The Tennessee Titans are hoping for a bounce-back 2026 campaign. After drafting Cam Ward first overall, the team still had many issues that held them back throughout the year. That culminated in an offseason where they appointed Robert Saleh as the new head coach.
Unfortunately, the arrival of a new coach hasn’t shielded their star quarterback from criticism. For Jared Stillman, though, that criticism landed him in hot water with the franchise, which pulled his media credentials for the future.
Was Jared Stillman at Fault In The Cam Ward Exchange?
A constant source of direct reactions from the teams and players, the “Stillman & Co.” podcast has become a mainstay for Titans fans. However, a tense exchange with Ward after the preseason raised some eyebrows.
After asking the youngster to grade his performance, the former first overall pick rebuffed Stillman. The clip quickly went viral on social media. But the consequences were dire for the podcaster, as the team pulled his credentials.
Owing to his status as a YouTuber and not a reporter or daily beat writer, the Titans concluded that his overall reporting style wasn’t working. But for fans, it was easy to spot the “real” reason, leading to pushback on social media.
Caroline Fenton of Yahoo Sports also put forward her own theories on what might have gone wrong for Stillman. Making an appearance on his podcast, she believed that rather than the organization, Ward’s family may have had a part to play in his dismissal.
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“I’m going to say that Cam’s family probably sparked a discussion, especially after the back and forth that went viral. Because it’s led to a lot of Cam criticism, and you have criticized Cam a lot.”
As a result, that particular incident might have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. “I think that interaction was probably the last thing where Cam’s parents were like, ‘[Expletive] this guy. We’re done with him.’ So they probably went to go talk to the Titans.”
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She theorized that their contact could have been with the public relations department, general manager Mike Borgonzi, or even as far as controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk.
“If I had to put my money on it, I do think it was Cam (Ward’s) family that had enough”@CarolineFenton1 thinks Cam Ward’s family complained to the @Titans leading to my revoked credentials. pic.twitter.com/9cqAGe61lz
— Jared Stillman (@JaredStillman) September 3, 2026
“Titans’ PR people, Amy [Adams Strunk], Mike Borgonzi, whoever was their first line of contact there, and talk to them about it. And that person was like, ‘You know what? Yeah, this guy has been a big pain in my [expletive] ever since he showed up to town, and now he’s pissing off our quarterback’s family? He’s out.”
While Fenton couldn’t be sure about the circumstances that led to his credentials being pulled, her best bet was on the involvement of the family. Regardless of who caused the repercussions for Stillman, it has opened the Titans up to a ton of scrutiny.
Rather than take accountability for Ward, who ranked dead last on PFN’s Quarterback Impact Metrics last season, the dismissal could have stifled any criticism that leads to improvement for their most important player.
It remains to be seen if the outcry across media circles forces the team to change tracks. But for the time being, Stillman remains on the outside looking in.
