NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans, owners of a 2-0 record for the first time since 2008, travel this week to Minnesota to make their first appearance at U.S. Bank Stadium. Kickoff against the Vikings (0-2) is scheduled for noon CDT on Sunday, Sept. 27.
This week marks the Titans' third consecutive game to start the season without fans in the stands. The Vikings announced in August that they would host at least their first two home games of 2020 without fans due to COVID-19 restrictions.
The Titans are scheduled to play in front of fans for all three of their October games—all home games—after announcing last week that Nissan Stadium will open at limited capacity beginning Oct. 4 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. They plan to gradually increase attendance for games against the Buffalo Bills (Oct. 11) and Houston Texans (Oct. 18) with the goal of reaching a fixed capacity for the remaining games in November and December.
Due to the three-game October homestand and a Week 7 bye, this week is the last road trip for the Titans until a Nov. 1 clash with the Cincinnati Bengals.
THE BROADCAST
This week's game will be regionally televised on CBS, including Nashville affiliate WTVF NewsChannel 5. The broadcast team includes play-by-play announcer Andrew Catalon, analyst James Lofton and reporter AJ Ross.
Fans can livestream the game on their mobile devices from the Titans Mobile App (iOS and Android) and on TennesseeTitans.com mobile web. Restrictions apply. For more information visit TennesseeTitans.com or
NFL.com/ways-to-watch.
The Titans Radio Network, including Nashville flagship 104.5 The Zone, will carry the game across the Mid-South with the "Voice of the Titans" Mike Keith, analyst Dave McGinnis, sideline reporter Amie Wells, and gameday hosts Rhett Bryan and Jonathan Hutton.
TITANS WIN ANOTHER CLOSE CONTEST
The Titans won their first two games of 2020 by five total points. In their home opener last week, they topped the Jacksonville Jaguars by a final score of 33-30.
A week after Stephen Gostkowski's 25-yard field goal helped beat the Broncos 16-14, he was called upon to hit another game-winner, this time from 49 yards in the waning moments of the fourth quarter against the Jaguars. He sent it through the uprights with 1 minute and 36 seconds on the clock, and on the subsequent possession for the Jaguars offense, quarterback Gardner Minshew II was intercepted by outside linebacker Harold Landry III to seal the win.
Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill enjoyed one of the most efficient games of his nine-year career, completing 18 of 24 passes for 239 yards, four touchdowns and a 145.7 passer rating. It was his second-highest single-game passer rating (min. 20 attempts) and the seventh-best passer rating in Titans/Oilers history.
Two of Tannehill's touchdown passes went to tight end Jonnu Smith, who also established a career high with 84 receiving yards. With three touchdown catches through two weeks, Smith is tied with the L.A. Rams' Tyler Higbee for the most in the NFL among tight ends.
THE VIKINGS
The Vikings are looking for their first win of 2020 after dropping their season opener to the Green Bay Packers 43-34 and falling to the Colts in Week 2 by a final score of 28-11.
Mike Zimmer is in his seventh season as Vikings head coach and his 27th season in the NFL. He led Minnesota to a wild card playoff berth in 2019, defeating the New Orleans Saints in the first round before losing to the eventual NFC champion San Francisco 49ers in the divisional round.
Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins is in his ninth NFL campaign and his third year with the Vikings. In 2019, he earned his second career Pro Bowl berth after finishing the season with 3,603 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, six interceptions and a career-high 107.4 passer rating, which ranked fourth in the NFL.
