The Dire State of the Titans Receiving Room

Wide receiver Tyler Lockett's sudden release from the Tennessee Titans has left the team in quite the predicament. While he was a bottom four contributor on the team, it's still a key veteran piece to lose as rookie quarterback Cam Ward continues to struggle.

Ward's numbers have been on the rise, but he needs to be gaining weapons, not losing them. Now, Ward is stuck with veteran Calvin Ridley, who's been more injury prone than the team could've imagined.

Without Ridley, rookie wideouts Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor are stuck filling crucial roles on the team. Dike is coming off a game where he had the first receiving touchdown of his career, but it's insane to think that three of Ward's four touchdowns are to rookie receivers.

Cam Ward's Passing Numbers

pic.twitter.com/t1UwCyHbee
— Cam Ward Muse (@CamWardMuse) October 20, 2025

The Titans are already set to face the most efficient offense this century, so being without Ridley against the Indianapolis Colts would be a death sentence. Ward still has tight ends Chig Okonkwo and Gunnar Helm, but he can't rely on them to do the type of things that Lockett used to be able to do.

Ward is currently in 20th place with 1,356 passing yards. He's played seven games this season, but there are five players above him that have played in six or less. In fact, San Francisco 49ers QB Mac Jones has thrown for 1,404 yards in just five games.

His seven game total leaves a lot to be desired, especially knowing Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, and Aaron Rodgers are right behind him with one fewer game played. No one expected Ward to finish in the Top 10 in passing yards, but his lack of quality receivers certainly hasn't helped.

Ward Needs Someone To Step Up

They ain’t ready for this Cam Ward pic.twitter.com/bXAqGtvbWD
— Wes Wisley (@TitansStats) October 19, 2025

It almost seems impossible that Lockett was targeted 21 times but had just 70 receiving yards. Only three players have fewer receiving yards than him, with two of them combining for only five games played.

At this point, it's hard to argue that Ayomanor isn't the clear WR1. Okonkwo is third place in receiving, but the tight end doesn't have the same explosiveness that Ayomanor does, nor should he.

Even though Ridley missed the New England Patriots game, he still leads the way with 16 receptions for 290 yards. He's the proven deep ball threat, averaging 18.1 yards per reception, roughly seven yards higher than Ayomanor.

Van Jefferson is the only other player to average more than 10 yards per reception. He's been awfully quiet this season with just 12 receptions for 140 yards. That said, Ward has only targeted him 14 times. Moving forward, the Titans need to continue to get Dike going in the passing game and they will have no choice but to move Jefferson up the depth chart.

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