This year, the Titans were confident of making the best draft decisions. Reason being their GM Mike Borgonzi who has seen almost 15 drafts with the Kansas City Chiefs. And the biggest steal for the Kansas franchise was their gifted quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who handed them 3 Super Bowls in 8 seasons. That’s not a simple task. This year, the Titans went and grabbed the Miami QB Cam Ward; and guess what? GM’s previous experience helped him sort out their choices beforehand.

During the May 8 episode of The Rich Eisen Show, he revealed that things were pretty different for them. First, they already had a veteran signal caller, Alex Smith, who played a pivotal role in Mahomes’ development. Second, the Chiefs originally had a 27th pick in the first-round but jumped to 10th. They also traded their 1st and 3rd round picks in 2017 and 1st round pick in 2018. A big gamble that paid well!

However, this year, they used some criteria that helped them decide that Cam Ward will be their pick. The GM added, “Some of the characteristics I noticed when we scouted Patrick — I’ve mentioned this in other interviews — the arm talent with Cam really stands out. He has natural instincts, poise in the pocket, and the ability to create outside of it. When we got the chance to meet Cam, we were truly impressed by him as a person — not just his football intellect, but also his leadership ability.”

Not only the GM, but a college coach also played a huge role. North Texas HC, Eric Morris, was the offensive coordinator of Texas Tech when Patrick Mahomes played there. In 2020 and 201, he was the head coach of Incarnate Word when Cam Ward played there. He brought him to Washington State in 2022. These little jigsaw pieces fitted well, leading them to draft him first overall.

Now that the draft is all done, they are moving to the next stage of their season. Determining the starter!

Cam Ward to face competition for QB1 position

“I think the expectation is, you take a quarterback No. 1 overall, that he’s going to uplift your franchise and be that guy,” Titans GM said while talking about their plans. But there is definitely an element of the past in his work. He doesn’t want Cam Ward to lead until they feel that he is NFL ready.

While talking about the QB1 for the franchise, he refused to name a player. His words, “I think that the competition brings out the best in everyone” are self-explanatory. They are waiting to see their quarterbacks in the training camp. Will Levis has a 5-16 win-loss record in the last 2 seasons. But Mike Borgonzi wants to be at ease.

Naming a starter so early might lead to tensions. And he understands it well. But they want Cam Ward to get ready soon. The fans have huge expectations from him. And it would be required of him to fulfill those. With such a veteran GN leading the way, things are expected to settle pretty well.