The Tennessee Titans limped into their bye week at 1–9, and it hasn’t been easy to watch. Rookie quarterback Cam Ward — the first overall pick in the 2025 draft — has only six touchdown passes in his first ten starts. The turnovers keep coming, the sacks keep piling up, and people are already throwing around the word “bust.”
But here’s the thing: plenty of quarterbacks have started off worse and still carved out long, successful careers. Ward was tossed straight into the fire with almost no protection and barely any help around him, so of course the landing was rough. Even so, you can still see the raw talent show up on film.
Bottom line: this debut has been one of the rougher ones in recent memory, but it’s nowhere near the all-time disasters. Most of the blame lands on the Titans. Ward still has real upside.
Cam Ward Posts One of the Weakest Rookie Stat Lines in a Decade
Heading into Week 12, Ward is completing 57.6% of his passes for about 1,760 yards, six touchdowns, and six interceptions (per Pro Football Reference). He’s tied for third in total turnovers and is taking sacks at a rate that could challenge David Carr’s infamous 76-sack season in 2002.
He holds onto the ball too long when the pocket collapses. He locks onto his receivers and forces throws late. The Titans score the fewest points per game in the league and are near the bottom on third-down conversions. It’s ugly across the board — no way around it.
Ward Avoids the True Basement of Rookie QB Disasters
When you compare his season to actual all-time rookie meltdowns, things look better. Ryan Leaf threw 2 touchdowns and 15 interceptions in 1998 and went 3–18 over two years. JaMarcus Russell posted a 50.1 passer rating. Akili Smith, Joey Harrington, and early Zach Wilson starts were weekly train wrecks.
Even top picks who eventually flamed out — like Trey Lance or Justin Fields — showed fewer real positives in year one. Ward, meanwhile, ranks top-three among rookies in deep-ball accuracy and scrambling for first downs.
Rough start? Yeah. Career-ender? Not even close.
| Rookie QB | Record | TD | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cam Ward | 1-9 | 6 | Zero O-line help, chaos |
| Peyton Manning | 3-13 | 26 | Set rookie INT record |
| Troy Aikman | 0-11 | 9 | 53 sacks on expansion team |
| David Carr | 4-12 | 9 | Record 76 sacks |
| Bryce Young | 2-14 | 11 | Tiny frame, no weapons |
Hall of Famers are on that list. Context is everything.
Starting Rookies on Bad Rosters Almost Always Ends Messy
The Titans ignored the most reliable development blueprint. No veteran bridge quarterback. No real left tackle. No true WR1. The result: Ward playing backyard football, improvising behind a collapsing line, and paying the price.
Some rookies thrive anyway (C.J. Stroud, Jayden Daniels), but Houston and Washington actually built real offenses around them. Tennessee fired their coach mid-season and is still rolling out practice-squad level blockers. The organization failed Ward more than Ward failed the organization.
HeyTC Daily Rankings Bury Ward Outside the Top 25 — Fair Enough
HeyTC’s real-time quarterback rankings place Ward outside the Top 50 entering Week 12 — meaning 18 backups are playing better than him right now.
That’s brutal for a No. 1 pick. But those same rankings show that legends like John Elway, Terry Bradshaw, and Troy Aikman all opened their careers with similar efficiency dips on awful rosters. Ward’s arm strength, off-platform ability, and mobility look a lot more like the guys who figured it out, not the ones who washed out.
Tennessee Holds the Keys to Ward’s Turnaround
Bryce Young looked completely overwhelmed after going 2–14 as a rookie. Two years later, he’s hovering around the top-25 with real growth. Ward has a stronger arm and more mobility to work with. Clean up his decision-making, give him a real left tackle, and lean into play-action and bootlegs — the stuff he’s already good at — and his trajectory flips fast.
The Titans will have a ton of cap space and another top-five draft pick. If they invest wisely, Ward has a clear path toward the Manning/Aikman turnaround instead of the Leaf/Kizer disaster track.
Cam Ward has put up one of the ugliest rookie stat lines you’ll see in 2025. The Titans rushed him onto the field, left him hanging, and got exactly what you’d expect. But the talent is still there. Give him real support, and the turnaround can start as soon as next season.