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Tony Brown was in church with his wife and mother in Chattanooga that October day. It was a Sunday. Normally, a work day, but he had just been cut by the Carolina Panthers.

He felt a vibration in his pocket and realized he'd brought his cell phone into church, which he usually doesn't do.

Brown discreetly checked and saw a 615 area code. Nashville. Better take this one.

He went outside and answered. It was the Tennessee Titans.

Could he come to Nashville ASAP? Earlier in the day, Albert Haynesworth had stomped on a Dallas Cowboy's head and was getting suspended.

That was Oct. 1, 2006. One man's mistake was another man's opportunity.

Brown, a religious man, doesn't believe it was necessarily happenstance that the phone call that changed his life came while he was in church.

"I had been praying so hard,'' he said Monday night when the Titans' publicity caravan visited Knoxville.

This story has a win-win ending.

Brown, who had been cut four times in his brief NFL career, found a home. Filling in during Haynesworth's suspension, he stuck with the Titans and became a starter in 2007.

"Bouncing around from team to team, I was never really given a chance to show what I could do,'' he said.

"Now, they (the Titans) believe in me and I believe in myself and I have good teammates.''

One of whom is Haynesworth. They start side by side on a defense that improved from 32nd (last) in 2006 to fifth in 2007.

The five-game suspension for the stomping incident was the harshest in NFL history for an on-the-field incident. Haynesworth took it like a man and came back in 2007 to have a monster season and start in his first Pro Bowl.

"I'm proud of how he came back from what happened,'' said Mike Keith, who graduated from Knoxville radio to become the voice of the Titans 10 years ago. "Albert handled it the best way possible.

"He understood what the game of football meant to him at that point. Last year, he played with more enthusiasm and passion than he ever has.''

Haynesworth played so well last year the Titans designated him their "franchise" player for 2008, meaning he couldn't leave to test the free-agent market without certain restrictions.

Back in Knoxville, the town where he developed into a first-round draft pick, Haynesworth said he hopes to work out a long-term deal to stay with the Titans.

"I consider myself a Tennessean,'' he said. "I've been here since '99.''

That's when he came to the University of Tennessee, a stud recruit out of Hartsville, S.C. He was a Freshman All-America in '99, but didn't really harness his ability until his junior year, when he played alongside John Henderson.

He left after that 2001 season, was the 15th pick in the draft and has been a Titan ever since.

"If you look at my history,'' he said, "my whole career, I've always gotten better every year.

"This year, it should be the same thing.''

He owns a house in Knoxville and spends a lot of time here in the summer. And he still keeps up with a lot of his UT contacts, including Dan Brooks, the position coach whom he credits with making his NFL career a reality.

"He shoots me a text (message),'' Haynesworth said with some wonderment. "Coach Brooks can text now. A guy wearing cowboy boots (made out of) ostrich and elephant, and he's shooting me texts.''

Brown, meanwhile, has been a Tennessean since 1980. That's when he was born in Chattanooga.

Unlike Haynesworth, SEC schools didn't come knocking on his door. Brown might be 6-foot-3, 285, now but back at City High School he said he was a 185-pound safety/linebacker.

Memphis offered and got itself a sleeper who developed into a decent defensive end. An undrafted free-agent, he kicked around between three clubs and NFL Europe before his cell phone vibrated in his pocket that Sunday 19 months ago.

"I'm ready to take this thing as far as I can,'' Brown said.

He hopes that means playing next to Haynesworth for a long time.

"Despite all the things people may say about him negative, he's not a bad teammate,'' Brown said. "He's an awesome guy.

"I just love to be around the guy and the rest of the guys do, too.''

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strange2@knoxnews.com.