NFL locals: Cam Ward wins matchup of high-profile rookie quarterbacks

Cam Ward (Washington State) and Shedeur Sanders squared off in a matchup of high-profile rookie quarterbacks who share a history stemming back to their college years.

Sunday’s bout between Ward, the No. 1 overall draft pick, and the headline-making Sanders was one of the day’s most engrossing games. Ward didn’t have a great performance, but he earned bragging rights over his counterpart Sanders, who played his best game yet, as the Tennessee Titans hung on for a 31-29 win over the Cleveland Browns.

Ward completed 14 of 28 passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns with one interception – his first multitouchdown passing day of the season. He fired a 14-yard TD pass to Elic Ayomanor on Tennessee’s opening possession and threw a 5-yard scoring pass to Chimere Dike early in the fourth quarter to put the Titans up by 11 points en route to their second win of the season.

Sanders, who surprisingly slipped to the fifth round of the draft, is now the Browns’ starter after getting the nod two weeks ago. He shined Sunday, completing 23 of 42 passes for 364 yards, three touchdowns and an interception, adding 29 yards and a TD on the ground.

It was the first rookie-versus-rookie QB matchup of the season, and it was another chapter in the friendly rivalry between Ward and Sanders.

Widely regarded as the two best QBs in the 2025 draft class, Ward and Sanders had trained together often since 2022, according to ESPN. The two Texas natives worked out alongside each other during the pre-draft process and became friends. They even have shared the same personal QB coach over the past several years, per ESPN, and the three commonly FaceTimed with each other when Ward was at Washington State (2022-23) and Miami (2024), and while Sanders played for Colorado (2023-24).

In their first head-to-head, Ward’s Cougars stomped Sanders’ Buffaloes in a 2023 matchup in Pullman, 56-14. Sanders exited in the second quarter of that game with an injury.

The two took similar paths to the NFL. They both emerged as stars at the FCS level, then became national standouts in the Pac-12. But their NFL careers have differed. Ward was handed the reins right away, while Sanders slipped in the draft and had to wait for his opportunity.

Ward, who has started all 13 games for Tennessee, has passed for 2,468 yards and nine touchdowns with seven interceptions on a 59% completion rate.

• Cooper Kupp (EWU) found the end zone for the second time in a Seattle uniform during the Seahawks’ 37-9 rout of Atlanta.

The veteran receiver hasn’t been as productive as the Seahawks would have hoped when they acquired him in a celebrated free-agency signing this offseason, but Kupp provided some encouragement Sunday for Seattle fans who have been waiting for the homegrown talent to make a big play.

Kupp finished with 35 yards on two catches, snagging an 11-yard TD reception early in the fourth quarter to put Seattle up 30-9. For the season, Kupp has 473 yards and two TDs on 36 receptions.

• Abraham Lucas (WSU) played every snap at right tackle during the Seahawks’ win over the Falcons.

The fourth-year pro allowed three pressures but no sacks. Lucas has been an anchor for Seattle all year after a couple of injury-plagued seasons. He’s played every offensive snap for the Seahawks this year.

Lucas ranks 23rd out of 81 tackles, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s the No. 21-ranked run-blocking tackle and No. 34 in pass protection.

• Esa Pole (WSU), a rookie left tackle, received a promotion to the Kansas City Chiefs’ active roster earlier this week and made his NFL debut Sunday during the team’s 20-10 loss to Houston.

Pole was promoted to fill in as a backup due to injuries. On the Chiefs’ first play from scrimmage, starting left tackle Wanya Morris suffered an injury that caused him to miss the rest of the game, thrusting Pole into action.

Pole played the rest of the game in his place and fared well, considering the circumstances. He allowed three pressures, but didn’t give up a sack. Not bad for an undrafted rookie out of WSU that hadn’t played organized football before picking up the sport during his time at Chabot College in California.

• Jaylen Watson (WSU), a starting cornerback for the Chiefs, had a bounce-back game, surrendering no receptions on two targets, per PFF.

Watson finished with two tackles. The fourth-year pro was coming off a game against Dallas in which he gave up 104 yards on eight catches. But he did collect his second interception of the season in that game.

• Jaden Hicks (WSU) played sparingly at strong safety for Kansas City, appearing on 11 snaps and finishing a game with no tackles for just the second time this season.

• Jalen Thompson (WSU), the longtime strong safety for Arizona, finished tied for second on his team with seven tackles in the Cardinals’ 45-17 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

Thompson, making his 85th-career start for Arizona, allowed two catches for 32 yards, per PFF.

• Frankie Luvu (WSU), a team captain at linebacker for Washington, finished with three tackles and one pass defended in the Commanders’ 31-0 loss to Minnesota.

Luvu gave up three catches for 21 yards, according to PFF.

For the season, the eighth-year vet ranks fifth on his team with 65 tackles (five for loss), a falloff from Luvu’s 2024 campaign in which he finished with 99 tackles (12 for loss) and landed on the All-Pro second team.

• Kaden Elliss (Idaho), a team captain at linebacker for Atlanta, played every defensive snap and finished tied for second on his team with six tackles during the loss to Seattle.

Elliss had a couple of nice plays in the ground game, assisting on a 1-yard tackle for loss and making a stop for a gain of 2 yards.

The seventh-year vet leads Atlanta with 88 tackles on the season.

• Marcus Harris (Idaho), a rookie cornerback for Tennessee, made his third consecutive start – the third start of his career – and logged his first-career forced fumble during the Titans’ win over the Browns.

Harris used a perfect form tackle to dislodge the ball from Cleveland running back Dylan Sampson’s grasp on a short swing pass early in the fourth quarter. The Titans recovered, setting up a touchdown drive that put them ahead 28-17.

Harris, who played all 69 defensive snaps, was the Titans’ most effective player in the secondary, allowing 14 yards on one catch, per PFF. He totaled four tackles.

• Samson Ebukam (EWU), a defensive end for Indianapolis, came off the bench to record three tackles – all resulting in runs of 3 or fewer yards – during the Colts’ 36-19 loss to Jacksonville.

For the season, the ninth-year pro has 21 tackles (four for loss) and two sacks.

• Ryan Rehkow (Central Valley) averaged 39.5 yards on two punts for Cincinnati in a snowy environment, with a long punt of 57 yards during the Bengals’ 39-34 loss to Buffalo.

The BYU grad entered the week leading the NFL in punting average (52.3).