Houston, We have a Competition: Rebirth of the Houston Oilers (Madden NFL 20)

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Game: Madden NFL 20
System: XBOX One
Roster: 2019
Difficulty: All-Pro
Sliders: Default

After an embarrassing showing of fan support in Los Angeles, the Spanos family sold the Chargers franchise to billionaire Ray Brown, who immediately moved the team into his own newly built stadium in Houston. With the Texans already owning the market and playing in a state-of-the-art stadium, the NFL voted against the move but destained to bring back the historic Oilers franchise, Brown went against the wishes of the league and the Texans and set up shop anyways. With the move officially finalized, the battle for supremacy over Houston begins! The two teams will compete for fans, revenue, and of course Lombardi Trophies.

Can the Oilers regain the heart of H-Town or will the Texans continue their two-decade strong-hold of the market?

Rivalry Games:

Houston Texans (0-0)
Tennessee Titans (0-0)
Pittsburgh Steelers (0-0)

Championship History:

League Championships (2)
AFL: 1960, 1961

Conference Championships (0)

Division Championships (6)
AFL East: 1960, 1961, 1962, 1967
AFC Central: 1991, 1993

Playoff Appearances (15)
AFL: 1960, 1961, 1962, 1967, 1969
NFL: 1978, 1979, 1980, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993

Retired Jerseys:

1 Warren Moon
9 Steve McNair
27 Eddie George
34 Earl Campbell
43 Jim Norton
63 Mike Munchak
65 Elvin Bethea
74 Bruce Matthews

Gameday History:

2021 Season

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OIL RIG STADIUM COMPLETE & READY FOR 2021 SEASON

HOUSTON, TX - Houston will not only be getting a second NFL franchise with the return of the Oilers, but there will also be second state-of-the-art venue following the completion of Oil Rig Stadium, who team owner and GM Ray Brown named after the company that earned him his fortune.

"I'm very excited and humbled to begin a new chapter in Oilers' history with the opening of what will be the top stadium in the league," Brown said during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. "My vision was to give the fans a new and improved version of the historic Astrodome, and this project exceeded my expectation. I can't wait for the season to kick off!"

After purchasing the Los Angeles Chargers, Brown saw himself in an uphill battle trying to move the team to Houston, revive the Oilers brand, and build his own personal stadium in a market that already has a Super Bowl quality venue.

"The league and the city of Houston wanted us to rent out Reliant Stadium, but that was not an option for me," Brown told local reporters during the media scrum. "I can't have the Texans making money off Oiler games, I wouldn't be able to look myself in the mirror and it would be a disgrace to the longtime Oiler fans who are used to having their own home. So I put up my own money and build this palace on my own land."



Fans will get their first look at the new 1.15 billion dollar stadium when the Oilers open their preseason slate against the Indianapolis Colts. They kick off their regular-season schedule against the Kansas City Chiefs, one of their new division rivals in the AFC West, but now with the offseason stadium drama behind him, Brown has his focus on Free Agency and the upcoming NFL Draft.

"We've had our eyes on some key free agents that I don't mind breaking the bank on," Brown said when asked about the team's offseason strategy. "I can't say too much right now, but currently our roster is low and I'm trying to win now, so expect this team to make a huge splash."



Preseason:
Week 1 vs. IND
Week 2 @ CIN
Week 3 vs. MIN
Week 4 @ SF

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OILERS SIGN HB CHRISTIAN MCCAFFREY TO 7-YEAR, 105 MILLION DOLLAR DEAL

HOUSTON, TX - As promised, the Houston Oilers made the biggest splash in Free Agency after signing former Carolina Panthers star halfback Christian McCaffrey to a seven-year contract worth 105 million dollars.

"I'm very excited to be a Houston Oiler and I can't wait to get to work and help bring this city its first-ever Super Bowl championship," McCaffrey told Houston reporters during the team's press conference held at the new Oil Rig Stadium site.

"After meeting with Mr. Brown and coach [Anthony] Lynn, I knew I wanted to be apart of the Oilers' revival," McCaffrey added."There is a lot of history associated with this brand, and I want to add more to it."

McCaffrey will be spelled by former Chiefs and Browns standout Kareem Hunt, who also signed with the team. The additions Marlon Humphrey and Devin McCourty will add firepower to a secondary that already features Desmond King II and Darwin James Jr.

Gone is last year's starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor, so the Oilers picked up former #2 pick Marcus Mariota to take his place.

Contracts Extended

93 WR Kennan Allen
93 LE Joey Bosa

Free Agent Signings

99 HB Christian McCaffrey
93 CB Marlon Humphrey
90 TE Austin Hooper
89 HB Kareem Hunt
88 CB Desmond King II
87 FS Devin McCourty
81 C Alex Mack
78 DT Ndamukong Suh
77 RG Kyle Long
75 LE Vic Beasley Jr.
75 RT Marcus Gilbert
73 DT Denico Autry
72 LG Daryl Williams
70 FB Khari Blasingame
69 QB Marcus Mariota

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HOUSTON, TX - With the last preseason game in the books, the Houston Oilers made their final cuts and released their 53-man and practice squad rosters going into Sunday's season-opener against the Kansas City Chiefs.



Head Coach: Anthony Lynn (5th Season)

The first African-American head coach in Chargers history is now the first African-American head coach in Houston Oilers history. If the Oilers don't make the playoffs this year, Lynn could find himself in the hot seat or possibly looking for another job.

Starting Defense


The Good: Defensive Secondary

93 CB Marlon Humphrey
90 SS Darwin James Jr.
88 CB Desmond King II
87 FS Devin McCourty

We should have one of the top passing defenses in the league. If we can get to the quarterback, this defense will not give up many points.

The Bad: 2021 Draft Picks

None of our draft picks will be starting this week. Our #3 overall pick quarterback has yet to show us that he's ready to be a starter in this league. Speaking of quarterbacks......

Starting Offense


The Ugly: Quarterback Situation

69 Marcus Mariota
64 Easton Stick
63 Adam Stout (R)

After wasting our #3 overall pick on a possible bust, free agent signing Marcus Mariota was named the starter for the season opener. From what I hear, championships can be won in Madden 20 by running the ball for an entire game, so we might be alright after all.

Special Teams


Practice Squad




Our one-two punch in the run game will now be a one-man show following the unfortunate preseason injury to backup halfback Kareem Hunt. Combined with our QB problems, these first six weeks should be very tough on our offense. We're loaded at receiver, but with no one talented to throw to them, what good is that?

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HOUSTON, TX - In his first game as the starting quarterback for the Houston Oilers (0-1), Marcus Mariota had a performance to forget after his two interceptions (both returned for touchdowns), helped the visiting Kansas City Chiefs (1-0) pull away with a 24-14 victory to open the 2021 regular season.

"I have to do better," Mariota responded to the media following questions about his performance. "I owe it to the fans and my teammates to put on a better showing than that. I take full responsibility for this loss."

Mariota finished with 219 passing yards and a touchdown, but his 54.3 passer rating leave more concern for a quarterback situation that was heavily questioned prior to the season.

Christian McCaffrey rushed for 31 yards on seven carries before leaving the game with a sprained ankle. Fortunately for the Oilers, he is expected to return for next week's road contest at Washington.

In a losing effort, Kennen Allen had seven catches for a league-high 167 yards and a touchdown. On defense, cornerback Desmond King II recorded both a sack and a nice looking interception catch off a tip from his teammate.



"Our defense played amazing, but giving up two returns for touchdowns isn't going to win many games in this league." head coach Anthony Lynn said. "It's back to the drawing board to prepare for a tough Washington team."

AFC West Standings

1. Kansas City (1-0)
2. Denver (1-0)
3. Oakland (0-1)
4. OILERS (0-1)

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HOUSTON, TX - A tight game would be decided by an 18-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin and a defensive stop as time expired, but the Houston Oilers (1-1) escaped FedEx Field with a 10-7 win over the Washington Redskins (1-1), the first since their rebirth.

“It wasn’t pretty, but I’ll take it,” head coach Anthony Lynn told the press after the game. “We have just four days to get ready for a tough rematch at Kansas City. If we don’t find a way to play better on offense, we won’t get off so easy.”

While Christian McCaffrey rushed for 64 yards on 15 carries, last week’s offensive MVP Kennan Allen was held to 0 at both catches and yards.

“We won, so I don’t care,” Allen responded. “I’d rather be a winner with no stats than a loser who balled out.”



During last week’s loss to Kansas City, Marcus Mariota threw two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns. There were no picks this week, but he only completed 53% of his passes for 121 yards and the Oilers’ only touchdown.

“What I said last week still stands,” Mariota said. “I need to get better so my team can have to best chance to succeed.”

AFC West Standings

1. Kansas City (2-0)
2. Oakland (1-1)
3. Denver (1-1)
4. OILERS (1-1)

Week 3 Contract Extensions



Following solid performances in the first two weeks of the season, two members of the Oilers' talented secondary received contract extensions today.

"Keeping this group intact is very important towards the future of this organization," team owner Ray Brown said. "I am very blessed that both Mr. James and Mr. McCourty agreed to stick around and help us towards our goal of bringing the city of Houston a Super Bowl championship."