the importance of the draft order. The main reason, however, was that this game marked Chris Johnson’s return to Nashville as a guest player. Even if the game wasn’t going to be good, the spectacle was enough.

Result: Jets 16, Titans 11

December 18, 2014: Titans (2-12) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-12)

Combined Win Percentage: .143

Why This Game Stunk: That could be it The Bad game through and through. It’s Week 16. Two teams with zero total Pro Bowlers had to play in prime time on “Thursday Night Football.” The website Awful Annancing described this matchup as “the worst prime time game of the century” before it aired. If showing the NFL’s worst is an art, then this fight has nearly perfected it.

Was there a real reason to watch? This one was so late in the season that it really, Really important for design positioning. The Titans, Jaguars, Raiders and Buccaneers combined for the worst record in football. A win in this game could have been the difference between winning the jackpot in the Marcus Mariota/Jameis Winston sweepstakes or being selected later in a draft that didn’t select another quarterback until the middle of the third round.

Result: Jaguars 21, Titans 13

How does the Titans and Patriots compare?

Combined Win Percentage: .200

Why this game is better: Both teams have enough time to turn things around and salvage a mediocre season. Both teams have young quarterbacks (Will Levis, Drake Maye) they want to develop, although it’s unclear how healthy they are. And it’s not like watching this game means sacrificing the opportunity to see a big match; The only remotely interesting game on TV against the Titans-Patriots is the 5-3 Broncos and the 5-3 Ravens.

Why this game is worse: It’s the NFL’s No. 32 passing offense versus the NFL’s No. 31 passing offense. The worst overall offense against the third worst overall offense. A team that scores 17.1 points per game faces a team that scores 15.5 points per game. It’s far too early to know the impact of this game on the draft, but it’s late enough to know that it’s no coincidence that these teams aren’t playing well offensively.

Final Verdict: The Titans-49ers game in 2005 is probably the least relevant game in franchise history. The “TNF” affair against Jacksonville in 2014 is almost certainly the darkest encounter. But on the pure fan misery index, this game ranks in the top three.

Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at [email protected]. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.