Brian Daboll doesn’t need to get cute with Cam Ward. He needs to get practical.
The Titans are living in a strange place right now - not the kind of disaster they were in 2025, but still a team that can’t afford to keep missing the small stuff. If that doesn’t change, the record could end up looking the same anyway, right around 3-14.
The biggest problem has been how little Tennessee’s offense has actually been on the field. Through Week 3, the Titans are dead last in offensive plays run and time of possession. Some of that comes from the defense giving up long stretches without forcing a punt or turnover, but the larger issue is simpler: the offense keeps failing to sustain drives, especially in the first half.
That creates a rough setup for Ward. Fewer snaps mean fewer chances for him to shake off those slow starts, and fewer opportunities to push back against the growing belief among fans that he might not be the quarterback to lead the franchise.
So the Titans need to stop planning for the perfect drive and start building around the drives they’re actually getting. That means trimming the menu and leaning hard into the plays that work right now, not the ones that only pay off later.
The clearest path is to run more of the offense under center so they can open up more play-action.
That part of the offense has already shown promise. In the Week 2 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Tennessee only used play-action five times, but three of those throws went for 74 yards. Nearly 40% of the team’s passing output that day came on those three completions.
The next week, the Titans went to play-action more often and Ward responded by going seven-for-eight for 46 yards. That isn’t a flashy line, but this offense doesn’t need flashy right now.
It needs first downs. It needs ways to turn 3rd-and-8 into 3rd-and-1 and stay out of three-and-out territory.
Tennessee isn’t getting blown out, and that matters. These are the kinds of games where a few more efficient possessions can flip close losses into close wins. With the offensive line playing better and the defense holding up its end, the Titans have a path to being an average team - but only if the passing game finally starts moving.
In Other News...
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Derrick Henrys departure from Tennessee already carried plenty of weight, but his latest reflection adds another layer to one of the NFLs most familiar recent reunions. The former Titans star said the team did not offer him a contract before he signed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2024, and he called the whole ending bittersweet after years of carrying the franchises offense and becoming one of the defining players in modern Titans history.
Henry also said he could feel Tennessee was ready to move on during the 2023 season, which helps explain why the split came together the way it did. Since landing in Baltimore, he has kept producing at a high level, while the Titans have gone through a difficult stretch of their own, giving every meeting between the two sides a little more edge than a typical reunion ever could. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Quarterback Pressure Just Put Cam Ward In A Tough Spot
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NFL insider Mike Jones floated the idea that a change could help both the team and Wards long-term development, especially if the rookie continues to struggle. For now, Ward still appears positioned to start, but the pressure around the position is real, and the next stretch of games could determine whether Tennessee keeps riding with him or finally considers a different direction. [Read more 🡒]
Two Memphis Powers Just Changed A Tennessee Football Debate
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The timing matters because this decision lands right as the TSSAA is reshaping its private-school football classifications, adding another layer to an already evolving landscape. For the schools involved, it is as much about control over the schedule as it is about competition, but the ripple effect reaches beyond Memphis. Any change involving programs with this kind of profile tends to reopen the broader debate over how Tennessee should organize private-school football, and now the question is how many others might look at this move and wonder whether a different path is worth considering. [Read more 🡒]