Cam Ward hasn’t thrown an interception in 173 straight passes. That would be a great stat if the Tennessee Titans’ passing game were actually going somewhere.
It isn’t. Ward is averaging 161.5 passing yards per game, and the Titans are 0-2 after a 23-10 loss to the New York Jets and a 24-20 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport gave Tennessee a 3 percent chance to make the playoffs in his rundown of every 2-0 and 0-2 team, the second-lowest mark of the group behind only Miami. He put most of the blame on the quarterback, writing that Ward has shown little development since being drafted first overall.
Saleh is preaching patience with Ward
Robert Saleh isn’t pretending otherwise. After the Week 1 loss, the first-year head coach acknowledged where his quarterback stands. “This young man is at the floor of what it takes to be an NFL quarterback, but he has all the tools, the mental makeup to get to where he needs to go,” Saleh said. He also pointed out that Ward has had seven offensive coordinators in seven years.
Week 2 offered a glimpse of that. Ward completed 13 of 20 passes for 183 yards and ran for two touchdowns as Tennessee hung with the Eagles until the end. But one close loss doesn’t erase the bigger picture. No AFC team has fewer yards per game, the Titans rank 30th in passing and the franchise was 6-28 over the two seasons before Saleh arrived.
Sunday’s trip to MetLife Stadium is about as soft a landing spot as the Titans will find, even with a nor’easter expected to bring rain and wind. The Giants lost Jaxson Dart to a season-ending knee injury and will start Jameis Winston, who completed 11 of 27 passes in relief against the Rams. Lose that one, and 3 percent starts to look generous.
The real stakes go beyond this season, though. Tennessee used the No. 1 overall pick on Ward to be the answer at quarterback, and Saleh is asking for time. The next 15 games will decide how much of it Ward gets.
