Titans' Cam Ward sends message to doubters ahead of rookie season

Will Levis needing season-ending shoulder surgery this summer essentially ensured that rookie Cam Ward will enter September as the Tennessee Titans' starting quarterback. 

During a recent chat with Jeff Howe of The Athletic, Ward sent somewhat of a message to those who are doubting what he will and won't be as an NFL QB1.

"I don’t care about the hype," Ward explained. "I don’t care about social media. All I care about is this 100-yard field. …At the end of the day, football takes care of everything." 

Long before the Titans made Ward the first overall pick of the 2025 draft, analysts and reporters shared that they believed none of the quarterbacks in this year's class would have been ranked ahead of the six signal-callers taken in the first round of the 2024 player-selection process. 

More recently, Ward has largely gone ignored by national media members who seem obsessed with covering Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Cleveland grabbed Sanders with pick No. 144 this past spring. 

As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had Ward second among the betting favorites at +350 odds to claim the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award for the upcoming season. Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty topped the list at +275 odds. 

"I don’t think I’m being welcomed in (the league) with open arms," Ward told Howe. "I was the first pick. I’m blessed to be that. But at the end of the day, there’s a target on my back. There’s a target on everyone’s back in the league, but I’m trying to prove myself to my teammates."

By all accounts, Ward has impressed the Titans through the early days of training camp with both his on-the-field talents and his leadership qualities. With Levis now an afterthought as it pertains to the 2025 season, Ward can focus on getting ready for Tennessee's Week 1 matchup at the Denver Broncos on Sept. 7. 

On Wednesday, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Titans as 7.5-point underdogs for that game. 

"Good things only come to people who work," Ward told Howe. "Growing up, I saw my dad wake up at 4:30 a.m. doing a job he didn’t like. If I can’t wake up early to do a job I do like, I just think I shouldn’t be here."