Titans aren't fooling anyone with their QB competition talk

The Tennessee Titans are so convinced that Cam Ward is a future franchise cornerstone that there was never any real chance of them drafting another player first overall or trading the pick. Now, NFL fans and rival teams are supposed to believe Ward is competing with Will Levis for a starting job?

Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi said earlier this month that he wants Ward and Levis to both have a shot to be named Tennessee's Week 1 starting quarterback. Head coach Brian Callahan then told reporters on Tuesday that the plan is for Ward and Levis to split first-team reps evenly through the early part of the offseason. While Callahan admitted that could soon change, he made it clear that he is in no rush to name a starter.

The Titans drafted Levis in the second round (No. 33 overall) back in 2023. Callahan and Borgonzi weren't with the team at the time. Levis still entered last season as Tennessee's starting QB, and he was given a fair shot. He wound up being benched for poor play late in the year and finished with 2,091 passing yards, 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 12 games. The former Kentucky star now has 21 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 21 career games.

Tennessee finished 3-14 last year, which is how they wound up with the No. 1 pick in the draft. The Titans went 2-10 in games that were started by Levis. While Levis had a decent stretch of play in the middle of the season, he was part of the problem, not the solution.

Callahan knows that. So does Borgonzi. Titans players do as well. Ditto for the fans.

Unless Ward suffers an injury or falls flat on his face in training camp, there is almost no chance the former Miami star begins the season on the bench. What the Titans are likely trying to do is establish trade value for Levis, and the best way to do that is by trying to convince other teams that Tennessee's coaches still view the 25-year-old as a starter. Whether or not those other teams will actually believe it is another question altogether.