Titans' interim coach McCoy: 'We have to clean up' Ward's turnovers
Tennessee Titans interim head coach Mike McCoy met with the media Tuesday for the first time since Brian Callahan was fired, and the 53-year-old highlighted Cam Ward's turnovers as a problem with the offense.
"That's one thing we have to clean up," McCoy said of the rookie quarterback's mistakes, according to the Nashville Post's John Glennon. "When something comes up and you see kind of what happened in the game, where there was some drifting, and then the ball security in the pocket. Things like that we got to clean that up. That's our job as coaches, and that's the challenge every week. … That's what we love to do."
Ward has shown flashes of success during his first six starts since entering the league as the first overall pick, but the beginning of his NFL career has largely been rough. Out of 34 qualifying quarterbacks heading into Week 7, Ward ranks last in EPA/play, according to Ben Baldwin's database.
The 23-year-old has struggled to maintain drives. His eight turnovers are tied for the second most among all signal-callers this season. The issue was on full display Sunday, as Ward turned the ball over three times in the team's 20-10 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders.
McCoy, who served as the then-San Diego Chargers' head coach from 2013-16, will take over for Callahan the rest of the year. He'll look to improve an offense that sits behind only the Cleveland Browns in points per game.
McCoy was also the Jacksonville Jaguars' quarterbacks coach from 2022-24, working with Trevor Lawrence under Doug Pederson.
"It takes time," McCoy said, referencing Ward. "That's what I kept telling Trevor (Lawrence), and I'm going to tell Cam. I talked to Cam (on Monday). It's going to be the same thing. Every week, you're getting better. You've just got to learn.
"At some point during the year, it's going to slow down for him. But right now, it's going really fast."
Ward has completed 55% of his passes this season for 1,103 yards with three touchdowns and four interceptions. The 1-5 Titans will face off against the New England Patriots on Sunday.