The View From The Voice: 7-7 Sounds Good
By Mike Keith December 23, 2001

The plane rolled to a stop at Nashville International Airport at 5:35am on Sunday morning. The four hour flight from Oakland had been uneventful, especially for me---I slept almost all of the way. But as the Tennessee Titans deplaned on the morning of December 23, life was different. The .500 mark had been attained for the first time all season. Tennessee stands 7-7.

Man, it has been an incredible hill to climb for this team. Saturday night was the Titans' sixth shot at reaching the .500 plateau. I guess the sixth time is the charm.

Chance #1: After a loss to Miami in the season opener, the Titans fell at Jacksonville to go to 0-2.

Chance #2: After dropping to 0-3, Tennessee rallied to 2-3 with wins over Tampa Bay and Detroit. But .500 hopes were quickly bashed by Pittsburgh, 34-7.

Chance #3: After climbing back to 3-4 with a win over Jacksonville, Tennessee had put the winning points on the board against Baltimore on the game's final play, only to have them removed by the officials. The Ravens took a controversial 16-10 decision over the Titans.

Chance #4: Tennessee moved back to 4-5 with a win at Cincinnati. The Titans attempted to reach 5-5 against Pittsburgh, but came up short, 34-24.

Chance #5: The Titans got to 5-6, scoring a convincing 31-15 victory at Cleveland. But the next week, Tennessee dropped a 42-24 contest at Minnesota.

Frankly, for all intents and purposes, that seemed to end it, even to the most optimistic fans. At 5-7, the playoffs were all but lost and with Green Bay and a trip to Oakland on the horizon, the .500 mark seemed lost too.

Funny with the NFL that when you think that you know something, you don't. That's the real beauty of the league. On December 16, Tennessee stunned 9-3 Green Bay, 26-20 in a game that really wasn't as close as the score indicated. Then on December 22, the 6-7 Titans pulled the real shocker, dropping AFC West Champion Oakland in Oakland, 13-10 in front of a national TV audience.

And just like that, out of the blue on their sixth try, the Tennessee Titans had reached .500. A 7-7 record never sounded so good. The playoffs are still a long, long shot, but at .500 now, it doesn't seem absurd to discuss the possibilities. It doesn't seem crazy to dream. By beating Green Bay and Oakland in succession, Tennessee has earned the right to dream just a little.

The Titans' last two home games are with Cleveland and Cincinnati. Tennessee should be favored in both contests. Although it has been awhile since either team has beaten the Titans, both normally play Tennessee very tough. It will be interesting to see how the Titans respond since they have finally reached the .500 hill.

Do they have the juice to race to a 9-7 finish? How will the Titans handle their first prosperity of the season? After all of the early-season mistakes, all of the injuries and all of the bad luck, Jeff Fisher held the team together and kept them focused. At 4-6 or 5-7, most teams would have quit, especially teams that entered the season with high expectations. Tennessee didn't. They kept playing and fighting and today, they stand dead even for the first time all year.

There are no trophies for that. But by improving and proving that they have heart in a difficult season, who knows what could be in Tennessee's future down the line? Fisher knows. With a healthy team in 2002, he can make another run. That's why the confidence and enthusiasm obtained from this late run is so important. That's why he didn't let Tennessee give up after the Minnesota loss two weeks ago.