You can dress it up however you want, but Cam Ward's impact on the Tennessee Titans' Week 14 win versus the Cleveland Browns was minimal.
That doesn't mean Ward was bad or that he can't be trusted to win games in the future. Most of his impact occurred during the opening drive. Ward was four-of-four for 48 yards and Tennessee's first opening possession touchdown. The rest of the day, Ward was 10-of-24 for 69 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
While some of the Titans' final success can be attributed to turnovers by the defense and special teams, the more important and obvious driving force was the running backs.
Tony Pollard may have just quietly revealed the Titans' best 2026 NFL Draft strategy
Tony Pollard had a career day rushing with a staggering 161 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and Tyjae Spears led the Titans with 28 receiving yards. That is a compelling argument for how playmakers in the backfield can significantly alleviate the pressure on a young quarterback.
It was such an obvious demonstration that it should force Titans fans to reevaluate the conventional wisdom around spending a high draft pick on a running back.
Currently, the Titans are set to pick third in the 2026 NFL Draft, which is a nightmare. Drafting third or higher almost guarantees that the Titans won't get an attractive trade offer because the teams in front of them will either draft a quarterback or trade their pick to a team that needs a quarterback.
If the Titans are blessed and fortunate enough to end up picking higher, or if they manage to go on a hot streak down the stretch and win some of these meaningless games, they might end up picking near the bottom of the top 10. In either scenario, the Titans should consider drafting Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love.
The Heisman finalist would be a perfect fit next to Ward, and all of the big names in the draft media have been touting him as the best playmaker in this class. Some have even gone as far as to say that they have him ranked higher than Ashton Jeanty and neck-and-neck with Bijan Robinson as a prospect.
If the goal is to develop the franchise quarterback, and this draft class lacks a premier talent at wide receiver or offensive tackle, then walking away with Love might be the smartest thing the Titans can do. It certainly helps to have the recent victory over the Browns to point to when it comes time to defend that hypothetical to skeptical Titans fans.