A laughing Mike Borgonzi clarifies Cam Ward’s involvement in the current Titans head coach search

How the Titans will involve their cornerstone players in their search.

Easton Freeze — Tennessee Titans Beat Writer
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The Tennessee Titans are off to the races in their head coaching search, with their list of reported interviewees already nearing double-digits. GM Mike Borgonzi is the lead on the hunt for the next head coach of his team, as mandated by Owner Amy Adams Strunk in a controversial statement last week. He spoke the the media Tuesday, one last time before the offseason of hiring, free agency, and draft prep begins. And when asked about rookie QB Cam Ward’s involvement in the coaching process, he set the record straight with a smile.

The man heading up the search committee didn’t have much to say about the process already underway, but he did explain how he wants to involve his key players.

“I have a lot of conversations with Cam (Ward) in my office and sometimes, he says a little too much” Borgonzi explained through a chuckle. “But I love Cam, because he’s all ball all day. We have a lot of different conversations about things. And I said at some point here, once we narrow down, once we get down to the final candidates, maybe it’s a quick ‘hello’. But obviously Cam’s a big part of what we’re doing here. So to not involve your players and value their opinions on things… I’ve done that a lot in the past and I think we should do that.”

The “little too much” in question came a few weeks ago, when Ward had this to say on the hunt for a new coach:

“I want to meet all of them,” Ward told media in mid-December. “Every coach who gets the opportunity to come here, I want to have conversations throughout the process with them. I’m going to be here for that whole time.”

The level perceived of Ward’s involvement in the interview process garnered a lot of chatter at the time, rather pointlessly I might add. He isn’t making the decision, of course. Neither is Mike Borgonzi for that matter; he, Chad Brinker, and everybody else making up the search committee will be making a recommendation to Amy Adams Strunk in the end.

But as Borgonzi said on Tuesday, ignoring the opinions of your cornerstone players is just as foolish as letting them have the final say. Tentpoles such as Ward, Jeffery Simmons, and even guys like Peter Skoronski should and will be in proximity to the process in a way that informs things.

What they value, what they want that they didn’t get this year, what they feel this under-developed culture really needs right now; it’s all important to keep in mind. And Borgonzi says he plays on doing just that.

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