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Titans' Cam Ward shows why he can be franchise-changer as long he gets help
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cameron Ward. Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Titans' Cam Ward shows why he can be franchise-changer as long he gets help

If you simply looked at the box score from the Tennessee Titans' preseason game on Friday night, it would be easy to conclude that rookie quarterback Cam Ward struggled. He finished the night 2-of-7 for 42 yards and a 52.1 passer rating in his one quarter of work against the Atlanta Falcons.

Not exactly great numbers, especially for a No. 1 overall pick.

But sometimes, numbers in small sample sizes do not always tell the story. That is especially true in preseason football. This is also one of those times.

While Ward was not quite as sharp as he was in his preseason debut, and while he did have some rocky moments, he also showed why the Titans took him with the top pick in the draft and are building their franchise around him for the foreseeable future. There were some impressive throws and moments, and flashes of brilliance that show the type of player he can become.

As long as he gets some help.

That is the big takeaway from Friday's game.

While he showed a strong chemistry with veteran wide receiver Calvin Ridley in the preseason opener, Ridley did not play on Friday, forcing Ward to look elsewhere among his wide receiver group. It did not always go well.

The night got off to a good start when he connected with Elic Ayomanor on the first pass of the game for 35 yards.

The mobility and ability to throw a dart like that on the move, right on target, is the type of stuff Titans fans can dream about.

But it was not even his best pass of the night. 

And his best pass of the night shows up as an incompletion on the stat sheet. 

That is a big-time NFL pass that was thrown just about as perfectly as it could have been. The only way it would have been better is if he walked it down the field and placed it right in the exact spot he wanted it to go. That should have been another 30-plus-yard play (or more). It ended up going for nothing because it was dropped. 

That is going to be the problem Ward is going to have to contend with.

Being a rookie quarterback is hard enough in the NFL, and it is especially hard when you are going to a team that had the worst record in the NFL the previous year. That alone indicates the team has a lot of holes and problems that need to be fixed. There is not always a great supporting cast in place.

Ridley will be a great go-to player and security blanket for Ward in his rookie season.

He still needs somebody else to step up and make some plays for him. If he gets that, his talent can make him the star the Titans need him to be. He did not consistently get that on Friday night, and his numbers were impacted negatively because of it. 

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on Twitter @AGretz

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