NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans (0-0) host the New York Jets (0-0) this week to open the 2026 regular season. Kickoff at Nissan Stadium (capacity 69,143) is scheduled for noon CDT on Sunday, Sept. 13.
The Titans and Jets, two of the eight original American Football League franchises, renew their rivalry for the 48th time. While the Titans lead the series 25-21-1, including a postseason win in 1991, the Jets have claimed four of the past five battles. This Sunday marks the fourth all-time season opener between the two clubs and the first since a Jets victory in Week 1 of 2006.
As a franchise, The Titans own a 32-34 all-time record in season openers. This is the final such occasion in the current Nissan Stadium, where the team has gone 5-7 in Week 1 games since the venue opened in 1999. The new Nissan Stadium is being constructed next door and is set to open in 2027.
THE BROADCAST
This week's contest will be regionally televised on CBS, including Nashville affiliate WTVF NewsChannel 5, as well as on Paramount+ in the Nashville market. The broadcast team includes play-by-play announcer Spero Dedes, analyst Adam Archuleta and reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala.
Fans in Nashville can stream live Titans games on mobile devices with NFL+, which offers access to local games and all primetime games on phones and tablets. Out of market, fans can watch every Sunday afternoon game with Sunday Ticket. More information on ways to watch NFL games can be found at nfl.com/ways-to-watch.
The Titans Radio Network and Nashville flagship 104.5 The Zone carry all Titans games across the Mid-South with play-by-play announcer Taylor Zarzour, analyst Ramon Foster, executive producer Rhett Bryan, gameday host Will Boling, and rotating sideline reporters Kevin Dyson, Brad Hopkins, Ben Jones, Marc Mariani and Delanie Walker.
SALEH ERA BEGINS
Sunday marks the first regular season game of Robert Saleh's tenure as the 22nd head coach in Titans/Oilers history, and the matchup pits his new team against his former one. He served as the head coach of the Jets from 2021 to 2024. In 2025, he was the defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers, the same post he held prior to his time with the Jets.
Two of the three Titans coordinators are also set for their team debuts. Saleh brought in longtime confidant and former Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley as defensive coordinator, while also hiring former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll as offensive coordinator. John Fassel, who joined the organization in 2025, remains as special teams coordinator and has added the title of assistant head coach under Saleh.
The roster includes a number of players entering their first season in Titans blue after being acquired by second-year general manager Mike Borgonzi. The list of veterans acquired includes wide receiver Wan'Dale Robinson, tight end Daniel Bellinger and center Austin Schlottmann, all formerly with the Giants; defensive linemen Jermaine Johnson (Jets), John Franklin-Myers(Broncos) and Jacob Martin (Commanders); cornerbacks Alontae Taylor (Saints) and Cor'Dale Flott(Giants); and punter Tommy Townsend (Texans).
Seven of this year's eight-member Titans draft class, including a pair of first-round selections, reside on the 53-man roster, with the lone exception (tight end Jaren Kanak) landing on injured reserve. With the fourth-overall pick, they chose former Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate. Near the end of the draft's first day, Borgonzi traded back into the first round to take former Auburn defensive end Keldric Faulk at pick No. 31.
Quarterback Cam Ward is set to begin his second NFL season. As a rookie in 2025, the No. 1 overall pick started all 17 games, and his 3,169 passing yards eclipsed Marcus Mariota's previous franchise rookie record (2,818 passing yards in 2015). With 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions on 323-of-540 passing, Ward's 1.3 percent interception rate was the best single-season mark in franchise history by all qualifying quarterbacks, breaking Ryan Tannehill's franchise mark of 1.5 percent in 2020. Over the final nine games of the season, Ward threw only one interception with 10 touchdown passes.
THE JETS
Aaron Glenn begins his second year as the head coach of the Jets after previously spending four seasons as the defensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions. The former NFL defensive back oversaw one of the youngest rosters in the NFL in 2025, when the team had a league-high 10,123 snaps by first- and second-year players.
Quarterback Geno Smith is back in New York, where he entered the NFL as a second-round pick with the Jets in 2013. His timeline later involved stops with the Giants, Los Angeles Chargers, Seattle Seahawks and Las Vegas Raiders. He has started 98 career games, most recently logging 15 starts for the Raiders in 2025.
The Jets went 3-14 during the 2025 regular season. They were 1-2 during the 2026 preseason.
CJ2K TO ENTER RING OF HONOR
During halftime of the Titans-Jets game, former running back Chris Johnson will be inducted into the Titans Ring of Honor. He will become the 20th member of the Ring of Honor and the first player inducted who joined the franchise after its move to Tennessee.
Johnson, selected by the Titans in the first round (24th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft, enjoyed six seasons in Tennessee (2008-2013) and earned three Pro Bowl selections. He finished his Titans career with 7,965 rushing yards—currently fourth in franchise history—and reached the 1,000-yard rushing mark in six consecutive seasons. During those six seasons, the only NFL player with more rushing yards than Johnson was Adrian Peterson (8,774). Johnson's 58 total career touchdowns also rank fourth in franchise annals.
In 2009, he rushed for 2,006 yards, becoming the sixth all-time NFL player to eclipse the 2,000-yard mark and popularizing his nickname of CJ2K. With an additional 503 receiving yards, he established what remains the single-season NFL record of 2,509 scrimmage yards. At the conclusion of the 2009 campaign, he was named Associated Press NFL Offensive Player of the Year.
"Chris Johnson holds a special place in the hearts of our organization and our fans," Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said in July upon announcing the honor for Johnson. "His stats speak for themselves, and he will forever remain a leader in our record books, but the man behind the yardage deserves just as much celebration. We look forward to welcoming him home on Sept. 13 and officially inducting him into the Titans Ring of Honor."
Johnson signed with the Jets as a free agent in 2014. He played 16 games in New York, rushing for 663 yards. He finished his career with three seasons as a member of the Arizona Cardinals (2015-17).
This past June, Johnson revealed his battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Since then, he has built awareness and spearheaded fundraising efforts for ALS research, perhaps most visibly by re-launching the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Monetary donations to the fight against ALS can be made at TennesseeTitans.com/CJ2k.
Later this season, former radio analyst and assistant coach Dave McGinnis will be inducted posthumously as the 21st member of the Ring of Honor.
