Can an NFL joint practice help predict how successful a team will be during the regular season?
The Tennessee Titans host the Chicago Bears for their third and final joint practice of 2026 on Thursday, and new NFL data gives the practice surprisingly significant stakes.
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Austin Stanley and Easton Freeze break down research presented by former NFL analytics executive Ryan Paganetti and longtime NFL reporter Nick Underhill on their YouTube show. Paganetti and Underhill studied more than 50 clear NFL joint-practice winners and losers to determine whether those August results carried into the regular season.
The Titans have split their first two joint practices.
Tennessee struggled during its practice against the San Francisco 49ers in California. Cam Ward and the Titans’ offense endured an inconsistent day, while the 49ers frequently controlled the physical and emotional tone of the session.
The Titans produced a much more encouraging performance against the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks in Nashville. Ward finished strongly, Brian Daboll successfully used tempo to answer Seattle’s defensive pressure and Tennessee’s offensive line created opportunities in the running game. Alontae Taylor and the Titans defense also generated several impact plays, including a pick-six.
That leaves Thursday’s joint practice against Chicago as the potential tiebreaker.
According to the data presented by Paganetti, if Tennessee defeats the Bears and finishes 2-1 in its joint practices, the Titans would enter a historical group that produced at least eight regular-season victories 68 percent of the time.
Would the 2026 Titans fall within that successful 68 percent—or the disappointing 32 percent?
Austin and Easton discuss whether joint-practice results can reveal legitimate team quality, how observers should determine which team actually “won” a practice and whether the Titans’ performances against San Francisco, Seattle and Chicago match their regular-season expectations.
The quarterback data may be even more interesting.
Paganetti’s research found that teams identified as joint-practice winners demoted or replaced their starting quarterback during the season only seven percent of the time. Teams that lost their joint practices made a quarterback demotion 23 percent of the time.
Cam Ward is not competing to retain Tennessee’s starting job, but the data could still reveal something about his second season. Does winning a joint practice demonstrate that a quarterback has command of the offense, can answer adversity and has earned the confidence of his coaching staff? Could Ward’s performance against Chicago offer a more useful preview than the Titans’ preseason games?
Easton also provides the latest update from Tuesday’s Titans practice, including roster clues, injury developments and what Tennessee is preparing to accomplish against the Bears.
Join the LIVE conversation:
🏈 Will the Titans finish joint practices 2-1?
🏈 Would Tennessee fall in the successful 68 percent or the other 32 percent?
🏈 How much should joint-practice results influence season expectations?
🏈 What does the quarterback data mean for Cam Ward?
🏈 What must Tennessee prove against Chicago?
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