Sunday was another rough day for the Tennessee Titans, as they fell to 0-4 after a 24-18 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. As Titans fans sulked, they likely ended their Sunday night the same way many football fans do: watching Sunday Night Football.
The week 4 primetime action was between the Carolina Panthers and Detroit Lions, and Carolina emerged victorious, winning 32-26. Everyone watching the game likely had the same takeaway: Panthers’ quarterback Bryce Young looked really good.
Young led his team to victory by completing 29-of-41 passes for 329 yards and two touchdowns. Carolina was clearly up against a struggling Lions secondary, but Young was undoubtedly surgical.
While that’s great news for the Panthers, it should also be a promising sign for the Titans. It wasn’t long ago when Carolina and Young were struggling how Tennessee and Cam Ward is now. Young eventually figured things out with the Panthers, and Ward may be able to as well in Tennessee, if the team has patience.
Bryce Young reminds Titans to be patient with Cam Ward
Again, things haven’t been going well at all for Tennessee, and 2025 No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward hasn’t played that promising. Starting every game since being drafted by the Titans, Ward has completed 60.4% of his passes for 3,895 yards, 18 touchdowns, and nine interceptions, while adding 216 yards on the ground and four additional touchdowns. Unfortunately, Tennessee is just 3-18 in Ward’s 21 starts.
That's pretty much how Bryce Young’s career started, who was also a No. 1 overall pick (2023 Draft). As a rookie, Young had a 2-14 record, completing 59.8% of his touchdowns for 2,877 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. After a slow start to his second season, Young was benched after two weeks. However, an injury opened the door for his return to the lineup in Week 8 of his second season, and he hasn’t let go of the starting spot since.
Young started to show signs of development in the latter half of his second season, and he really started to take things to another level in year three. The Carolina quarterback had his most productive season yet, and led the Panthers to the postseason with a 8-9 record. Now, in 2026, Young is playing the best he ever has, and that was on full display on Sunday night.
Titans QB Cam Ward may be following the Bryce Young developmental arc
That's a reminder to the entire NFL, and especially the Titans, that young, talented quarterbacks take time to figure it out. Fortunately for Ward, he has a head coach in Robert Saleh who understands that. On Monday, Saleh emphasized the team’s confidence in Ward, and called for everyone to relax while Ward develops.
"We have the utmost confidence in Cam. … The kid’s gonna be a damn good quarterback. Everyone just needs to take a deep breath and let him grow. If you can’t objectively watch the tape and look at him from Week 1 last year to Week 1 this year to Week 4 yesterday and not see improvement, then you’re just being biased to your own opinion."Robert Saleh
Not only is it important that franchises give these young guys time, Carolina also showed the importance of building a competent team around them. Bryce Young connected with Panthers’ second-year receiver Tetairoa McMillan 14 times for 192 yards and two touchdowns. Additionally, the quarterback was sacked just three times, as Carolina has invested heavily in its offensive line.
The Titans have been following the same formula with Carnell Tate, and hopefully they will eventually get similar results out of Ward.
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