DENVER (AP) — After spending quite a bit of time on the ground, Cam Ward had a firm grasp on where he wanted to go next.

“The only way is up,” he said.

It was a hit-filled, pressure-applied debut for the Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback in a 20-12 loss to Denver on Sunday. He was sacked six times by a relentless Broncos defense as his offense managed just seven first downs.

What’s more, the Titans nearly had as many total yards (133) as penalty yards (131). The one thing that never wavered, though, was Ward’s poise.

He remained cool amid the chaos.

“Denver is a tough place to play, good team,” offensive lineman Lloyd Cushenberry III said, “and I didn’t see his demeanor change at all.”

Ward, the top pick in the draft last April, finished 12 of 28 for 112 yards and a QB rating of 54.5.

There were some dazzling moments for Ward, like a nearly no-look completion to Tony Pollard on his first NFL pass. The play went for 29 yards.

Ward had some rookie moments, too, like two plays in the fourth quarter with Denver leading 13-12. After the Titans recovered a muffed punt, they were already in field goal territory. But Ward would take back-to-back sacks that lost a total of 27 yards and knock them out of field-goal range.

Just part of the on-the-NFL-job training.

“Can’t take a sack in those situations,” said Titans coach Brian Callahan, whose offense was 2 of 14 on third down. “It’s a learning moment for him. This is a really tough test out the gate, his first start against this defense, in this stadium. There’s plenty of things he’s going to learn. He’s going to learn a lot over the course of these games.

“None of us are perfect. He’s not going to play perfect. There are things that we’re going to keep coaching and keep harping on, and he’ll learn quick.”

Through it all, Ward had a chance to lead the Titans on a tying drive when they got the ball back with 59 seconds left at their own 36. He had three straight incompletions and then, on fourth down, he was sacked and lost the football.

“There’s a lot of positives from his demeanor,” said Callahan, whose team hosts the Los Angeles Rams next weekend. “I think he’ll improve at a rapid rate.”

Tennessee struggled to sustain a consistent rushing attack, which could’ve alleviated some of the pressure. The team averaged 3.4 yards per carry.

“That’s always hard for any quarterback,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said. “Once they were one-dimensional, our pass rush did a great job.

“We felt that was one of the keys to victory, especially a young quarterback, his greatest friend could be a run game. … I thought our pass rush in coverage was great.”

The Titans couldn’t take advantage of four turnovers by the Broncos. They were only able to cash them in for six points.

“We didn’t score a touchdown today,” Ward lamented. “We’ve just got to keep on grinding, keep leaning on each other, continue to get in and out of the huddle.

“As the game went on, we got better at getting out of the huddle. This is our first game together.”

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