If Cam Ward Wants To Wear No. 1 With Titans, He'll Have To Go Through Warren Moon
It's a near-certainty that Cam Ward will go No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans in the NFL Draft, and the former Miami quarterback would like to wear his No. 1 jersey when he gets there. But there's just one problem.
The Titans retired that number in 2006 in honor of franchise legend Warren Moon. And the Hall of Fame QB hasn't decided yet if he'll allow the rookie to use numero uno.
"I'm thinking about it," Moon told PaulKuharsky.com, adding that he needs more time to consider the possibility.
The Titans would have to unretire Warren Moon's No. 1 jersey if the legendary QB decides to let Cam Ward wear it.
(Getty Images)
Moon, who spent 17 years in the NFL and another six in the Canadian Football League, wore No. 1 while leading the Houston Oilers from 1984-1993. That's before the club moved to Tennessee in 1997 and subsequently re-branded as the Titans in 1999.
A nine-time Pro Bowler who led the NFL with 33 passing touchdowns as Offensive Player of the Year in 1990, he later became the first black quarterback to join the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Moon still holds the franchise record for passing yards (33,685), touchdown passes (196) and games (141).
So yeah, those are big shoes to fill for Ward.
The 22-year-old recently told a TikToker that he is "hoping to stay" with the jersey number he's worn since 2022, when he transferred from Incarnate Word to Washington State. He also wore No. 1 at Miami in 2024.
@brayden_zaroff Future NFL Star Cam Ward On Wanting To Be More Then Just The #1 Pick 🔥🐐 #entrepreneur #financialfreedom #mentor #business #athlete #nfl #football #wealth
♬ original sound - Zaroff
Unretiring a jersey number isn't unheard of. Last summer, the New York Giants unretired the late Ray Flaherty's No. 1 jersey to give the number to first-round pick Malik Nabers. The family of Flaherty approved the decision.
Should Moon decide he doesn't want to give it up, though, Ward would likely go with No. 7, which he wore at Columbia High School in Texas and to begin his collegiate career at Incarnate Word. No. 7 is not retired in the Titans organization and, conveniently enough, no one on the team currently wears it.