Titans start new era by taking Cam Ward with No. 1 pick in 2025 NFL Draft

The Two Quarterback Race That Never Was ended Thursday with the Titans handing the keys to their future over to Cam Ward.Ward was selected with the No.1 pick in the NFL Draft, when the Titans decided to gamble on finding a franchise quarterback instead of playing it safe and choosing either one of two consensus “can’t-miss” prospects — receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter or edge rusher Abdul Carter.When the Titans clinched the No.

1 pick on the final day of the regular season, then-general manager Ran Carthon was supposed to face a difficult choice between Ward and Shedeur Sanders as the top quarterback.But, as the offseason progressed and Carthon was replaced by former Chiefs executive Mike Borgonzi, it became clear that the NFL was not gearing up for another Peyton Manning-Ryan Leaf, Andrew Luck-Robert Griffin III or Bryce Young-C.J.Stroud debate at the top.Ward, a zero-star recruit out of high school who starred at Incarnate Word and Washington State for two seasons apiece before rising to another level in his one season at Miami, pulled away from Sanders and others in what widely was regarded as an underwhelming quarterback class by scouts.Lauded for the zip he puts on balls thrown into tight windows, his aggressive mindset to push the ball downfield and his lower-body strength to shrug off sacks just long enough to extend plays, Ward is toolsy.

But his tape shows some inexplicable decisions that suggest he doesn’t know when to stop playing superhero and manage the path to victory.“There are some things he’s going to do five times a game that only a handful of people on Earth can do, and that’s why he’s the best quarterback in this year’s class,” one NFL offensive coach told The Post.“There is going to be a lot of growth.

There are going to be some (hard) days.But I’m betting on some things you can’t coach.”Sanders’ landing spot was expected to become the primary storyline of the first round.

Some teams reportedly felt th...