Titans Cam Ward Receives Average Grade in Debut

Tennessee Titans first overall pick Cam Ward made his regular season debut on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. On the surface, his debut wasn't all that impressive. He completed 42.9% of his passes for 112 yards, but if you dive into the film, you'll find a much more impressive performance.

Arguably, the most impressive part of Ward's performance wasn't the throws he made, but how cool, calm and collected he was in the pocket. The Broncos' front seven, which led the league in sacks last year, pressured him on 18 of his 34 drop-backs (53%). Most rookie quarterbacks would've panicked under pressure and made some costly mistakes. Ward, however, played a clean game. He didn't have a single turnover-worthy throw.

If you just looked at the box score, you'd probably give Ward a D+ or F grade for his performance, but if you watched the game and saw how he dealt with pressure and how many drops his receivers had, you'd probably bump that grade up a bit.

CBS Sports released their week one quarterback grades, and they gave Ward a C for his debut. Here's what they had to say about the rookie's performance.

Tennessee Titans, QB, Cam War — Sep 7, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) and Denver Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga (9) face off in the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

"Ward's debut in Denver was probably a bit better than it looks on the surface. It was all about missed opportunities, right from the start of the game. He had a 10.7% drop rate on his throws, more than double the league average on Sunday, and you could easily have credit the Titans with more drops than that.

"Still, Ward officially went 12 of 28 for just 112 yards. He took a few really, really bad sacks in this one, including two in a row when the Titans had the ball at Denver's 25-yard line after a turnover, and it knocked them out of field-goal range on that possession. He also had a pretty bad intentional grounding penalty late in the game."

Were there a lot of learning moments for Ward in his NFL debut? Definitely, but the way he handled himself against one of the best defenses in football with a play caller who threw exotic looks at him all afternoon was very impressive.

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