Even after earning a spot as an NFL starting quarterback, there’s still plenty of learning to do on the job.
Just ask Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward. The first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft made waves with his comments after the Titans’ Week 4 loss to the Houston Texans.
‘If we keep it a buck right now, we ass,’ he said. ‘We’re 0-4. At this point, we got nothing to lose. We dropped a quarter of our (expletive) games, and we’ve yet to do anything, so, we have to lock in.’
Head coach Brian Callahan said Wednesday that Ward’s comment and the reactions that followed were all part of the rookie gunslinger’s learning process.
‘He’s a young player,’ Callahan said. ‘He’s the No. 1 overall pick, he’s the face of the franchise, if you will. He’s got high expectations for himself, and we have high expectations around him, and we all want to meet those.
‘His ability to be in that spotlight, in that moment is a growing process for him. He’s growing up, I think he’s starting to understand the weight of his words – what those things mean when he speaks and everyone’s listening and watching. And even though he follows up his commentary with a lot of the right things, it’s the one-liner that gets taken.’
Callahan concluded by saying that Ward is still learning how to talk to the media and convey his points across while maintaining a professional image.
Ward also gave his own response on Wednesday to the reaction he received from the Sunday comments, saying he wasn’t surprised by it.
‘They gonna blow it up no matter what, whether it’s good or bad for the Titans,’ he said. ‘We’re trying to win football games, and that’s the biggest thing, and that’s what we’re trying to go do this week.’
Ward also said he wasn’t bothered about the reaction, that he only cares about his teammates and trying to win games.
The Titans’ quarterback is 0-4 to start his career with a 51.2% completion rate, 614 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Ward and his team will try to snap their losing streak in Week 5 when they take on the Arizona Cardinals in the desert.