Interesting that we should travel from Buffalo to Nashville this week on our third NFL Thursday miniseries. Starting as the Houston Oilers in 1960, the franchise relocated to Tennessee in 1997—becoming the Tennessee Oilers (1997-1998). Then, the organization changed its name to the Titans in 1999, and that’s still where we are today. In 64 seasons, the team has made the postseason a lot without winning a Super Bowl.

Editor Note: the Oilers did win two AFL championships (1960, 1961) in the 1960s, and those do count for something. Overall, the franchise has a .490 winning percentage, with 25 postseason appearances.

No. 5: 1962 Houston Oilers

This squad was the two-time defending AFL champion, and the team posted an 11-3 record to win the East Division. The Oilers boasted the No. 2 offense and the No. 2 defense, resulting in the No. 2 SRS ranking overall. In the league title game, the Dallas Texans took a 17-0 halftime lead before Houston tied it up in the second half. But after having a field-goal blocked at the end of regulation, the Oilers lost in double overtime.

The top five players were all on defense: cornerback Tony Banfield (16 AV), defensive end Don Floyd (16), defensive tackle Ed Husmann (14), free safety Jim Norton (14), and linebacker Doug Cline (12). This showed in the title game, as Houston held the Texans to just 237 total yards in a 2OT game. That’s insane; if Oilers quarterback George Blanda had not thrown 5 interceptions, there would have been a three-peat.

No. 4: 2000 Tennessee Titans

In attempting to defend their AFC championship from the season before, these Titans posted a 13-3 record behind the No. 13 offense and the No. 2 defense to win the old AFC Central Division. Tennessee also finished No. 2 in the overall SRS rankings. But with six teams in the conference finishing with double-digit wins, the Titans drew division-rival Baltimore in the playoffs, and the Ravens dropped Tennessee by a 24-10 score.

The most-valuable Titans were defenders: CB Samari Rolle (22 AV), LB Randall Godfrey (20), and DE Jevon Kearse (16). Overall, 12 players reached double-digit value, though. The playoff game just didn’t go Tennessee’s way, as the Ravens broke open a 10-10 fourth-quarter tie by returning a blocked field goal 90 yards for a touchdown and then returning an interception 50 yards for another TD. Just a brutal way to lose.

No. 3: 1991 Houston Oilers

There were a lot of good teams in this era for the Oilers, but this is the one that tops out the sabermetrics: an 11-5 record to win the AFC Central, the No. 4 offense, the No. 6 defense, and the No. 4 SRS ranking. Houston won its opening playoff game, beating the New York Jets, 17-10, but then it was time to play the Denver Broncos and John Elway: the Oilers had a 21-6 lead in the second quarter but lost the game, 26-24, anyway.

This roster was topped by CB Cris Dishman (16 AV), QB Warren Moon (15), center Bruce Matthews (13), and guard Mike Munchak (12). Three of those guys are in the Hall of Fame now. Against the Jets, it was a defensive struggle with both teams committing multiple turnovers, but Houston found a way. However, in Denver, the quick start evaporated, although the Oilers gave up 10 points in the final quarter, painfully.

No. 2: 2008 Tennessee Titans

This is a surprising entry, even though the team posted a 13-3 record to win the AFC South Division. With the No. 14 offense and the No. 2 defense, the Titans finished No. 3 in the SRS rankings overall. Tennessee got off to a 10-0 start before cruising into the postseason, where once again the team got to face the Baltimore Ravens. Despite beating them on the road in the regular season, though, the Titans lost at home this time.

CB Cortland Finnegan (20) and DT Albert Haynesworth (17) were the dominant forces here; the roster was evenly valuable, in many ways, with only 8 players reaching double-digit value. The playoff loss was all about turnovers, though as Tennessee limited Baltimore to just 211 total yards. Yet despite gaining 391 themselves, the Titans coughed the ball up 3 times, and that was enough to lose late in the game, 13-10.

No. 1: 1961 Houston Oilers

A 10-3-1 record pushed these guys to the AFL East Division crown, and the Oilers had the No. 1 offense and the No. 2 defense—plus that No. 1 finish in the overall SRS rankings. In the league championship, Houston faced the San Diego Chargers, winning 10-3. Both teams gained exactly 256 yards, and the difference in the game really was fortune and timing. The two teams combined for 13 turnovers in a slopfest no one forgets.

Again, 12 players on this team reached double-digit value: Blanda (21), wide receiver Charley Hennigan (21), Banfield (17), halfback Billy Cannon (16), and tackle Al Jamison (16) were the best of the bunch. Blanda tossed 5 INTs in the title game, though, as we come across like a broken record in reporting it. He and Cannon did connect for the game’s only TD, though, and in the end, that’s all that matters to posterity.