Cam Ward Names Pair of Titans He'd Like to Get Ball to More

Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward definitely has a favorite receiver this season. 

He's established a solid connection with rookie receiver Carnell Tate, and for good reason. Tate had a breakout game against the Baltimore Ravens and was very active in Week 6's game against the Indianapolis Colts. 

Tate had 145 receiving yards in Week 4 and then had 80 receiving yards and one touchdown against the Colts on Sunday. Tate scored his first NFL touchdown and kept making plays throughout the game when the Titans needed them. 

You could tell that Tate was very relieved to finally pick up his first win in the NFL. 

Seeing Ward and Tate have success is great to see, but this means that there may be instances where other players don't get the ball as much. 

Ward highlighted two Titans players that he wants to get the ball to more often on Wednesday. Calvin Ridley and Gunnar Helm haven't been used much, and the quarterback wanted to change that. 

With Ridley, Ward believed their connection wasn't as strong this year because certain plays target specific receivers. Ward would love to throw the ball to Ridley every play, but that's not how the NFL works. 

Both Ward and Ridley understand that. 

"I just think it comes down to, you know, the play we have called," Ward said. "Who's the primary read on the play? What we're trying to get out of the play? Then also it's times where I need to get him the ball on certain situations. So, it's something that, you know, we both try. I want to get him as much touches as he want. He wants the ball every play if he could, but it doesn't work like that, and he understands that." 

Ridley was a WR1 for the Titans last year, but it didn't go well. After going for over 1,000 yards in 2024, Ridley had issues with drops all of last year. Then, he broke his leg against the Texans and missed the second half of the season. 

The Titans drafted Tate to be their top receiver, so Ridley has been in the background when it comes to targets. Ridley currently has 81 receiving yards this season. 

Then, there's Helm. 

The tight end showed a lot of promise as a rookie last year. Helm finished 2025 with 357 passing yards and two touchdowns. However, in 2026, Helm hasn't been very active so far. 

Helm has 60 receiving yards through six games. Helm was one of Ward's favorite targets last season, but things have changed.

Ward thought it wasn't as easy to get the ball to tight ends because they have to block and catch passes when necessary. 

"I think it's just, you know, a lot of things play into that," Ward said. "It's those guys, they have one of the hardest jobs in the NFL. They got to be able to catch it. They got to be able to block. They got to be able to protect the quarterback as well. So, we're doing a lot of those guys, whether it's not with routes, but in protection-wise, and they've been able to have some key big third-down conversions. So, that's something that we want to do is get Gunnar going. He's a very reliable red-zone target. He's very good with the ball, his hands on option routes and stuff like that. So, we're going to keep chipping away and figure out ways to give him the football." 

It's good that Tate has become a safety valve for Ward, but other teams will key in on the rookie receiver at times this season. Ward will need to find other outlets when Tate isn't available. 

If Ward can get players like Ridley and Helm going in the future, it will make things easier for the offense. Tate is a great player, but he won't be open every time.