Now that the NFL is in the home stretch before training camp, it’s always fun to look back at some of the what-ifs that were spawned from rumors throughout the offseason. Whether it was phantom free agent signings or trades that never developed, there were quite a few storylines that could have been, but never came to fruition.
The Tennessee Titans sat at the center of a few of those, but none more so than the mystery surrounding the first overall selection and whether they would stay put and make the selection. At one point, immediately after the NFL Scouting Combine, it appeared as if trading away the pick was a foregone conclusion, but in the end, they stayed at No. 1 and selected Cam Ward, and the rest is history.
Cody Benjamin wondered the same thing and listed the potential trade of the first overall pick as one of the five what-ifs that could have changed the face of the NFL in 2025 and beyond.
Cam Ward to the Giants
Embattled general manager Joe Schoen lived up to his promise to “look under every rock” for quarterback help this offseason, adding not one but three new passers in Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, and first-round draft pick Jaxson Dart. The thing is, he may have settled for just one, had he gotten his wish. After failing to acquire Stafford in a blockbuster trade, Schoen’s Giants were reported as front-runners to land the No. 1 pick in the draft, with Miami’s Cam Ward the anticipated target. What if the Tennessee Titans hadn’t been smitten with Ward — or just so desperate for their own new signal-caller — and actually dealt the top pick to Big Blue? We might be preparing for Ward to open the 2025 season as the new face of the Giants with head coach Brian Daboll finally set to deploy a gunslinger with long-term promise.
Although no official details were released, NFL insiders reported that the Titans declined an offer from the New York Giants for the top pick. This means that the Giants did not meet the requirements of the historic haul that general manager Mike Borgonzi was searching for.
Ward has been everything that the Titans expected since landing in Nashville, and there is no doubt he would have made the same impact if he had made his way to New York. The Giants eventually took Jackson Dart, but Ward would have been a no-brainer. He was the top quarterback in the class, and with his college experience and football acumen, he appears ready to take over the offense.
Had the Titans traded out of the spot, it is likely that their entire draft strategy would have changed, and that Abdul Carter would have been the selection. This also means that they would likely be riding with Will Levis as the starter heading into the season. While fans may freak out with that proposition, Levis has had a tremendous offseason and looks like a different quarterback. The extra work he put in with Jordan Palmer appears to have paid off.
What they would have done with the rest of the selections, and what those selections would have been, may be a mystery. Still, they would not have selected Femi Oladejo in the second round if they had taken Carter, and their haul would have been entirely different.
Looking back, if he had gone to New York, Ward would have made for an interesting competition between Russell Wilson during the offseason and training camp. Instead, he is in Nashville preparing to be the face of the franchise. Now that the dust has settled, Titans fans are excited that this was a what-if and not a reality.
This article originally appeared on Titans Wire: Alternate NFL universe: What if Titans traded No. 1 overall pick?