Cam Ward's comps to Patrick Mahomes draws national eye roll

Ward might be promising, but calling him Mahomes on Day One felt like a hot take gone too far for NFL fans everywhere.
ByMatt Conner|
2025 NFL Scouting Combine
2025 NFL Scouting Combine | Brooke Sutton/GettyImages

Mike Borgonzi is hoping Cam Ward can do for the Tennessee Titans even a fraction of what Patrick Mahomes has done for the Kansas CIty Chiefs.

If you were watching the opening minutes of the 2025 NFL Draft, however, you might be thinking that Ward is the second coming of Mahomes instead.

Coverage of the Titans' selection of Cam Ward as the first official selection in the 2025 NFL Draft went a little overboard—okay, a lot—in the early going with a breakdown of Ward's pro potential. The problem is that they went with a direct comparison to Patrick Mahomes—as in, they said Ward was like Mahomes.

Ward might be promising, but calling him Mahomes on Day One felt like a hot take gone too far for NFL fans everywhere.

Mahomes, of course, came into the league and threw for 50 touchdowns and 5,000 passing yards in his first full season as a starter. He also elevated the Chiefs to dynasty status and has rewritten the NFL record books year after year through his seventh season as the Chiefs' starting quarterback.

Good luck with that pressure, kid.

Ward might be a terrific prospect, and he might even turn into a very good rookie in 2025 under center for Tennessee. (Certainly, he has to be a step up from Will Levis or Malik Willis.) That said, the NFL's need to put Patrick Mahomes front and center on a broadcast that won't feature a Chiefs pick for the first three hours is a bit much.

The groans were immediately heard online.

Some takes were more nuanced than others and were concerned about the pressure placed on Ward by making such ridiculous comparisons on his first day entering the National Football League.

The hits just kept coming on social media.

Just when you think one GIF expresses it best, you find another one that's even better.

For some, it wasn't a laughing matter at all, but we're pretty sure the sentiment is the same.

Perhaps my favorite of all, however.

We're pretty sure the Titans will be thrilled if Cam Ward turns out like Alex Smith.

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