Cam

Ward

Last week, Ward told reporters that he lost 10 pounds this offseason because he wants to play “faster.” The comment rightly caught one astute Rotoworld analyst’s attention. New Titans OC Brian Daboll has incorporated quarterback rushing into his prior offensive schemes, and it sounds like Daboll and Tierney want Ward to run a bit more than he did last year. Tierney has coached under Daboll at every stop since 2017. The key is drawing a line “between being aggressive and being reckless.” Tierney does not want Ward to run as often as his former quarterback, Jaxson Dart, did last year. Dart averaged 6.1 attempts per game. Instead, Tierney hopes Ward might try “to gain that last necessary yard on a third-and-6 scramble,” yet refrain from trying to bowl through a defender, seeking 10 more yards. We should not expect Ward to suddenly become a true dual-threat quarterback, but he should average more than the 9.4 rushing yards per game that he produced as a rookie.

Ward said he hopes the weight loss will improve his durability and allow him to play with a bit more speed in 2026. The 2025 No. 1 overall pick will play next season in an offense led by offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who has taken advantage of his quarterback’s athleticism in the past by incorporating it into the running game. Whether or not Ward, who rushed for just 159 yards in 17 games last season, will see more work as a runner next season is to be determined, but it’s worth noting that Ward did total 1,061 rushing yards in 38 FBS games, per PFF, which factors out yards lost on sacks. Of the 287 rush attempts he saw over that span, 180 of those runs (4.7/gm) came on designed plays. Ward turning into more of a dual-threat quarterback would provide a more solid floor for his fantasy outlook next season after he finished as the QB34 in fantasy points per game as a rookie.

This is good to hear. Switching offensive systems in one’s second professional season is no easy feat. Daboll has helped develop young quarterbacks in the past. His experience in this regard is undoubtedly good for all involved. Ward is currently in the low-end QB2 tier for fantasy. Daboll also said it has been “helpful” to have QB Mitchell Trubisky in the mix, and noted that QB Will Levis “has picked up the system well.” His comments on QB Hendon Hooker were limited to Hooker having put on a “good workout.” We suspect he has an uphill battle to make the roster.

Ward continues to rehab an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder, suffered in the 2025 season finale. He spent the early portion of the 2026 offseason improving his “base and consistency in footwork” and was cleared to resume throwing in mid-March. The Titans will host a voluntary minicamp from April 21-23. Organized team activity workouts dot the calendar through May and early June. The mandatory minicamp that Ward has a chance to participate in is scheduled for June 16-17. Stay tuned.

The Titans scheduled their first voluntary session on April 7, which will allow Saleh and new OC Brian Daboll to officially begin working with Ward, who is “on track,” though Saleh said he is “not going to put a timetable” on Ward’s participation levels, as he works through his rehab program. Ward spent the earlier portion of the offseason working on his base and footwork continues to be an area of emphasis. He was cleared to resume throwing in mid March and a recent report indicates that the team is unconcerned by Ward’s “different” throwing motion.

“This echos what [offensive coordinator] Brian Daboll said about Ward,” ESPN’s Turon Davenport said. “Daboll acknowledged different QBs have different throwing motions and didn’t want to fool around with it.” It appears the Titans are fine with Ward’s unusual delivery and want to clean up the messy lower body work that led to errant throws in 2025. Ward last season ranked 33rd out of 37 qualifying quarterbacks in completion rate over expected, around Caleb Williams and Joe Flacco.

Ward was diagnosed with an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder on January 5th. On February 20th, Wolfe reported that Ward was focused on building up his lower body and was expected to resume throwing in March. Sounds like he is on track, which is great to hear. He is expected to be ready for offseason team workouts this spring. The Titans’ front office signed WR Wan’Dale Robinson and TE Daniel Bellinger in free agency this week, providing Ward with more receiving weapons in his second NFL season. Ward is reportedly staying in Nashville this offseason to work with new coaches and players ahead of the 2026 season.

Ward suffered an AC joint sprain in his right, throwing shoulder late in the year. Ward has been doing “lower-body work” and is expected to resume throwing the football in March, roughly two-to-three weeks from now. Titans coaches are reportedly focused on correcting “some of the bad habits” Ward picked up last year by improving his “base.” We should have another update on Ward’s recovery in the next couple of weeks.

Daboll praised both Ward’s athleticism and accuracy when discussing the second-year passer. Ward occasionally flashed big-play potential as a rookie, but he spent most of his debut campaign missing passes and taking sacks. Defenses took him down behind the line of scrimmage a league-high 55 times. He completed just shy of 60 percent of his passes. Daboll has had success with young quarterbacks in the past. He coaxed a playoff berth out of Daniel Jones in 2022 and oversaw a handful of solid performances from Jaxson Dart in 2025 before the Giants canned him. Daboll has a tall order ahead of him, but quarterback has become a late-bloomer position in recent years, with Caleb Williams serving as the poster child for a post-rookie rebound. Titans fans will be hoping for a similar turnaround from Ward.

Coming off a 2025 season in which he caught 47 passes for 1,003 yards and six touchdowns as the Colts’ de facto WR1, Pierce is expected to be a popular name in free agency among wideout-needy teams. ESPN’s Ryan McFadden said last week that the Raiders would also pursue Pierce in free agency. “Pierce has the vertical stretch ability to produce down the field and can play a volume role as a multilevel target for quarterback Cam Ward,” Bowen said. In Tennessee, Pierce would instantly become the team’s No. 1 receiver, though it’s hard to say if Ward would be an upgrade over the quarterbacks Pierce had in Indianapolis last season. Ward in 2025 was 21st out of 35 qualifying QBs in accuracy on downfield throws. His 9.6 percent downfield passing rate was among the lowest in the league.