The Tennessee Titans continue to evaluate their options with the first pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but it would be a shock if they did anything other than draft Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward.
If the Titans are as locked into Ward as their movements suggest, general manager Mike Borgonzi and Co. could be using the time spent with him at Miami's Pro Day to start planning their future together. With a pre-draft visit completed, and an alleged upcoming private workout, the Titans could be discussing what Ward is comfortable with on offense, gauging the concepts and route combinations he preferred at Miami.
Head coach Brian Callahan has said on numerous occasions that his job isn't to fit a quarterback into his system, but to adapt his scheme to what a quarterback does best. So, what does Ward do best?
The Athletic recently published an article by Derrik Klassen that outlined Ward's strengths perfectly by charting all of his throws in 2024.
Klassen spends a lot of time praising Ward and pointing out that he believes that Ward would have been competing to be QB3 in last year's loaded draft class, claiming there's one thing he does better than any of the top quarterbacks in the 2024 draft class.
"Where Ward shines, specifically, is to the intermediate and deep middle sections of the field. Ward is a big-game hunter who has never once backed down from throwing into a tight window. Digs, seams, benders, posts — Ward will make his money in the NFL on aggressive routes between the numbers...
...Ward’s 74.1 percent accuracy rate in the 11-20 yard range over the middle, as well as his 71.4 percent accuracy down the deep middle, are both stellar figures. His willingness to make those throws mirrors what you see from the league’s best passers, and Ward certainly has the arm talent to make it work...
...On a related note, Ward has the pinpoint accuracy required for those tight-windows throws. His 48.4 percent accuracy rate into tight windows doesn’t quite crack the elite 50-plus-percent range, but it’s close. In fact, it’s slightly better than the 47.0 and 46.0 percent figures I charted from Williams and Maye, respectively, a year ago. Daniels and Nix also cleared the 45 percent mark last year. "
On the negative side, Ward's numbers are pretty ugly on deep passes outside the numbers, but that isn't the worst thing. That contrast is perfect because it should give Callahan a clear picture of what he does well and what he doesn't do well.
For example, if the Titans are drawing up a play-action shot, Callahan could ensure the majority of those concepts have Calvin Ridley running a route that takes him to the middle of the field instead of running a vertical route to the boundary.
It also means that if the Titans don't have multiple players on their roster whom they believe can threaten the middle of the field, then they need to address that immediately. Guys like Chig Okonwko and Ridley did that well last year, but it wouldn't hurt to find someone like Xavier Restrepo on Day 3 who can work in the slot and provide another middle-of-the-field target for Ward.
The Titans have the luxury of knowing who their pick is going to be a month before the draft. If it's Ward, the Titans need to use that time to find guys who mesh well with his skill set. The 2025 season is about developing Ward, and it is alright to sacrifice secrecy in order to give him what he needs to succeed.