Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans Top 5 Quarterbacks of All Time

(last updated on February 1, 2026)

Houston Oilers, Houston Oilers, Houston Oilers, number one! That was one of the all-time fight songs in NFL history. Many younger fans don’t know that catchy refrain, but if you’re familiar with the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans, you know it well. The Houston Oilers started as an AFL team in 1960 and won league titles in both ‘60 and ‘61. They eventually merged into the NFL. Their home was the infamous Astrodome … also known as …. the House of Pain. In 1997, the franchise moved to Nashville and was rebranded as the Tennessee Titans. Bruising backs Earl Campbell and Eddie George may be the most prominent names in this team’s history, but they needed some decent gunslingers in H-Town to get the team those AFL championships and 20 visits to the NFL playoffs. Houston, we have some quarterbacks. Let’s launch the list of the top quarterbacks of all time for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans.

His last couple of seasons may have been bumpy, but Ryan Tannehill’s first few seasons in Nashville put him with the top quarterbacks of all time for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans. From 2019 to 2021, this converted wide receiver had a 30-13 record as the Titans starting QB. That includes three successive postseason trips with one ending in the AFC Championship Game. In 2019, Tannehill was the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year when he posted a 70.3 completion %, 22 touchdowns to only 6 INTs, a league-leading 9.6 Y/A, and a league-leading 117.5 passer rating. He led the Titans to road playoff wins at New England and Baltimore before bowing out at KC in the AFC Championship Game; he did that with 5 TDs, 1 pick, and a 98.5 passer rating. Statistically, 2020 was probably Ryan’s premier year with 3,819 passing yards, 33 TD strikes with only 7 INTs, a 106.5 passer rating, and an NFL-best 6 game-winning drives. The following year the Titans were the AFC’s top seed bolstered by this slender slinger’s 67.2 completion %, 3,734 yards passing, and 21 touchdowns. Perhaps forgotten, his elusive and athletic nature got him 21 rushing scores in his Tennessee career. This native Texan is the all-time franchise leader in completion % (66.6) and passer rating (97.8). When you factor that with Ryan Tannehill’s impressive 39-24 record, he definitely earned his spot with the best Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans quarterbacks ever.

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Luv Ya Blue was a common battle cry in Houston during the late 1970s. Dan Pastorini, one of the best quarterbacks in Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans history, was a huge part of the Luv Ya Blue era. Dan Pastorini’s stats are not going to blow you away, but he did get the Houston Oilers to consecutive AFC Championship Games in 1978 and 1979, and that is no small feat. The third overall pick of the 1971 NFL Draft had a rough start to his time in the Lone Star State as Houston failed to reach the playoffs his first seven seasons. Then in 1978 and 1979, bolstered by a mighty running game and Earl Campbell, Pastorini wasn’t asked to launch the ball all over the field. He managed the game and led the team to 10-6 and 11-5 records. In the ‘78 playoffs, he had two of his most impressive outings in road wins at Miami and New England. At Miami, Pastorini had 306 yards passing, 1 TD, and a 115 passer rating in a 17-9 victory. The following week he had a stellar completion % (80), 3 TDs, and a 130.6 passer rating for a 31-14 beatdown of the Pats. Unfortunately, both of those seasons ended in losses at Pittsburgh for the AFC title. In his nine years as an Oiler, Pastorini threw for 16,864 yards and 96 touchdowns (both fourth in all-time franchise ranks). Dan Pastorini helped make the Houston Oilers a relevant NFL franchise, and that gets him on the list of the top Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans quarterbacks. 

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Hall of Famer George Blanda has the hard-to-believe distinction of having played in an NFL game at age 48, and he also has the distinction of being an all-time quarterback for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans. For seven years in the 1960s, Blanda was the QB and kicker for the Houston Oilers. He led the team to AFL titles in ‘60 and ‘61. In the 1960 AFL Championship Game vs. the LA Chargers, George threw for 301 yards, 3 TDs, and had a 117.8 passer rating in a 24-16 win. The following year the Oilers repeated as he was named AFL Player of the Year and led the league in virtually every passing stat: 3,330 yards, 36 touchdowns, a 9.9 TD %, 9.2 Y/A, and a 91.3 passer rating. This former Kentucky Wildcat’s best day as an Oiler may have been his 5-touchdown, 0-pick, and 304-yard performance for a victory in a 1965 game against KC. Blanda’s 165 passing TDs are second in franchise history, and his 19,149 passing yards are third. George Blanda only spent a portion of his storied 26-year career in Houston, but it was productive enough to call him one of the best quarterbacks of all time for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans.

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This franchise took a chance in 1995 when they selected a Division 1-AA quarterback out of Alcorn State with the third overall pick in the NFL Draft, but that pick ended up becoming one of the top quarterbacks in Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans history. Steve McNair played in both Houston and Tennessee for the team, and he became the winningest QB ever for them with a 76-55 record. McNair got the Titans to at least the Divisional Round of the playoffs four times between 1999 and 2003, including an excruciating Super Bowl loss. Five times #9 threw for at least 3,100+ yards as an Oiler/Titan, and he surpassed 20+ TDs three times. He was the 2003 NFL MVP when the Titans were 12-4, and he threw for 3,215 yards, 24 touchdowns, and had a league-leading 100.4 passer rating. Although Steve was built like a linebacker, he was agile and could tote the rock. Go look up some of his scrambles/runs on Youtube if you don’t know. Air McNair ran for 3,439 yards, 36 scores, and 259 first downs for the franchise. Of course, he most notably led the Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV against the St. Louis Rams. McNair’s 4th-quarter theatrics ultimately fell one yard short in a 23-16 loss. With 27,141 passing yards and 156 passing touchdowns, this Mississippi native ranks second and third in team annals. Picking Steve McNair so high in the draft paid off as he became one of the best quarterbacks of all time for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans.

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For 10 years, Warren Moon led the run-and-shoot offense in the Astrodome and became the team’s all-time leader in completions (2,632), passing yards (33,685), and passing touchdowns (196). Not only did this man put stellar numbers, but he also helped disprove the unfair stereotype about African-American quarterbacks. Six times Warren passed for at least 3,300 yards for the Oilers. In 1990 and 1991, he led the NFL in that category (4,689 and 4,690); in 1990 he also paced the league with 33 TD tosses and 362 completions. Number 1 helped surge Houston to the postseason seven consecutive times with that prolific offense. Even though he had some solid playoff performances, the Oilers never advanced farther than the Divisional Round. After leaving Houston in 1994, Moon continued his stat-stuffing ways that led him to Canton. To this day, he is 13th all time in passing yards (49,325) and 17th in passing TDs (291). Did I mention he also won five titles in the Canadian Football League before ever throwing an NFL pass? There is no doubt Warren Moon is a Hall of Famer, and there is no doubt he is on the VERY short list of greatest quarterbacks ever for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 29th, 2025 at 12:27 pm and is filed under Top Lists. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.