Cam Ward reacts to big Titans change ahead of fourth career start

Earlier in the week, Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan confirmed that he was handing play-calling duties to quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree ahead of this coming Sunday's matchup at the 0-3 Houston Texans.

On Wednesday, Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward addressed the change that occurred after only his third career regular-season start. 

Does Cam Ward expect big changes with new play-caller? 

"I have a great relationship with him," Ward said about Hardegree, per Teresa M. Walker of the Associated Press. "I meet with him every day. He just knows where my mind is and how I feel space on the field. I just think he’s going to be a good addition for us. ...Us making this change is not going to make a big difference on how we think as an offense, how we as a building, we’re just going to go play football."

Of course, Ward ideally grew comfortable with Hardegree in the months after the Titans made the signal-caller the first pick of the 2025 NFL Draft. It's also worth noting that Ward will continue working with Hardegree, Callahan and offensive coordinator Nick Holz behind the scenes until further notice. 

That said, Callahan clearly hopes things improve regarding the Tennessee offense with Hardegree calling plays. According to ESPN stats, the 0-3 Titans began Thursday ranked 31st in the league with an average of 222.3 offensive yards gained per game and 28th with an average of 17.0 points scored per contest for the season. Meanwhile, Pro Football Reference shows that Ward will enter Week 4 ranked last in the NFL among qualified passers with a 19.8 adjusted QBR.

Cam Ward sticks up for Brian Callahan

Callahan was the subject of hot-seat rumors before the Titans opened the campaign with three straight losses and before he relinquished his play-calling duties. On Wednesday, Ward went to bat for his head coach. 

"I think the biggest thing is that coach [Callahan] just has so much to deal with," Ward added during his comments, per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. "And it’s probably hard for him to give up play-calling — he’s one of the best play-callers out there. But he has a lot of important decisions to make for us to win games. And I just think him giving that up to Bo right now, he thinks it’s best for us, I think it’s best for us as well. So, whatever coach agrees with, I’m gonna go with."

As of Thursday morning, ESPN BET had the Titans as 7.5-point road underdogs against the Texans. If Sunday's game becomes a laugher, Ward could experience more change during his debut pro campaign sooner rather than later.