A 26-3 loss, a 0-5 start, and no QB change with Cam Ward still the Titans' starter

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans are sticking with Cam Ward as their starting quarterback, and first-year coach Robert Saleh said Sunday there's no thought of benching the second-year player hoping for an offensive spark.

“Cam is our starting quarterback,” Saleh said after a 26-3 loss to Houston . “We're going to give him every opportunity to be successful this year. We’re going to continue working with him, grinding with him, and trying to help him get better.”

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft now is 3-19 as a starter. His availability has been his biggest asset yet, though this latest loss dropped the Titans to 0-5.

Ward threw for 170 yards with one interception against the Texans as Tennessee finished with its worst offensive performance of the season. The Titans had just 187 total yards and their fewest points yet. Ward also was sacked four times all within the final 11 minutes.

The Titans do have veteran Mitchell Trubisky on the bench and Brian Daboll has been working to fit the scheme around what Tennessee does best. Saleh wants Daboll to keep studying to find what plays the Titans are comfortable with on offense, especially Ward.

“It’s just constant communication and trying to understand each other and grow,” Saleh said. “Just keep challenging and pushing the envelope with what we’re capable of.”

Ward said the Titans have to correct their mistakes fast and that everything they are messing up they've seen on film. Told that Saleh said he's the starting quarterback for the season, Ward said his process and work to be the player he wants to be is why he feels he is the quarterback for this opportunity.

“I love the criticism, I love everything that comes with the quarterback territory,” Ward said.

He also knows the Titans need to win games. He has thrown for 896 yards averaging only 5.8 yards per attempt. He has as many touchdowns (three) as interceptions (three), and the interceptions have come in the past three games.

“I just can't have a bad play,” Ward said. “That's what I think it's going to come down to. And if I do have a bad play, it can't be a bad play to decide the game.”

Ward said he will keep working with Daboll and quarterbacks coach Shea Tierney working to get the offense moving and staying on the field. The quarterback also sounds as optimistic as his latest head coach that the Titans will turn around a franchise that now is 6-33 since the start of the 2024 season and quickly closing in on a fifth consecutive losing record.

“The results may not do that, may not show that, but we know it's a process before results,” Ward said. “But I mean we're just like y'all. We want results ASAP. But at the end of the day, we got to go through this to get to where we want. In the near future, we'll be able to get through it.”

See AP’s full NFL coverage here