Tennessee Titans mandatory minicamp has concluded, and it’s time to name some winners and losers from the week. This was the last team action any of these players or coaches will get before reporting back for training camp on July 22nd. So let’s see who carries some strong momentum into the preseason portion of the calendar, and who will need a big August to make up lost ground:

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Winner: Cam Ward

No surprises here: the 1st overall draft pick and new franchise face has people very excited. What he showed us this spring and early summer warrants that excitement without a doubt. He was clearly the best QB on the field during OTAs, and everything he’s done so far is a green flag. Whether it’s before or after the whistle, he’s unshakably loose and cool. He carries himself like a veteran, and his confidence is already rubbing off on those around him. He’s going to be such a fun story to follow this season.

Loser: Brandon Allen & Tim Boyle

Cam Ward was clearly the best QB on the field during spring practice, and Will Levis was clearly the best of the rest. He was comfortably in a tier of his own above both of the Titans’ cheap free agent additions, Brandon Allen and Tim Boyle. Neither QB inspired any confidence when they were signed, and neither did anything to change that at OTAs.

I still think they’ll find a way to move Levis eventually, meaning one of these two (almost certainly Allen, if you ask me) will be the Titans primary backup to Cam Ward. If you’re a fan of bad/rebuilding teams keeping a bad backup behind their franchise QB like I am, this is a good thing. But if you want some security at the position… you’d better hope Will Levis isn’t traded after all.

Winner: Rookie Pass Catchers

The youth movement showed out this offseason, injecting some cautious optimism into position groups that had giant question marks. 4th round WRs Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor both look ahead of the curve to me, and it sounds like mentally they are impressing their coaches with their progress as well. I expect both to be incorporated into the Titans offense early on. UDFA WR Xavier Restrepo maintains questions about his athleticism and versatility, but all throughout minicamp he just did what he did in college: get open, get targets, and produce. He looked like a QBs best friend out there relatively often, as did rookie 4th round rookie TE Gunnar Helm. He’s been my bet since the draft to be the Day 3 rookie to produce the most this season, but he may get a run for his money from some of these receivers. All four of these players are tracking in an encouraging way.

Loser: Unseated Veterans?

With any infusion of juice from rookies, that means there will be some veterans who are unseated. And as much as these rookies have impressed me so far in practice, it’s been equally eye-opening at times when it comes to just how much juice Tennessee lacked with some of their incumbents at these positions. Three names come to mind:

WR Treylon Burks is not a factor for this team in 2025, and I don’t think he’ll be a factor for them ever again. It was surprising to see him back at “80%” this early, as head coach Brian Callahan explained it. But he’s still somebody that will either be on the PUP list or cut at the end of August. I feel confidently about that. Healthy or not, he’s simply been passed up in talent and upside by too many others on this team.

TE Josh Whyle stands to be the victim of a rising Gunnar Helm, which was predictable when they drafted him. The reality is that the Titans seem to have three viable pass-catching tight ends right now, and while they don’t all fill the exact same roles, I still think Whyle is the odd man out. In fact, I’m not certain he’s a roster lock any more. I think I had my mind changed on that this week. Read more here if you want to hear why.

And finally, LB Otis Reese. He was the sole veteran option from a crowded room last year that the Titans kept around, so it was fair to wonder if he was going to be in the thick of the competition to start alongside LB Cody Barton. But seemingly every time we spoke to the coaching staff about the LB room this week, they weren’t including him in the conversation. LB Anfernee Orji was brought up more than he was. It’s still early, but that doesn’t bode well for Reese’s standing in that competition.

Winner: Innovative Offseason Programs

The Titans coaching staff set out this winter to devise an innovative new offseason program that gamified their hyper-focus on eliminating self-inflicted negatives (S.I.N.s, as they call them) and establish a stronger culture in the building. You can read a lot more about the details of the program here if you’re interested.

The program came to a “halftime” break this week, declaring a winning team through spring practice and pausing until they pick it back up in late July. It’ll run through the preseason, and all indications are that it’s been a smashing success. Coaches and players alike seem to be as bought-in as possible, and they’re expecting it to make them a better football team this year. You can read more about the spring results here.

Loser: Confidence In Secondary Strength

The Titans might have a secondary problem.

In a way, this isn’t new. We’ve talked about how fragile the construction of the Titans cornerback room is in particular, hinging on the return to form of L’Jarius Sneed at the top of the pecking order. But nothing from this week of camp inspired a ton of confidence around him, either. Roger McCreary got minimal work on the field this offseason, and it was too often the case I’d look up during minicamp and see Jarvis Brownlee Jr. getting beat.

I don’t want to pound the alarm by any means yet, because I happen to be a believer in each of these players. I think they’re capable of being one of the better units in the league when healthy and playing their style of football. But so far, I’d be lying if I said I have seen reasons for confidence with my own eyes. Let’s see how they look when the pads come on. Linked here are some additional thoughts on the precarious defensive dominoes the Titans have set up.

Winner: CB Depth

And finally, the depth at CB was a winner this week because of how much opportunity they got to stack reps in front of their coaches and jockey for position in a tight race. Both Jermari Harris and Marcus Harris are probably who lead the pack if you made me decide today, but just about everybody in that room made a play or two that I can remember off the top of my head. They’ll be a fun competition to watch in August.

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