For the first time in the Mike Vrabel era, and for the first time since 2015, the Tennessee Titans (7-9) are going to finish the regular season with a losing record after recording a 9-7 mark or better in the six previous years.
Despite their second-half collapse, the Titans are still in position to make the playoffs with a do-or-die Week 18 game for the AFC South title on the line against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday night.
Another thing on the line is draft positioning. If the Titans lose, they could have a top-10 pick, but if they win they’d select no earlier than 19th.
Going into Week 18, the Titans are slated to pick 11th, per Tankathon.
Now, it goes without saying that the Titans are going nowhere even if they make the playoffs, and understandably, there’s some talk about the value in Tennessee actually winning this game at the expense of its draft slot.
However, there’s also pride on the line here.
The Titans are on the verge of an epic collapse that the national media will eat up (and NOBODY wants them to win this game) and Jaguars fans will use as ammunition for as long as they possibly can.
Put me on the side of the fence that has the Titans walking into Duval with Joshua Dobbs on the national stage and ripping a playoff berth out of the hands of their division rival.
