From pre-dawn meetings to relentless trash talk on the field, rookie wideout Tyren Montgomery reveals the authentic work ethic driving Tennessee’s second-year quarterback to new heights.
The Tennessee Titans added 11 undrafted free agents to the roster after the 2026 NFL Draft.
Illinois receiver Hank Beatty, UTSA linebacker Shad Banks Jr., N.C. State linebacker Sean Brown, USC safety Bishop Fitzgerald, Clemson cornerback Jeadyn Lukus, Tennessee cornerback Jalen McMurray, Louisville offensive tackle Rasheed Miller, Notre Dame offensive tackle Aamil Wagner, Purdue linebacker Mani Powell and John Caroll receiver Tyren Montgomery were among the UDFAs.
Montgomery's story is like something you'd see in a movie.
He didn't play organized football in high school, but basketball instead. He planned to walk on at LSU to play basketball.
However, his mother fell ill while he was in college, and COVID-19 canceled his season.
Montgomery's brother joked that he should play football instead. Montgomery laughed at first, but then went to play for Nicholls State in 2022. After not receiving consistent minutes, he transferred to John Carroll in 2024.
He had 1,071 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns in his first season, and then 1,528 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns in 2025.
He performed well at the Senior Bowl and even caught the attention of Jon Gruden, who called Montgomery a sleeper in the draft.
Now, Montgomery is on the Titans and has to go through training camp to make the 53-man roster.
Montgomery recently sat down with Dharya Sharma of Sporting News to talk about what it's been like working with Cam Ward.
Ward is coming off a promising rookie campaign where he threw for 3,169 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Montgomery cleared the air about Ward's work ethic, sharing that the stories about him showing up to meetings at 5:30 A.M. are true.
"The whole thing about showing up to the meetings at 5:30 in the morning?" Montgomery said. "That's real. He really be doing that. Then, I guess it's the way he be talking to players. Trash talking and stuff. Like, he really be out there being himself. So, I do take a liking to where he's at. It doesn't seem like he's changed."
This is great to hear about Ward.
He's entering his second season in the NFL and understands that to become one of the best in the league, you need to be up at 5:30 in the morning, ready to get better every day.
While Ward is committed to improving, he can't do everything on his own. The Titans know this, which is why they gave him more weapons this offseason in Wan'Dale Robinson and Carnell Tate.
Brian Daboll coached Robinson at the New York Giants, and Tate gives the Titans a deep threat at receiver, which isn't something they've really had since A.J. Brown.
This is the kind of stuff that isn't going to show up on tape, but is equally as important as Ward continues to grow in this league.
