Tennessee Titans (5-2) at San Diego Chargers (2-5)
Sunday, October 31st, 2010 • 3:05pm CDT • Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, CA • TV: CBS
Nashville, TN – The AFC South’s first-place Tennessee Titans (5-2) carry a three-game winning streak to San Diego this week to face the Chargers (2-5). The late afternoon kickoff at Qualcomm Stadium (capacity 70,000) is scheduled for 3:05pm CDT on Sunday, October 31st.
The matchup with the Chargers will be the Titans’ final game before a bye in Week 9, their latest bye since 2005 (Week 10). In Jeff Fisher’s head coaching career, his teams are 9-6 all-time before the bye and 9-6 after the bye. The Titans return from their open date with a November 14th trip to Miami.
In San Diego, the Titans will attempt to earn their first victory over the Chargers since 1992. Since that time, the Chargers have won seven consecutive games in the series, including a 2007 AFC Wild Card Game and last year’s Christmas clash at LP Field. The Titans have not won on the road against the Chargers since 1990. San Diego is the lone franchise among 31 NFL opponents that Fisher has never defeated in his career.
The Broadcast
The game will be televised regionally on CBS, including Nashville affiliate WTVF NewsChannel 5. Ian Eagle will handle play-by-play duties, while Dan Fouts will provide analysis.
The Titans Radio Network, including Nashville flagship 104.5 The Zone, will broadcast the game across the Mid-South with the “Voice of the Titans” Mike Keith, analyst Frank Wycheck, sideline reporter Cody Allison and gameday host Larry Stone.
Additionally, Westwood One Radio Sports will carry the national radio broadcast. Kevin Kugler (play-by-play) and Mark Malone (analyst) will provide the call.
The game can be heard locally on 1400 AM, WJZM.
Last Week
Last week, the Titans used four turnovers and a memorable performance by wide receiver Kenny Britt to defeat the Eagles 37-19. The Titans posted 27 unanswered points in the final quarter, setting a franchise record for fourth-quarter scoring.
Trailing 19-10 with less than 14 minutes to play, Britt recorded his second touchdown of the game— a career-long 80-yard reception from Kerry Collins—to ignite the Titans’ scoring barrage. Collins, who was starting due to Vince Young’s ankle and knee injuries, passed for 276 yards in the game. Britt was on the receiving end for 225 of those yards, recording the fifth-highest total in franchise history. In the fourth quarter alone, Britt registered 159 receiving yards, the largest single-quarter total in the NFL since 2006 (Buffalo’s Lee Evans, 205 in the first quarter at Houston on 11/19/06).
Safety Michael Griffin notched an interception for the fourth consecutive game, becoming the seventh player in franchise history to accomplish the feat, and Cortland Finnegan returned an interception for his fourth career touchdown (third on an interception). The Titans added two fumble recoveries against the Eagles, the first of which helped shift the momentum in the contest. With the Eagles ahead 16-7, Jason Jones caused a fumble in the Eagles’ backfield. Alterraun Verner fell on the loose ball at the Titans’ three-yard line, giving the rookie cornerback four takeaways (two interceptions, two fumble recoveries) in seven career games.
With the victory, the Titans took a slim lead in the AFC South race. At 5-2, they have a half-game advantage over the 4-2 Colts and Texans, who were off last weekend with their byes.
The Chargers
Meanwhile, the Chargers lost at home to the New England Patriots last week by a final score of 23-20. A last-second field goal that would have tied the game bounced off the right upright, dropping the Chargers to 2-5 this season. They currently reside in a tie for third place in the AFC West.
Nevertheless, the Chargers enter this week’s game with the NFL’s top offense and defense. They have yielded just 244.3 yards per game to the opposition, while they have gained an average of 422.7 yards per game. Quarterback Philip Rivers leads the NFL with a total of 2,344 passing yards, and tight end Antonio Gates has a league-best eight touchdown receptions.
Titans-Chargers Series At A Glance
- Overall series (regular & postseason): Chargers lead series 24-16-1
- Regular Season Series: Chargers lead series 23-13-1
- Postseason Series: Titans lead series 3-1
- Current streak: Seven wins by Chargers
- Titans at home vs. Chargers:11-9
- Titans on the road vs. Chargers: 5-15-1
- Last Time at LP Field: Chargers 42 at Titans 17 (12/25/09)
- Last Time at Qualcomm Stadium: Titans 6 at Chargers 17 (Wild Card Round, 1/6/08)
- First Time: L.A. Chargers 28 at Houston Oilers 38 (9/18/60)
- Jeff Fisher’s Record vs. Chargers: 0-6 (including 0-1 in playoffs)
- Norv Turner’s Record vs. Titans: 5-2 (0-2 with Washington, 2-0 with Oakland, 3-0 with San Diego)
- Jeff Fisher’s Record vs. Norv Turner: 2-5 (2-0 vs. Washington, 0-2 vs. Oakland, 0-3 vs. San Diego)
What To Look For This Week
- K Rob Bironas has a current streak of 17 consecutive games with at least one field goal, the second-longest streak in team history. Bironas holds the club record with a field goal in 19 consecutive games from 2006-07.
- WR Kenny Britt can record a touchdown reception in six consecutive games. If he succeeds, he will join Bill Groman (8 in 1961) as the only players in franchise history to accomplish the feat.
- QB Kerry Collins needs three touchdown passes to become the 31st player in NFL history to reach 200 career touchdown passes.
- S Michael Griffin needs one interception this week to tie Pete Jaquess (1964) for a franchise record with an interception in five consecutive games.
- RB Chris Johnson will attempt to record his 21st career 100-yard rushing game and his fifth of 2010.
- RB Chris Johnson needs 104 rushing yards to become the fourth player in franchise history to reach 4,000 career rushing yards, joining Eddie George, Earl Campbell and Lorenzo White. If Johnson reaches the 4,000-yard mark this week, he will do so in his 39th career game, tying Earl Campbell, Edgerrin James, Adrian Peterson and Clinton Portis for the third-fastest all-time to the mark, behind only Eric Dickerson (33 games) and Jim Brown (38).
- RB Chris Johnson (772 career rushing attempts) needs two carries to pass Hoyle Granger (773) for sixth place on the team’s alltime list for career rushing attempts.
Titans-Chargers Series History
The Titans and Chargers share a long and storied history. The two teams, founding members of the American Football League who originally existed as the Houston Oilers and Los Angeles Chargers, have met 41 times since 1960. The Chargers lead the series 24-16-1.
On September 18th, 1960, the two clubs met for the Oilers’ inaugural home game at Houston’s Jeppesen Stadium. The Oilers won that match-up 38-28. In November of that same year, the Chargers won the rematch in Los Angeles, 24-21. The AFL’s top two teams would meet once more that season—a rubber match for the first-ever AFL Championship. The Oilers were victorious at home, rejoicing in a 24-16 win that earned each member of the team an extra $1,016.42.
The following season, they met again for the AFL crown, and the Oilers again were the victors in a 10-3 final. They would clash twice more in the playoffs, first in a 17-14 Oilers win in a 1979 Divisional contest. Following the 2007 season, the Chargers hosted the Titans in a Wild Card matchup and earned their first victory in the postseason series, winning 17-6. It was part of the Chargers’ current seven-game winning streak against the Titans, dating back to 1993.
The Chargers and Oilers marked another significant day on September 13th, 1998, when the then-Tennessee Oilers, who played their home games in Memphis in 1997, hosted their first regular season home game in Nashville in front of 41,089 fans at Vanderbilt Stadium. To their dismay, the Chargers spoiled the festivities by handing the Oilers a 13-7 defeat.
The Titans and Chargers last met in a Christmas 2009 primetime bout at LP Field. La-Dainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles each rushed for two touchdowns, and Sproles also caught one of Philip Rivers’ two touchdown passes in a 42-17 Chargers victory.
