1996 Houston Oilers season

1996 Houston Oilers season
Head coach	Jeff Fisher
Home field	Astrodome
Results
Record	8–8
Division place	4th AFC Central
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1996 Houston Oilers season was the 37th season overall and 27th with the National Football League (NFL) and their final season in Houston. The team bested their previous season's output of 7–9,^[1] but failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third consecutive season. The Oilers only won two out of their eight games at home. However, on the road they won six out of eight games as the Oilers finish with an 8-8 record. Houston fans would get a tease as Running Back Eddie George won the Offensive Rookie of the Year with 1,368 yards rushing.

Houston had already established itself as a lame duck franchise; the league had approved the team's relocation to Nashville, Tennessee, although it was not originally scheduled to take place until 1998.^[2] With the team having given up on Houston, the city responded in kind: fan support and attendance dropped to negligible levels for the 1996 season, the team's radio network was all but disbanded, and the local broadcasts were being cut off in favor of preseason NBA basketball.^[3] The Oilers, unwilling to continue in Houston after such a debacle, quickly moved to Memphis, Tennessee's Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in 1997, becoming the Tennessee Oilers (Memphis, too, would reject the "temporary" housing of the Oilers, forcing the team to move to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville until the new Nashville stadium was finished).

Offseason

NFL Draft

1996 Houston Oilers draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	14	Eddie George *	Running back	Ohio State
2	38	Bryant Mix	Defensive end	Alcorn State
2	48	Jason Layman	Offensive tackle	Tennessee
3	74	Terry Killens	Linebacker	Penn State
4	107	Kendrick Burton	Defensive end	Alabama
4	109	Jon Runyan *	Offensive tackle	Michigan
5	143	Rayna Stewart	Safety	Northern Arizona
6	177	Anthony Dorsett	Cornerback	Pittsburgh
7	218	Mike Archie	Running back	Penn State
Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[4]

Personnel

Staff

1996 Houston Oilers staff
	Front office Owner/Chairman of the Board/President – Bud Adams Executive Vice President/General Manager – Floyd Reese Head coaches Head Coach – Jeff Fisher Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Jerry Rhome Offensive Assistant/Passing Game – Dick Coury Running Backs – Sherman Smith Wide Receivers/Tight Ends – Les Steckel Offensive Line – Rennie Simmons Offensive Assistant/Quality Control – Mike Munchak			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Steve Sidwell Defensive Line – Rex Norris Linebackers – Gregg Williams Defensive Backs – Rod Perry Defensive Assistant/Quality Control – Alan Lowry Special teams coaches Special Teams – Russ Purnell Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Steve Watterson

Roster

1996 Houston Oilers roster
	Quarterbacks 12 Chris Chandler  9 Steve McNair Running backs 32 Mike Archie 27 Eddie George 33 Ronnie Harmon 20 Rodney Thomas Wide receivers 86 Willie Davis 83 Malcolm Floyd 85 Derek Russell 81 Chris Sanders 82 Sheddrick Wilson		Tight ends 88 Roderick Lewis 87 James McKeehan 80 Michael Roan HB 89 Frank Wycheck HB Offensive linemen 77 Kevin Donnalley G 72 Brad Hopkins T 75 Irv Eatman T 60 Hicham El-Mashtoub C 66 Jason Layman T 74 Bruce Matthews G 64 Erik Norgard G/C 69 Jon Runyan T 53 Mark Stepnoski C		Defensive linemen 94 Kendrick Burton DE 78 Anthony Cook DE 91 Josh Evans DT 92 Henry Ford DT 93 Mike Halapin DT 97 Bryant Mix DT 90 James Roberson DE 96 Gary Walker DT 99 Robert Young DE Linebackers 56 Micheal Barrow OLB 58 Joe Bowden OLB 51 Lemanski Hall OLB 57 Lenoy Jones OLB 50 Terry Killens OLB 55 John Henry Mills OLB 54 Al Smith MLB 52 Barron Wortham MLB		Defensive backs 22 Tomur Barnes CB 23 Blaine Bishop SS 39 Lee Cole CB 28 Cris Dishman CB 30 Anthony Dorsett CB 24 Steve Jackson CB 29 Darryll Lewis CB 31 Marcus Robertson FS 37 Rafael Robinson SS 26 Rayna Stewart FS Special teams  3 Al Del Greco K 21 Mel Gray RS  7 Reggie Roby P Rookies in italics

^[5]

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 1, 1996	Kansas City Chiefs	L 20–19	27,725
2	September 8, 1996	at Jacksonville Jaguars	W 34–27	66,468
3	September 15, 1996	Baltimore Ravens	W 29–13	20,082
4	Bye
5	September 29, 1996	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 30–16	58,608
6	October 6, 1996	at Cincinnati Bengals	W 30–27	44,680
7	October 13, 1996	at Atlanta Falcons	W 23–13	35,401
8	October 20, 1996	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 23–13	50,337
9	October 27, 1996	San Francisco 49ers	L 10–9	53,664
10	November 3, 1996	at Seattle Seahawks	L 23–16	36,320
11	November 10, 1996	at New Orleans Saints	W 31–14	34,121
12	November 17, 1996	Miami Dolphins	L 23–20	47,358
13	November 24, 1996	Carolina Panthers	L 31–6	20,107
14	December 1, 1996	at New York Jets	W 35–10	21,731
15	December 8, 1996	Jacksonville Jaguars	L 23–17	20,196
16	December 15, 1996	Cincinnati Bengals	L 21–13	15,131
17	December 22, 1996	at Baltimore Ravens	W 24–21	52,704

Standings

AFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
^(3) Pittsburgh Steelers	10	6	0	.625	344	257	L2
^(5) Jacksonville Jaguars	9	7	0	.563	325	335	W5
Cincinnati Bengals	8	8	0	.500	372	369	W3
Houston Oilers	8	8	0	.500	345	319	W1
Baltimore Ravens	4	12	0	.250	371	441	L3

References

1. 1996 Houston Oilers
2. PRO FOOTBALL;N.F.L. Owners Approve Move To Nashville By the Oilers. The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2012.
3. Oilers hope to prove lame ducks can soar. The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2012.
4. "1996 Houston Oilers draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
5. "1996 Houston Oilers starters, roster, and players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 28, 2014.

External links

• 1996 Houston Oilers at Pro-Football-Reference.com