Turnovers plagued the 2024 Tennessee Titans. Will Levis’ struggle with interceptions (12 in 12 games) is well-documented, and backup Mason Rudolph’s efforts (9 in 8 games) were no better as the Titans struggled to find three wins a year ago.
The Titans tried to turn the page by drafting Cam Ward with the No. 1 overall pick, but the product on the field is markedly worse than last year.
Through his first 12 games as a pro, it feels like the Titans have reined Ward in too much. Some of it is circumstance, as there simply aren’t enough offensive weapons to make big plays happen.
The Titans are the lowest-scoring team in the league, averaging just a shade over 14 points a game. The offense has produced just one pass and one run for more than 40 yards all season long. Those took place weeks ago with now-injured Calvin Ridley catching a 47-yard pass in the Titans only win at Arizona, and Tyjae Spears breaking loose for 41 yards at Indianapolis in October.
Sunday, the offense didn’t produce a play longer than 16 yards.
While the lack of weapons is certainly a primary culprit, it is not the only suspect in solving this mystery.
The play-calling itself and the general overall offensive philosophy must be called into question. Ward came into the NFL with a reputation as a gunslinger in college, a quarterback willing to push the ball down the field and one who was often guilty of holding the ball too long waiting for a big play opportunity to emerge.
While Ward displayed the latter trait, contributing to his league-leading 47 sacks, the expected payoff of big plays has not been there.
Other than the second half against Seattle, the fourth quarter against Arizona and the final drive at home against Houston, that aggressive approach has not emerged. In all three situations, the Titans were in dire straits before Ward cut loose and took some chances down the field.
It feels like the philosophy, in the wake of so many deep throws from Levis being picked off last year, has been to overcorrect with Ward.
The result has been that Ward has not thrown the ball in harm’s way, although his fumble is another matter. But his six interceptions in 12 games is probably one of the more encouraging things about an otherwise lackluster rookie season.
The problem is the trade-off has been that the Titans are a horrible offensive team, with only seven passing touchdowns all year long. Last season, even though Levis and Rudolph were turnover-prone, they did produce a respectable 22 touchdown passes between them. Ward would have to average three TD passes a game the rest of the way just to match that number.
With the season going nowhere, and the coaching staff headed out the door, the Titans need to let Ward be Ward more often in these final five games and not break his spirit in a stifling offense that has only dump-offs and sacks to show for their quarterback’s first-year development.