A rival GM lobbied hard for the Titans' top draft selection. Discover the last-minute gamble that almost changed the 2025 NFL landscape.
The Tennessee Titans had a luxury no other team did in the 2025 NFL Draft, having finished last in the NFL in 2024 with a 3-14 record.
Although it definitely wasn't what the franchise had hoped for, it did grant them the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. As fans know, the Titans went with Miami quarterback Cam Ward.
Ward had a shaky start to his NFL career, but really settled in and had a solid second half of the season. Starting in Week 10, Ward closed out the year with 1,409 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and one interception.
He actually had the best touchdown-to-interception ratio in the NFL from Weeks 10-18.
Ward showed a lot of promise as a rookie, which showed why the Titans decided to take him at No. 1 last year.
The Titans weren't the only ones who were interested in that No. 1 pick, obviously.
Ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft, I wanted to go back and share a clip of another NFL General Manager who tried to see if they could get a last-minute trade with the Titans for the pick.
The New York Giants held the No. 3 pick in the draft and eventually went with Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter. However, before they made that pick, Giants GM Joe Schoen called Titans GM Mike Borgonzi to try and take one last crack at convincing the Titans to trade the top pick.
"Were you waiting for this?" Schoen asked. "You going to pick? I had to do it. I had to do it. All right, man. Well, good luck to you, man. I was going to wait and just call you now on the clock, so I figured you guys were picking, but thought I'd give one more swing. All right. Good luck to you."
Despite Schoen's last-minute attempt, Borgonzi didn't listen and kept the pick, not that there was any doubt he wouldn't.
Could this mean that the Giants were actually targeting Ward instead of Jaxson Dart? Who knows.
After taking Carter at No. 3, the Giants selected Dart out of Ole Miss with the No. 25 pick. Ward and Dart had similar seasons.
Dart had 2,272 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and five interceptions, but was benched in favor of Jameis Winston after some poor performances. Ward finished with 3,169 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Ward now enters year two with some more weapons on offense.
The Titans added former Giants Wan'Dale Robinson and Daniel Bellinger. Tennessee also decided to bring back Calvin Ridley on a restructured deal, hoping to take the pressure off Robinson.
Robinson saw an uptick in targets after Malik Nabers went down with an ACL injury, and he should have less pressure on him at the Titans.
There will be some changes to the offensive line, as center Lloyd Cushenberry and right guard Kevin Zeitler are no longer with the team. Austin Schlottman and Cordell Volson are expected to compete for the starting jobs at those positions.
Even though Schoen tried his best, I don't think anyone in Nashville was actually worried Borgonzi would've traded the pick. The Titans are better for sticking with Ward, and he should have more help in year two.