Will Pat Coogan start for Titans? Meet 6th-round pick, Cam Ward's potential anchor

"With the offensive linemen for us, the grit, the toughness, the nasty, the ability and want-to to finish, those are things we really value in those offensive linemen," Titans assistant GM Dave Ziegler said. "He fits all of those. So we feel like there’s a guy there that because of his intangibles, he’s going to reach his potential."

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Ask Mike Denbrock, one of Coogan's offensive coordinators at Notre Dame, and he'll say Coogan has NFL-level ability but All-Pro-level leadership traits. Coogan drew national fame for his pregame speeches at Notre Dame, and then even more notoriety in 2025 after transferring to Indiana. Coogan's heart-of-the-offense traits were so well known that he was awarded Rose Bowl MVP honors for the Hoosiers' 38-3 thumping of Alabama in January.

Shortly after being drafted, Coogan said he'll have to earn his way into a leadership position with the Titans, making no promises of fiery, profanity-laden, tone-setting rants in Year 1. But the same was true in college. Coogan sat for two years at Notre Dame before emerging as a starting left guard in 2023. He lost that role in preseason 2024 and was relegated to the bench for three weeks before a teammate's injury thrust him into the center role. But by that point, Coogan was already the vocal leader of the Fighting Irish's offensive line room, so the on-field role was mostly a formality.

Well, maybe not a formality. After all, Coogan's Notre Dame and Indiana teams went 28-1 with him as a starting center.

"His heart’s bigger than he is," Denbrock said. "His love for the game and his willingness to continue to continuously work on being better at the things he needs to be better at has led to this opportunity for him."

Coogan arrives for Titans offseason activities in an interesting position. The Titans don't have a clear starting center after parting ways with Lloyd Cushenberry III and Corey Levin. They signed veteran Austin Schlottmann, who's started 18 games in eight seasons, including four at center in 2025. Schlottmann graded fairly well, for what it's worth, but he's not a signing who comes with guaranteed starter expectations. As Ziegler said, Coogan will have the opportunity to earn a job.

Denbrock says Coogan's leadership stems from two places. One is authenticity. The other is wielding that authenticity in a way that makes teammates want to behave, prepare and play the way Coogan does.

Ask Coogan about his chances of starting as a rookie and those two traits shine through immediately.

"All I am looking to do is come in and get to work," Coogan said. "That's who I am, that's what I am about. Just compete every single day, put my best foot forward, come into the facility every single day and be the same guy no matter what happened the day before. Good day, bad day, it doesn't matter, I am going to come in and put my best foot forward and go out there and compete. That's truly who I am and what I am all about."

Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X @nicksuss. Subscribe to the Talkin’ Titans newsletter for updates sent directly to your inbox.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Can Pat Coogan start for Titans? Meet Cam Ward's potential new center