With the NFL Draft taking place in less than a month in Pittsburgh, the Tennessee Titans have a prime opportunity to turn things around under their new coaching regime led by Robert Saleh. General manager Mike Borgonzi will head into his second draft with the Titans, and he'll face the best predicament you could ask for.
It’s not common to see a newer general manager having the opportunity to build a team around a young quarterback that has shown a lot of promise. In last year’s draft, Borgonzi had the luxury of having the No. 1 overall pick and the Titans brought in Cam Ward.
Ward's rookie season had some struggles, but he also showed a ton of promise going into Year 2, with a much better coaching staff in place. Through free agency, the Titans have added help on both sides of the ball including wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson who will pair up with Calvin Ridley on the outside.
Despite having a Top 5 pick, the Titans don’t need to worry about the quarterback position. Instead, they can focus on building around Ward, which is what exactly Borgonzi has to accomplish at next month's NFL Draft.
Mike Borgonzi must help Cam Ward in 2026 NFL Draft
When you look at the free agency frenzy, the Titans went heavy on defense which will make Coach Saleh happy. Plus with the addition of Robinson on offense, that gives Ward another option to target on the outside.
Borgonzi now has the opportunity to not bring in more free agents before and after the draft, but to also draft solid offensive talent to surround Ward with. No matter how great a quarterback is, without solid talent around him, he can only go so far. We see all the time, especially in recent memory with current quarterbacks like Josh Allen and Justin Herbert.
While the second year of a rookie contract is not the ultimate defining year, it does play a big role. Tennessee will have to decide at the end of the 2027 season on whether or not to pick up Ward’s fifth-year option, so they have a small window to make sure that he is their franchise quarterback of the future before investing quarterback market value money.
The hope is that Titans fans can look back on this draft class as the start of the turnaround of the organization and help build Tennessee into a contender for years to come.