Cam Ward had a chance to have a signature moment Sunday against the New York Giants.
Instead, he had his Will Levis “what the (insert expletive here) are you doing?” moment, throwing a game-ending interception on an ill-advised pass to the end zone with 17 seconds left and the Titans with two timeouts in their pocket.
Ward was flushed from the pocket, rolled to his left and could have gained some yards by scrambling with the football and had three downs left to play. Instead, he threw the ball right to Giants safety Javon Holland, who undercut the pass intended for Elic Ayomanor.
For Ward, it was a chance to erase what had been a terrible game for much of the day. The Titans had five three-and-outs in the first half and a whopping 54 yards of total offense. Ward was 7 of 13 for 41 yards in that disastrous first half, and 31 of that came on the final drive of the first half.
The second half was a little better statistically, but Ward not only had the game-ending pick, but also missed a wide-open Carnell Tate on a third-quarter drive in the red zone. The Titans then gambled on fourth down to try to get a touchdown, only to have Ward throw out of the back of the end zone to kill the drive.
For really the first time in Ward’s run as the Titans quarterback, the “B” word entered the postgame questioning of Robert Saleh, as in has he considered benching Ward in favor of Mitch Trubisky.
Saleh immediately dismissed the question with a one-word answer of “No.” But the fact that the question is even being raised three weeks into a new season is troubling.
Hindsight is 2025
I was told by one of Ward’s former coaches that if he had it to do over again, he probably would have sat Ward for the first few games of his rookie season before easing him into action the way the Saints did with Tyler Shough and the Giants did with Jaxson Dart.
In hindsight, it’s obvious Ward could have used some watch-and-learn time. But that’s water under the bridge now, even though the Carolina Panthers benched Bryce Young for a time after he struggled early in year two.
Putting Ward on the pine is a dicey proposition. It certainly spelled the end for Levis when Brian Callahan pulled him toward the end of 2024. Benching Ward would be a last resort that could only be made if Saleh, GM Mike Borgonzi and OC Brian Daboll believe it is truly what is best for the other 52 players on the roster.
Bill Parcells or Bill Walsh or Bill Clinton or somebody once said that young quarterbacks need to make at least 20 starts before you can make a determination on them.
And while I don’t necessarily agree 100% with that notion, given the way quarterbacks are rushed into action before they’re ready, it is telling that Ward’s first 20 starts have produced three wins.
Ward has completed 60.2% of his passes with 17 touchdowns to eight interceptions, and is averaging just 5.8 yards per attempt. Those numbers don’t exactly put Ward in a position to declare that he is a franchise quarterback that a team can find success with and build around.
Of course, in reference to the 20-start rule, of late, there have been guys who have taken much longer and several stops to figure out. Sam Darnold, given up for dead by the Jets and others, won a Super Bowl last year with Seattle. Baker Mayfield has resurrected his career after being discarded numerous times as well.
Those late bloomers indicate that there could be hope yet for Ward to make it. But he needs to turn the corner soon and begin to find success.
Opportunities lost
Quarterbacks are often measured by how they play under duress and in the most critical moments of a game. After wasting a chance Sunday, Ward still has just one fourth quarter comeback win in his NFL career.
And that one came gift-wrapped last year courtesy of the Arizona Cardinals, where a breakaway runner forgot the ball as he crossed the goal line, and Ward’s own interception was fumbled and recovered by the Titans in the end zone for a touchdown.
Ward was succinct when asked about missing out on a potential signature win Sunday, saying he has another opportunity to win a game next week.
“We get another opportunity next week to go make a couple more plays. I think it’s a play where I’ve got to give my receiver a chance to go make a play,” Ward says.
That’s true. But if Ward wants to continue to get those opportunities, then he needs to start taking advantage of the ones in front of him now. Because at his current level of play, who knows how many more “next weeks” he’s going to have?
Terry McCormick also covers the Titans for TitanInsider.com