Titans’ final open OTA arrives, with QB Cam Ward facing another rough day in practices

The Tennessee Titans wrapped their ninth open OTA practice on Thursday afternoon, completing the penultimate stop before next week’s minicamp. It was the second-to-last session that the team is making available to the media during its current OTA run, with Friday’s final OTA planned as a closed practice. For fans watching a team that is still shaping its offseason rhythm, the takeaway from the latest public session was straightforward: quarterback Cam Ward struggled again in practice.

According to the practice notes published after the session, Thursday marked the ninth of 10 scheduled OTA practices, with only one additional open day left before the team moves into the next phase of offseason work. In NFL terms, OTAs are not the same as full-contact training camp, but they do matter for installation. Coaches use them to build timing on routes, develop quarterback-to-receiver read patterns, and work through protections and play concepts in a controlled environment that still has live situational elements.

Ward’s struggles, as described in the reporting, were not a one-day development. The notes indicate he had trouble during the session and that the pattern continued from earlier practices. With OTAs functioning as a progress check, repeated learning moments can be significant, not because a practice box score exists, but because quarterback reps are a scarce commodity in the offseason. Each day compresses installation, and when a quarterback is inconsistent, it can affect both execution and the way coordinators adjust what they emphasize next.

The session also came with standard team-media coverage. The notes indicate that head coach Robert Saleh, along with select players, spoke after practice. While the reporting does not spell out specific quotes in the preview, the post-practice availability is part of the offseason routine, offering a window into how the coaching staff is framing the work. In most years, those remarks tend to focus on process, situational execution, and the emphasis the team is placing on fundamentals during the practice portion of the calendar.

The broader context is that the Titans’ offseason is still in its teaching phase. Friday’s final open OTA being closed means the public viewing window tightens even further, limiting what fans and media can observe before minicamp. Minicamp is commonly treated as the bridge between offseason installation and more direct competition for roles, and it typically increases the intensity of team activities while still not resembling training camp’s full-contact environment.

For watchers, the next development to track is whether Ward’s practice performance changes as the team reaches the final open session and then transitions into minicamp. Because OTAs are cumulative, a quarterback who is working through timing issues can improve quickly if the coaching points are clear and the reps start to translate. Equally, if the struggles persist, the team’s offseason plan may shift toward protecting first-team reps and using the remaining public practices to emphasize quick corrections over longer-term experimentation.