GREEN BAY – Welcome to Nashville, and the Tennessee Titans, Cam Ward.
Here on Thursday night, the Titans selected the Miami quarterback with the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Ward joins the Titans following months of intense evaluations by team officials, who traveled the country to see the top prospects in the draft before deciding on Ward.
The day before the draft, while standing in the shadows of Lambeau Field, Ward said he hoped the Titans would pick him.
"I got a chance to learn more about (the Titans) personally over the last couple of months, and I am excited to hopefully hear my name called first, to go to a good organization like that," Ward said. "They have a great owner, a great GM, great assistant GM, great president. The team there, they have a pretty elite team, in my opinion – they don't get enough credit on paper for what they really are. So, if I am there, I know it will turn out good."
The Titans brought Ward to Nashville for a pre-draft visit, before spending more time with him at the NFL Combine.
Later, team officials flooded the Miami campus in Coral Gables, Fla., for the school's Pro Day. A few days later, the Titans held a private workout for Ward, and that's where he first met owner Amy Adams Strunk.
"It was really good, meeting Miss Amy for the first time," Ward said. "Getting a chance to actually put a face with a name, hear about where she's from, her dad (founder and long-time owner Bud Adams), what they were back in Houston, when they had the Oilers. It's a good organization."
On Miami's March 24 Pro Day, the team's interest in Ward became well-known, and Ward seemed to enjoy it.
Case in point: After executing a fake handoff and making a throw at the Pro Day, Ward rolled toward Titans President of Football Operations Chad Brinker and General Manager Mike Borgonzi on the sideline, and uttered these words:
"I told them I was solidifying it today," Ward said with a smile. "They finally got a chance to see me throw in person, and I'll get another chance hopefully to throw in front of them. But that's a good building they have in (Tennessee), a good support staff. I was just happy to be able to throw in front of them for the first time."
The Titans left impressed, and the team spent the following weeks coming up with their plan.
There's a lot to like about Ward.
In 2024, Ward threw for 4,313 yards and a school-record 39 touchdown passes en route to being named ACC Player of the Year last season with the Hurricanes.
Ward set the NCAA record with 158 touchdown passes in his career at Incarnate Word (two years), Washington State (two years) and Miami (one season).
After Miam's Pro Day, Borgonzi and Callahan said they've enjoyed spending time with Ward, a zero-star recruit coming out of high school, during the process.
"It's been great, just being able to sit down and get to know the kid more, learn about his family, where he grew up, his journey, which is a unique experience, from being a zero-star recruit to going to Incarnate Word to Washington State to Miami," Borgonzi said. "He's gotten better over the years.
"And, all the talks we've had, it seems like he's wired right for the position."
Callahan said he's been impressed as well.
"There's a like to like about him," Callahan said of Ward. "You can tell he came from a really good family, he's been raised right. He has a really good personality, he's fun to talk to, he's fun to be around. But he has a serious side, he's focused, he's determined. It's important to him. He wants to be a really good player. He has the right mix of the and seriousness. He's been really fun to get to know."
During a pre-draft presser earlier this week, Brinker talked more about Ward.
"Cam's confident. I wouldn't say he's cocky. There's a fine line between the two," Brinker said.
"He carries himself the right way. I just appreciate the way he approaches the game, his competitiveness, just the way he plays the game with a quiet mind, the confidence he has. I think that's been impressive."
Now, Ward is officially a Titan, barely a month after uttering these words:
"I can only control what I can control," Ward said. "I can't turn the card in myself. If Tennessee, if they get me, I'll be happy to be there for sure."
On Thursday night, the Titans turned the card in.
Cam Ward is officially a Titan.
