Ravens–Titans rivalry

The Ravens–Titans rivalry (formerly the Ravens–Oilers rivalry) is a professional American football rivalry between the Baltimore Ravens and the Tennessee Titans in the National Football League’s American Football Conference. Originally divisional rivals in the AFC Central, the Ravens and Titans developed strong enmity between each other before the two teams were moved to separate divisions. The teams have met in the playoffs five times and are both known for their strong defensive play. The rivalry is one of the tightest in the NFL with a 13-13 lifetime record and a points differential as of the 2020 season of 47 in favor of Baltimore.

Ravens–Titans rivalry
Baltimore Ravens
Tennessee Titans
First meetingSeptember 15, 1996
Astrodome
Oilers 29, Ravens 13
Latest meetingJanuary 10, 2021
Ravens 20, Titans 13
Next meetingTBD
Statistics
Meetings total26 meetings[1]
All-time seriesTied, 13–13
Postseason resultsRavens lead, 3–2
January 7, 2001:
Ravens 24, Titans 10
January 3, 2004:
Titans 20, Ravens 17
January 10, 2009:
Ravens 13, Titans 10
January 11, 2020:
Titans 28, Ravens 12
January 10, 2021 :
Ravens 20, Titans 13
Current win streakRavens, 1-0 (2021–present)
Championship success
Super Bowl Championships (2)

Conference Championships (5)

Division Championships (16)

History

The rivalry between the Ravens and the then-Houston Oilers began with the 1996 season when the Baltimore Ravens were founded. The Ravens are officially considered an expansion team that was placed in the AFC Central division, which included the Oilers, along with their existing rival teams in Cleveland (deactivated from 1996 to 1998 as a result of the original team moving to Baltimore to form the Ravens), Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh, in addition to the recently-formed Jacksonville Jaguars. The Ravens were a replacement franchise for the Baltimore area about thirteen years after the area’s original franchise, the Colts, relocated to Indianapolis prior to the 1984 season.

The Oilers were originally a franchise in the American Football League from 1960 to 1969. They became an NFL franchise as part of the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. When the rivalry with the Ravens started, the Oilers were in their final year based in Houston; they would move to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1997 after a 36-year stint as a Houston-based franchise (although in their first season based in Tennessee, they played in Memphis), and to eventually become the Tennessee Titans in 1999.

As divisional rivals in the AFC Central division, the two teams had twelve regular-season meetings (plus one postseason meeting) in the years between the Ravens’ 1996 debut and the conference realignments of 2002. When the Houston Texans were established in 2002 for the NFL to become a 32-team league, the Central divisions of both the AFC and NFC were split into two northern and southern divisions. In the process, the Ravens, along with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cincinnati Bengals, and the Cleveland Browns were placed in the AFC North, while the Titans were placed in the AFC South along with the Texans, Jaguars, and, former AFC East member Colts.

After the formation of the NFL's northern and southern divisions, the Ravens–Titans rivalry is only renewed every three years; the last year where consecutive meetings regularly occurred was in the 2001 season.[2][3]

Throughout the history of the rivalry, the teams have met in the playoffs 5 times, with the Ravens leading 3–2. The road team has won every time.[4]

Notable moments

The two teams had their first official meeting at the Astrodome in 1996, during the Ravens' first year in Baltimore and the Oilers' final year in Houston. For a three-year period between 1999 and 2001, the Ravens and the now-Titans escalated their rivalry to new heights, with numerous dirty hits and punches exchanged between players.[3] The two teams met in the playoffs for the first time on January 7, 2001. Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis intercepted a pass bobbled by Titans running back Eddie George for a fourth quarter touchdown, sealing a 24–10 Baltimore win that helped the Ravens advance to winning their first Super Bowl in franchise history.[4]

The Titans would exact revenge three years later during the 2003 NFL playoffs. While both Titans quarterback Steve McNair and Ravens quarterback Anthony Wright combined for five total interceptions, McNair led his team down the field to set-up their game-winning field goal. This 20–17 win also snapped a five-game losing streak to the Ravens.[4]

In 2006, the Titans traded Steve McNair to the Ravens after the former locked him out of their facility during a contract dispute.[5][6]

In 2008, the Ravens defeated the top-seeded Titans with a 13–10 victory in the divisional round after the Titans committed four costly turnovers, two by quarterback Kerry Collins. The Ravens won behind rookie quarterback Joe Flacco and former Titans Samari Rolle and Derrick Mason.[4]

During the 2019 AFC Playoffs, the 6th-seeded Titans finally avenged their prior playoff losses to the Ravens as the AFC's 1st seed, upsetting the top-seeded Ravens 28–12 in the divisional round behind strong performances from running back Derrick Henry, quarterback Ryan Tannehill, and the defense, which largely shut down the eventual NFL MVP Lamar Jackson.[7][8]

In 2020, Derrick Henry sealed a Titans win over the Ravens in overtime with a game-winning 29-yard touchdown run in a back-and-forth game. Prior to the game, a confrontation ensued after Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler and his teammates taunted the Ravens by yelling at their sideline from midfield.[9]

On January 10, 2021, the Ravens beat the Titans in Nissan Stadium in the AFC Wild Card 20–13, ending a 2-game losing streak to the Titans, and continuing the trend of the road playoff team winning in this rivalry.[10] After a game-sealing interception by cornerback Marcus Peters, the Ravens danced on the Titans logo at midfield, in retaliation for the Titans' dancing on their logo earlier in the season.

Game results
Baltimore Ravens vs. Houston/ Tennessee Oilers/ Titans Season-by-Season Results
1990s (Titans, 5–3)
2000s (Ravens, 7–4)
2010s (Titans, 3–2)
2020s (Tie, 1–1)
Summary of Results

Notes
  1. M&T Bank Stadium was known as “Ravens Stadium at Camden Yards from 1998 to 1999, then it was renamed PSINet Stadium from 1999 to 2002, and Ravens Stadium from 2002 to 2003.
  2. Nissan Stadium was originally named Adelphia Coliseum from 1999 to 2002, The Coliseum from 2002 to 2006, and LP Field from 2006 to 2015.

See also

References
  1. “Game History between Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens”. ClarksvilleOnline.com. January 9, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  2. Calderon, Shaun (January 8, 2020). “Tennessee Titans vs. Baltimore Ravens: A rivalry renewed”. Fansided. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  3. Hensley, Jamison (October 12, 2018). A punch to the guy: Why Ravens-Titans feud was once NFL’s best rivalry. ESPN. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
  4. Gray, Nick (2020-01-10). "Titans-Ravens playoff history filled with road upsets, one-and-done No. 1 seeds". The Tennessean. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  5. "McNair visits Titans, doesn't have animosity over parting – National Football League". ESPN. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  6. Walker, Teresa M. McNair introduced as Ravens' new starting QB. USA Today, June 8, 2006. Retrieved July 4, 2009.
  7. Schad, Tom (2020-01-11). "Titans stun top-seeded Ravens, seal spot in AFC Championship Game". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  8. Maske, Mark (January 12, 2020). "Underdog Titans stun top-seeded Ravens, 28-12, advance to AFC title game". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  9. Pennington, Bill (2020-11-22). "The Ravens Looked to Bounce Back. Then Derrick Henry Showed Up". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020-12-21.
  10. Gillis, Andrew (2021-01-10). "Ravens get revenge, stomp on Titans' logo in Wild Card win". RSN. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
  11. Wilner, Barry (January 11, 2009). “Tennessee turnovers set up Stover’s game-winning field goal”. Bowling Green Daily News (via Associated Press), January 11, 2009, pages 1B and 10B.
  12. Baumgardner, Nick (January 11, 2009). “Questions will haunt gaffe-prone Tennessee”. Bowling Green Daily News, January 11, 2009, pages 1B and 10B.
  13. Walker, Teresa M. (September 19, 2011). “Tennessee forces three turnovers in win over Baltimore”. Bowling Green Daily News (via Associated Press), September 19, 2011, pages 3B and 5B.
  14. Compton, Michael (September 19, 2011). “Britt delivers after Ravens contain Johnson”. Bowling Green Daily News, September 19, 2011, pages 3B and 5B.
  15. Walker, Teresa M. (September 20, 2011). “Titans’ offense held the ball for almost 36 minutes against Ravens”. Bowling Green Daily News (via Associated Press), September 20, 2011, pages 3B and 5B.
  16. Orr, Conor (November 9, 2014). "Ravens help sort out AFC North with win over Titans". NFL.com. NFL Enterprises. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
  17. Compton, Michael (November 6, 2017). “Former WKU standout relishing return with Ravens”. Bowling Green Daily News, November 6, 2017, pages 1B and 3B.
  18. Walker, Teresa M. (November 6, 2017). “Byard boosts Titans to win”. Bowling Green Daily News] (via Associated Press), November 6, 2017, pages 1B and 3B.
  19. Compton, Michael (October 15, 2018). “Jackson continues to learn in Baltimore”. Bowling Green Daily News. October 15, 2018, pages 1C and 5C.
  20. Walker, Teresa M. (October 15, 2018). “Ravens plie up team-record 11 sacks, shut out Titans 21-0”. Bowling Green Daily News (via Associated Press), October 15, 2018, pages 1B and 5B.
  21. Wilner, Barry (January 12, 2020). “Tennessee reaches AFC title game with 28-12 victory”. Bowling Green Daily News (via Associated Press), January 12, 2020, pages 1B and 5B.
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