NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans practiced in Music City on Wednesday morning and then headed out for their longest preseason road trip since the franchise left Texas in 1997.
Second-year coach Brian Callahan scheduled not one, but two sets of joint practices around back-to-back road games starting Thursday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He sees nine nights away from Nashville as a way to create more of an old training camp vibe for a young team.
“That’s sort of the intent of the whole trip,” Callahan said. “Spend some time, get a chance to grow together, and then get to go play against some other teams.”
Callahan also wants to hear the reviews from the Buccaneers, then the Atlanta Falcons on what they think of how the Titans compete. He sees this as a chance for a starting point of what the Titans can be this year.
“And get a change to do some things as a team on the road, some events together, things like that,” Callahan said. “It’s something I’m really looking forward to. Can’t wait.”
The Titans, who went 3-14 in Callahan's debut season, will be away from Nashville for nine straight nights. They won't practice again in Nashville until Aug. 19 before wrapping up the preseason by hosting Minnesota on Aug. 22.
After opening this preseason Saturday night against Tampa Bay, the Titans go to Atlanta for two joint practices and a game Aug. 15.
Left tackle Dan Moore has had only one joint practice with Pittsburgh, and that was last year. This will be a bit of a new experience, though Moore is familiar to going away to camp with the Steelers a regular at Latrobe, Pennsylvania.
“Obviously, we’re on a business trip, but we’ll have some free time, some downtime," Moore said. "We’ll be in the hotel. Guys can hang out, do stuff together and go places, go eat, whatever. And I think that’s a good time for us to just bond as team and build chemistry.”
Bonding can only help a franchise that has added 37 free agents, nine drafted rookies and five more players added off waivers through Sunday — a total of 51 players in training camp.
Safety Quandre Diggs isn't new after playing eight games for Tennessee last season before going on injured reserve. He signed Tuesday, and the Titans are easing him back into the mix. He recognizes a lot of faces on the roster, including his cousin, rookie quarterback Cam Ward.
“It’s different when you walk in the locker room and you see your family, like real family," the three-time Pro Bowl safety said of Ward. "And so it was cool.”
Titans defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson has been trying to throw every look possible at Ward to help prep the No. 1 draft pick overall for the season opener Sept. 7 at Denver. Now the Titans will get a glimpse of how other NFL defenses might challenge the rookie.
“He's a grown man to me,” wide receiver Calvin Ridley said of Ward. “He's a confident guy, he's a guy that wants to be good.”
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Tennessee Titans wide receiver Calvin Ridley (0) makes a catch during practice at the team's NFL football training camp Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward, left, salutes teammate wide receiver Xavier Restrepo, center, during practice at the team's NFL football training camp Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan watches practice during "Back Together Weekend" at the team's NFL football training camp Saturday, July 26, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Voting began Thursday in Uganda’s presidential election despite a days-long internet shutdown that has been criticized as an anti-democratic tactic in a country where the president has held office since 1986.
Crowds gathered and long lines formed in some areas as polling station openings were delayed and voting materials were seen being delivered after the scheduled 7 a.m. opening time.
President Yoweri Museveni, 81, faces seven other candidates, including Robert Kyagulanyi, a musician-turned-politician best known as Bobi Wine, who is calling for political change.
The East African country of roughly 45 million people has 21.6 million registered voters. Polls are expected to close at 4 p.m. Thursday, according to the electoral commission. Results are constitutionally required to be announced in 48 hours.
Impatient crowds gathered outside polling stations expressing concerns over the delays Thursday morning. Umaru Mutyaba, a polling agent for a parliamentary candidate, said it was “frustrating” to be waiting outside a station in the capital Kampala.
“We can’t be standing here waiting to vote as if we have nothing else to do," he said.
Ssemujju Nganda, a prominent opposition figure and lawmaker seeking reelection in Kira municipality, told The Associated Press he had been waiting in line to vote for three hours.
In addition to delayed voting materials, biometric voter identification machines were not working properly, Nganda said, adding that delays likely will lead to apathy and low turnout in urban areas where the opposition has substantial support.
“It’s going to be chaos,” he said.
Uganda has not witnessed a peaceful transfer of presidential power since independence from British colonial rule six decades ago.
Museveni has served the third-longest term of any African leader and is seeking to extend his rule into a fifth decade. Some critics say removing him through elections remains difficult, but the aging president’s authority has become increasingly dependent on the military led by his son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
Museveni and Wine are reprising their rivalry from the previous election in 2021, when Wine appealed to mostly young people in urban areas. With voter turnout of 59%, Wine secured 35% of the ballots against Museveni’s 58%, the president’s smallest vote share since his first electoral campaign three decades ago.
The lead-up to Thursday's election produced concerns about transparency, the possibility of hereditary rule, military interference and opposition strategies to prevent vote tampering at polling stations.
Uganda's internet was shut down Tuesday by the government communications agency, which cited misinformation, electoral fraud and incitement of violence. The shutdown has affected the public and disrupted critical sectors such as banking.
There has been heavy security leading up to voting, including military units deployed on the streets this week.
Amnesty International said security forces are engaging in a “brutal campaign of repression,” citing a Nov. 28 opposition rally in eastern Uganda where the military blocked exits and opened fire on supporters, killing one person.
Museveni urged voters to come out in large numbers during his final rally Tuesday.
“You go and vote, anybody who tries to interfere with your freedom will be crushed. I am telling you this. We are ready to put an end to this indiscipline,” he said.
The national electoral commission chairperson, Simon Byabakama, urged tolerance among Ugandans as they vote.
“Let us keep the peace that we have,” Byabakama said late Wednesday. “Let us be civil. Let us be courteous. Let’s be tolerant. Even if you know that this person does not support (your) candidate, please give him or her room or opportunity to go and exercise his or her constitutional right."
Authorities also suspended the activities of several civic groups during the campaign season. That Group, a prominent media watchdog, closed its office Wednesday after the interior ministry alleged in a letter that the group was involved in activities “prejudicial to the security and laws of Uganda.”
Veteran opposition figure Kizza Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate, remains in prison after he was charged with treason in February 2025.
Uganda opposition presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, known as Bobi Wine, right, greets election observers, including former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, at his home in Magere village on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)
Billboards of Uganda President and National Resistance Movement (NRM) presidential candidate Yoweri Museveni are seen in Kampala, Uganda, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Samson Otieno)
Electoral workers deliver ballot boxes to a polling station during presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Voters are reflected in a police officer's sunglasses as they wait in line after voting failed to start on time due to system failures during presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Voters wait to cast their ballots during the presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
