Cam Ward's cocky pre-draft take should not really cost him any NFL Draft positioning

We can only hope Cam Ward's comments after winning the Davey O'Brien do not come back to haunt him like Josh Rosen's swiftly did. While I do not see nine teams making a mistake and passing over the former Miami and Washington State quarterback, there are no guarantees he will end up being the No. 1 overall pick by the Tennessee Titans. To be frank, he probably should, but this is Tennessee.

Ward was a consensus All-American, the ACC Player of the Year and the Manning Award recipient even before winning the Davey O'Brien. While he made the most of his one year at Coral Gables personally, he did not lead the Hurricanes to the College Football Playoff. Two bad losses to Georgia Tech and Syracuse cost them. Sitting out the second half of Miami's bowl game was not a great look.

Ward made it a point to say that anyone who passes on him in the 2025 NFL Draft will regret it.

"OK, you're either going to draft me or you're not. If you don't draft me, that's your fault. You've got to remember you're the same team that's got to play me for the rest of my career, and I'll remember that."

While I think this is fair and justified, there are three things working against him. One, Ward was not really a winner at any point in his college career. He threw for a ton of yards previously at Washington State, but did not factor in the Pac-12 hierarchy. Two, this is not a great quarterback class. It is Ward, Shedeur Sanders, and maybe Jaxson Dart. And three, dumb teams are picking at the top of the draft.

Although I do not think these comments will hurt his draft stock, it could result in a rough first season.

Cam Ward's comments are not going to jeopardize his NFL Draft stock

Look. If this statement made at an awards ceremony turns the Titans off Ward entirely, so what? They can always draft Sanders No. 1 overall, or potentially trade back and take the so-called best player available like new general manager Mike Borgonzi allegedly said he wanted to do. The point in all this is somebody is going to want to move heaven and earth for Ward even if the Titans do not want him.

Can you imagine what bad franchises who are desperate for a quarterback like the New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets and maybe even the New Orleans Saints would do if they caught wind of Tennessee being out on Ward? Again, Ward may not be anything more than a Geno Smith in this league, but you can win a lot of games with a Geno Smith under center. What is the price to pay?

Overall, I do think Ward is going about this the right way. If you want him, come get him. The last thing he needs is to go to a team who lacks confidence and is wishy washy about the whole idea of drafting him. All it takes is for one team to fall in love with you. That is how guys like Bo Nix end up being first-round picks. Denver loved the guy, and so far have been rewarded for selecting him in the first round.

Ward may not be for everyone, but he could be for someone, even if that franchise is not Tennessee.