Even by most rookie quarterback standards, the Tennessee Titans’ Cam Ward has had a rough initiation to the NFL.
But after a bye week, Ward says he’s ready to go for Tennessee’s final eight games, beginning Sunday when the Titans host the Houston Texans in Nashville.
Ward has thrown for 1,760 yards and five touchdowns with six interceptions, completing 58% of his passes. However, he’s been sacked a league-high 38 times and has lost five fumbles. His 11 turnovers are tied for third in the NFL.
Ward said he used the bye week to recover physically and reflect on his first nine games.
“It was good just to self-scout myself and what I can do to help the team be better on offense,” he said. “And what I can do to help myself. Just getting back to the basics of football, getting my body healthy. It was a good break.”
A lack of playmakers and inconsistency in the offensive line have damaged the Titans (1-8). The firing of coach Brian Callahan after six games has, so far, has done little to spark the team. Tennessee is 0-3 under interim coach Mike McCoy.
During the break, McCoy looked back at film to see how he and the staff can help Ward make more of the big plays that were a staple of his 2024 at Miami. One way is to encourage Ward not to force long passes as often.
Offensive coordinator Nick Holz said Ward is getting better at taking checkdowns.
“I’ve got to get the ball in my playmakers’ hands,” Ward said. “Let them make plays for us, and I think that’ll have the offense flowing.”
The potential return of No. 1 receiver Calvin Ridley could help Ward. Ridley practiced for the first time Wednesday after missing the last three games with a hamstring injury.
While Ward and Tennessee try to spark a dormant attack, Houston (4-5) might turn to backup Davis Mills for a second straight game. CJ Stroud remains in concussion protocol after being knocked out in a Week 9 loss to Denver. He didn’t practice Wednesday and would need two practices without symptoms before he could be activated.
Mills led the Texans to a come-from-behind 36-29 win last week over Jacksonville, thanks to a 26-point fourth quarter. He threw for 292 yards and a pair of fourth-quarter scores before rushing for a 14-yard touchdown with 31 seconds left to put Houston ahead for good.
The other star for Houston was Danielle Hunter. The five-time Pro Bowl defensive end mauled the Jaguars’ offensive line, tying a career-high with 3 1/2 sacks, as well as recording seven tackles, four quarterback hits and a forced fumble.
“He was exploding off the ball, playing violent, not slowing down,” said Texans coach DeMeco Ryans. “That only works with the interior guys getting the right push.”
The Titans already know the damage Hunter can do to an offense. He logged two sacks and helped Houston limit Tennessee to 175 total yards in the Texans’ 26-0 shutout win against the Titans on Sept. 28.
Houston might need that kind of pass rush from Hunter again. The team’s secondary took a hit last week after safety M.J. Stewart suffered a season-ending quad injury.
The Dallas Cowboys’ decision to trade for George Pickens this offseason could hardly have worked out any better for quarterback Dak Prescott and the Dallas offense. It’s imperative that owner and GM Jerry Jones and his staff find a way to keep the dynamic wideout in the fold when the offseason arrives.
Pickens is slated to hit free agency at the conclusion of his 2025 campaign. The Cowboys have the ability to retain him via the Franchise tag, but that would take his salary all the way up to somewhere around $29 million in 2026. That’s a challenging number for Dallas’ front office to accommodate given their other salary obligations in the future.
The far better path for the Cowboys’ front office would be to hammer out a long-term extension that would tie Pickens up for years to come. It would also result in lowering his annual average salary to a much more palatable number for Dallas to avoid.
Cowboys fans have every right to feel concerned about their front office’s ability to come to tie Pickens down for the long haul. Dallas’ failure to move quickly to ink Prescott to a contract extension cost them millions of dollars when they finally convinced him to put pen to paper. More importantly, it cost Dallas significant payroll flexibility when it came to surrounding Prescott with elite talent.
The team’s decision to trade Micah Parsons also can be partially attributed to their inability to sign a star player to a long-term deal. The Cowboys ultimately decided Parsons would not get the massive contract he was looking for before he was shipped to Green Bay. The Cowboys might have been able to avoid that nuclear option if they had engaged Parsons in meaningful contract talks earlier in the process.
The hope in Dallas has to be that Jones and his front office have learned from their mistakes. Pickens appears to be the perfect complement to CeeDee Lamb to unlock the team’s passing game. The Cowboys have no way to replace him other than gambling on a wide receiver with a high pick in next year’s draft. It’s simply a risk Dallas cannot afford to take if they’re serious about strengthening their Super Bowl credentials heading into the 2026 campaign.
Pickens and his representatives know they have a lot of leverage at their disposal. The Cowboys need to keep him on the roster and can’t afford to use the franchise tag to make that thappen. They also need to win some points with the fan base by avoiding a long, fruitless negotiation.
That’s going to embolden Pickens to ask for a contract similar to the four-year, $136 deal Lamb got from the franchise. The Cowboys should be excited to realize any savings they can under the $29 million they might be forced to pay via the franchise tag.
A four-year deal that starts at $25 million per season with modest escalations could be a win for both parties. Something like $108 million in potential earnings for Pickens should be enough to get it done. Don’t be surprised if the “reported” number is much higher than that, but features some tough incentives. Pickens might want more cash than that, but he’d be wise to accept that lucrative offer from the Cowboys.