Vince Young continues to revive a career once thought dead. The third-overall pick in the 2006 draft had a fantastic rookie season, suffered through injuries and inconsistent play the next two years, and finally got a second chance after head coach Jeff Fisher begrudgingly benched 36-year-old Kerry Collins last month.
Which is the greatest Texas Longhorns quarterback of all time? Young led the Texas Longhorns to a season of perfection and the BCS national title in 2005 as a junior. McCoy, a four-year starter at Texas, has a chance tonight to become college football's all-time winningest quarterback with 43 wins should the second-ranked Longhorns make it past Kansas here at Texas Memorial Stadium.
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- Did someone know what they were doing with Vince Young in Tennessee?
Apparently so. There's no doubt that Young is a different quarterback as a starter in 2009 than he was in 2007 and during that infamous opening week game of '08, when the former Titans' No. 1 draft pick sustained a career and emotional breakdown and was benched for Kerry Collins.
NFL players grow and mature as athletes, leaders and men differently. A rare few come out of the draft as impact players. Of those, fewer still are quarterbacks, the most visible and important member of an NFL franchise.
So while Titans coach Jeff Fisher enjoys some breathing room now that his once maligned and winless team is revitalized following a two-game winning streak, perhaps it's time to give the NFL's longest-tenured head coach some credit: making Young a sideline protégé in 2008 and half of '09 has turned this fourth-year quarterback into a new player.
The comparisons between the Texas Longhorns 2005 team and this season's team are inevitable.
At this point in the 2005 season, the Vince Young-led Longhorns looked pretty invincible. After a tough early season game against Ohio State , they romped over opponents with relative ease on the way to the BCS national title. These Colt McCoy-led Longhorns are doing the same with only their annual rivalry game against Oklahoma serving as the lone close challenge in putting together a perfect 9-0 record and a No. 2 national ranking.
It's just the second time since 1983 that the Longhorns have been 9-0. The other time, of course, was in 2005 when they put together an undefeated campaign that ended with a dramatic national championship victory over USC.
He gave the "apology to those I've offended" non-apology, saying he wore the jersey in honor of former Colts coach Tony Dungy who he was introducing, it was all in fun, and even with what he knows now, he would do it again. Really?
How about if he knew some Bud Adams-hating Houston Texan fans got pictures of him in the jersey and decided to do their own Photoshop fun? The video of the result is after the jump. I have to give a Celine Dion warning, and tell you that the video starts off a little slow but then gets very wrong, which means it gets very funny.
He gave the "apology to those I've offended" non-apology, saying he wore the jersey in honor of former Colts coach Tony Dungy who he was introducing, it was all in fun, and even with what he knows now, he would do it again. Really?
How about if he knew some Bud Adams-hating Houston Texan fans got pictures of him in the jersey and decided to do their own Photoshop fun? The video of the result is after the jump. I have to give a Celine Dion warning, and tell you that the video starts off a little slow but then gets very wrong, which means it gets very funny.
When it became clear that Vince Young wasn't going to get his starting job back from Kerry Collins, the speculation began. Young, selected third-overall in the 2006 draft -- before Matt Leinart or Jay Cutler -- started 13 games as a rookie, leading the Titans to an 8-8 record (including a 6-1 finish). In 2007, Young started 15 times, the Titans won 10 games, and they qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2003. All seemed well.
Then, last season, VY went down with a knee injury in Week 1, Collins came in, performed well enough to keep the gig (the Titans went 13-3 and Collins got a new deal), and the talk turned to Young's future in Tennessee.
Vince Young has had a lot of ups and downs in his football career (mostly ups at Texas, mostly downs in Tennessee) but he's always remained one thing: awkwardly chugging tequila shirtless at a party full of dudesmaking it rain a very talented athlete.
So it's no surprise that when he sat down with Esquire (you can read it here or wait for the mag to come out in a few days) for a reflection-filled and future-gazing interview that he discussed his potential and his hopes for his career as an NFL quarterback. But even despite his past success, his prognostication for the years to come seem a touch high.
According to a TMZ.com video and article, Young decided to make it rain at a Nelly concert in Houston last week by pulling out a roll of money and showering a crowd with dollar bills. The longer, cuss-worded version of the evening is on the YouTubes and includes an interview with Vince Young. He gives his support to Houston rapper Willie D of the Geto Boys, who was recently arrested for alleged iPhone scam.
AUSTIN, Texas -- Okay, so let the debate began.
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- Did someone know what they were doing with Vince Young in Tennessee?
Some Titans fans weren't amused when coach Jeff Fisher wore a Peyton Manning jersey at a Nashville fundraiser, and he joked "I just wanted to feel like a winner today." Fisher seemed surprised anybody would be angry about this, even after his 0-6 team just got humilated by the Patriots 59-0. 
When it became clear that Vince Young wasn't going to get his starting job back from Kerry Collins, the speculation began. Young, selected third-overall in the 2006 draft -- before Matt Leinart or Jay Cutler -- started 13 games as a rookie, leading the Titans to an 8-8 record (including a 6-1 finish). In 2007, Young started 15 times, the Titans won 10 games, and they qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2003. All seemed well. 
Vince Young has had a lot of ups and downs in his football career (mostly ups at Texas, mostly downs in Tennessee) but he's always remained one thing: 
Titans quarterback Vince Young is dedicating himself in the offseason to regaining his starter role. Or not. 
