Andrew Buller-Russ
After finishing with the fourth-worst record in the NFL, the Tennessee Titans made another significant shift by giving Robert Saleh a second chance to be a head coach. His first chance didn’t go the way anyone wanted. Saleh was ousted after Week 5 of his fourth season after leading the New York Jets to a 20-36 record.
Now he takes over a Titans team led by 2025 No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward that went just 3-14 under Brian Callahan and interim coach Mike McCoy. Yet, this isn’t the same Titans team that Callahan and McCoy were leading, and general manager Mike Borgonzi made sure of it.
One area the Titans benefited from was having strong draft positioning, landing the fourth pick in the first round. It set them up to land a blue-chip prospect. The Titans added eight prospects overall, but it was their top choice, Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate, who has made the biggest impression so far.
Now that Ward has gotten a chance to work with his new receiver, he’s had only positive things to say.
“He’s got great hands, wins in man coverage, and he’s a strider,” Ward said.
But it’s not just Ward singing Tate’s praises; the team is internally very happy with the prospect who has shown up to Titans OTAs.
“The Titans love Tate’s exceptional ball skills and large catch radius that make him a potent downfield pass catcher,” ESPN’s Turron Davenport wrote. “Tate’s field-stretching ability flashed during a team period Thursday when he easily hauled in a 50-plus yard touchdown pass from Ward after a coverage mishap by defensive backs Marcus Harris and Kevin Winston Jr.”
Earlier, when the pick was made, Saleh revealed that despite the team’s surprise decision at the time, selecting Tate was a “very easy decision to make.”
“The quarterback is a pretty damn important piece,” Saleh said. “So we’re doing everything we can to help (Ward) and surround him with players who can get the ball in their hands and go score. Carnell was by far the top receiver on our board. It was a very easy decision to make.”
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