2015 Tennessee Titans Schedule: Full Listing of Dates, Times and TV Info

Following an aggressive offseason plan that brought talent to a depleted roster, the Tennessee Titans are hoping the 2015 season produces positive results on the field. The good news is it would be hard to do worse than the 2-14 mark from last year. 

Ken Whisenhunt is entering his second season as head coach of the Titans and is starting to shape the roster in his image. The offense added Harry Douglas as a slot receiver and Anthony Fasano as a second tight end behind Delanie Walker. 

This rebuilding process is far from finished for the Titans, who still need to decide what their long-term future at quarterback is going to look like. Zach Mettenberger flashed some good moments in his rookie season, but having the second overall pick in a draft with two quarterbacks can change plans. 

Tennessee had been stuck in neutral for a couple of years, winning six games in 2012 and seven in 2013, so the bottom falling out last season did provide a direction for the franchise. The front office and coaching staff know with absolute certainty that they need to make drastic changes. 

Mettenberger figures to be the key for whatever happens to the Titans. If Whisenhunt believes in the 23-year-old, Tennessee can go all-in to surround him with better talent through the draft and in free agency. 

One thing that Mettenberger doesn't lack, even in this time of uncertainty for his future, is confidence. He said beating out a potential draftee like Jameis Winston or Marcus Mariota wouldn't be a big deal, per ESPN's Paul Kuharsky: 

“They are obviously very talented guys,” Mettenberger said. “ … If they were here I think they would say the same thing: If we had to compete out there, I think I’d beat them out.”

That's the kind of attitude every team wants from a quarterback. The Titans don't play in a deep division, as the Indianapolis Colts are the only safe bet to finish over .500 in 2015, so things could be set up for a nice bounce-back year. 

Let's see what the Titans will face in 2015 and analyze the key matchups. 

Week	Date	Opponent	Time (ET)	TV
1	9/13	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	4:25 p.m.	CBS
2	9/20	at Cleveland Browns	1 p.m.	CBS
3	9/27	vs. Indianapolis Colts	1 p.m.	CBS
4	BYE	BYE	BYE	BYE
5	10/11	vs. Buffalo Bills	1 p.m.	CBS
6	10/18	vs. Miami Dolphins	1 p.m.	CBS
7	10/25	vs. Atlanta Falcons	1 p.m.	Fox
8	11/1	at Houston Texans	1 p.m.	CBS
9	11/8	at New Orleans Saints	1 p.m.	CBS
10	11/15	vs. Carolina Panthers	1 p.m.	Fox
11	11/19	at Jacksonville Jaguars	8:25 p.m.	NFL Network
12	11/29	vs. Oakland Raiders	1 p.m.	CBS
13	12/6	vs. Jacksonville Jaguars	1 p.m.	CBS
14	12/13	at New York Jets	1 p.m.	CBS
15	12/20	at New England Patriots	1 p.m.	CBS
16	12/27	vs. Houston Texans	1 p.m.	CBS
17	1/3	at Indianapolis Colts	1 p.m.	CBS

Analysis

Sanford Myers/Associated Press

Even though young quarterbacks can cause a lot of headaches, as the Titans know so well from their time with Jake Locker, they do present an optimism that no other player at any position is capable of. 

Whether Mettenberger remains the starter in 2015 or the team drafts someone with the No. 2 pick as its franchise quarterback, it's going to be fun for Titans fans to see. A solid player at that position can change everything for a team. 

When you have been a bad or mediocre franchise as long as the Titans have, optimism becomes the one saving grace. 

Mettenberger certainly has his supporters, such as former NFL linebacker Takeo Spikes (h/t ProFootballTalk on NBC Sports):

Based on the opponents' records from last season, per CBSSports.com's John Breech, the Titans have the seventh-easiest strength of schedule. Yet that's a bit deceiving because playing the NFC South is going to skew things in a favorable direction, as does playing the Jacksonville Jaguars twice. 

The schedule-makers did balance things out for the Titans by giving them the AFC East as well. That means they will be going against the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, arguably the best defensive team in Buffalo, and the revamped Miami Dolphins defense with Ndamukong Suh. 

Combine that shortlist with four division games against Houston and Indianapolis, and suddenly the Titans are looking at a rough road to improve on their two-win campaign from 2014. Things are set up for the team to get at least one or two more wins, but it won't be an easy task given where this roster is at.

Even the Jaguars are getting better with a young quarterback in Blake Bortles and a solid defensive nucleus that will improve. They also acquired a legitimate red-zone threat in Julius Thomas from the Denver Broncos as long as he can stay healthy. 

Pivotal Matchups

Rob Foldy/Getty Images

Just looking at how things broke for Tennessee last year, its biggest games are against Jacksonville. That was one of the two teams the Titans beat in 2014, after the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1. The Titans beat the Jaguars on their home field in Week 6; then the Jaguars returned the favor in Week 16. 

One silver lining is the AFC South isn't a division that's going to catch your attention for dominance. NFL.com ranked it eighth out of eight divisions in the league, noting "Andrew Luck is the only proven quarterback in the division."

The Texans are the default No. 2 team in the AFC South because they have the best player (J.J. Watt), but no one knows what this franchise is going to do with Brian Hoyer and Ryan Mallett fighting for the starting quarterback position. 

For all their other problems, the Jaguars have the second most stable quarterback situation in the division because Blake Bortles is a developing starter in his second season. The team got him a nice new weapon to play with, going alongside some solid young receivers such as Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee. 

Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

If you are looking for a game to focus on in 2015 just because of storyline possibilities, keep an eye on Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers and Titans pick first and second in the draft this year, which could lead to a potential Jameis Winston-Marcus Mariota battle if things work out that way in either order. 

Even if the two quarterbacks don't match up, it will still be fun to get the top two draft picks playing against each other on the same field. 

There's also a game against Oakland that could be winnable, though the Raiders are heading in the right direction for the first time in years. Derek Carr looks like a solid starting quarterback, Khalil Mack is a star at linebacker already and they have the fourth overall pick to add another impact player. 

After that, fans aren't going to find a lot of winnable games right now. Maybe the Titans get lucky in a game against the Colts, who haven't lost a division game since 2012. This is still a franchise building itself into something, though no one can see exactly what it's going to be since the foundation isn't set. 

It's going to be another struggle for the Titans in 2015, but as long as they can find core pieces to build around then there's no way to call them a failure.