NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Pairing offensive coordinator Brian Daboll with second-year quarterback Cam Ward was one of the most critical moves for new Tennessee Titans coach Robert Saleh.
Ward’s development into a franchise quarterback is the key to Saleh’s success in his second stint as a head coach. Saleh feels he’s made an ideal quarterback-offensive coordinator pairing.
“[Daboll] is the perfect man to match up with Cam and to maximize who he is,” Saleh said during his introductory news conference last month.
Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi now has to add the necessary options that will allow Daboll’s offense to work.
Daboll’s roots offensively are entrenched in the Erhardt-Perkins system, which he learned as a wide receivers coach with the New England Patriots under offensive coordinator Charlie Weis. The Erhardt-Perkins system focuses on high-percentage, shorter passes mixed with deep play-action shots.
It was originally more of a run-focused scheme before evolving to a greater focus on the passing game under Weis, which maximized the use of slot receivers catching the high-percentage short passes. Weis used the Erhardt-Perkins system to help maximize the versatility and shiftiness of slot receivers.
A look at the Titans’ roster quickly reveals a degree of uncertainty at the position. Sure, Elic Ayomanor and Chimere Dike each had a team-leading four receiving touchdowns as rookies last season. Gunnar Helm‘s 44 receptions set a single-season franchise record for rookie tight ends.
The three second-year pass catchers already have outstanding chemistry with Ward, but another element is needed for the Titans’ offense to take off.
The Patriots Super Bowl-winning teams in the early 2000s featured Troy Brown as the leading pass catcher from the slot with Weis calling the plays. New England’s offense was most effective when it had Brown working the slot and Deion Branch lining up in multiple spots, including inside. Quarterback Tom Brady and the receivers started to see the game through the same lens and relied on a quick, timing-based passing game. Brady threw to spots knowing the receiver would get to them.
Daboll wasn’t able to repeat that success when he served as offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns in 2009 and 2010, with the Miami Dolphins in 2011 or the Kansas City Chiefs in 2012. But he managed to implement another aspect of his offensive approach when he returned to the Patriots as the tight ends coach from 2013 to 2016 under offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
Those Patriots teams featured tight end Rob Gronkowski and slot receiver Julian Edelman. Brady was comfortably able to work the middle of the field to Gronkowski, Edelman and to a lesser degree, fellow slot receiver Danny Amendola.
Edelman was used across the formation, but quickly learned what it took to be a contributor from the slot.
“If you’re able to digest and process information, that’s when you got a lot of balls,” Edelman said via Patriots.com. “It comes with being able to take pre-snap pictures and post-snap pictures and being able to see change in defense and recognize what’s going on and being able to adjust on the fly. Your route could be something completely different while being on the same page as the quarterback.”
Armed with a new understanding of the scheme, Daboll became the offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2017, resulting in a national championship. Calvin Ridley‘s 63 receptions for 967 yards and five touchdowns led the team that year. Ridley said he played the slot a lot more during his junior season under Daboll. Daboll is now reunited with Ridley in Tennessee. However, Ridley’s $26.5 million cap figure could lead to the Titans’ releasing him.
Given the state of the receivers room, Daboll’s previous success with Ridley and the Titans having over $100 million in cap space, it isn’t out of the realm for them to keep the veteran receiver and sign a free agent such as Wan’Dale Robinson to man the slot.
At Daboll’s most recent stop as the coach of the New York Giants, he took advantage of Robinson’s ability to create separation and handle a high-target volume — similar to his past slot receivers. Robinson caught 93 passes with the Giants under Daboll in 2024 and had 53 of his 92 receptions before Daboll was fired after Week 10 last season.
Daboll’s most successful time as a playcaller was with the Buffalo Bills, where he was the offensive coordinator from 2018 to 2021. He helped transform Buffalo into a top-tier offense, peaking in 2020 as the NFL’s No. 2 scoring unit — averaging 31.3 points per game.
Quarterback Josh Allen‘s career took off that season, and it’s no coincidence that their success occurred after the Bills acquired Stefon Diggs from the Minnesota Vikings. Daboll worked a one-two punch at receiver with Cole Beasley primarily in the slot and Diggs working across the formation to create favorable matchups. Allen passed for a career-high 4,544 yards, and Diggs posted 127 receptions for 1,535 yards, both career highs. Beasley’s 82 catches for 967 yards were career highs as well.
No one is saying Tennessee will the offensive output from the 2020 Bills, but the chances of doing so will only increase if the Titans surround Ward with the necessary talent to execute Daboll’s scheme.
