Super Bowl Champion Has High Hopes for Titans' Cam Ward

As is the case for any No. 1 overall pick, Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward has high expectations as he enters the NFL.

Ward's path to the NFL wasn't exactly conventional, with him starting out at Incarnate Word before transferring to Washington State and then again to Miami. However, he's put up outstanding numbers everywhere he's gone, most recently throwing for 4,313 yards and 39 touchdowns with only seven interceptions last season with the Hurricanes.

Former NFL defensive back Antrel Rolle, another former Hurricane who won a Super Bowl with the New York Giants in 2011, believes Ward should make a big impact right away.

“I think Cam will be a great player," Rolle told Kyle Ogard of Gambling Industry News. "There’s only one knock I had on Cam watching him this year. The knock wasn’t at the collegiate level, but looking toward the future and his NFL career. He will have to get rid of that ball a lot faster. Everything else he did was phenomenal. It wasn’t a negative in college because he had the time. And the way the corners play in college is different. He will have to get rid of the ball faster in the NFL because the film study is so sharp. If you hold that ball for an extra millisecond, it will determine a pass breakup, an interception, or a completion.”

Of course, there's going to be an adjustment period for Ward. That's true for any player entering the NFL, but especially true for Ward given the state of the Titans' roster.

“Absolutely. It will be an adjustment for him – but only if he doesn’t already have it," Rolle said. "He did it in college because he could do it. I think that guy is a phenomenal talent, and I think he’s going to take the NFL world by storm. I think he’s going to light it up. Will it be Year 1? That’s hard. But I think he is going to have a very successful NFL career. He’s such a humble and down-to-earth kid, and football is what he wants to do. He wants to be the best. When you’re humble and a good person, it tends to work out for you.”

The silver lining of the Titans having no expectations this season is that Ward shouldn't have too much pressure on him as a rookie, which should help his development in the long run.