Vince's Fragile Future

Here's a good one:

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/news?slug=tb-vince030306&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Dear Texans,

Vince Young is amazing.  If you don't draft him and he falls to the Titans, you will have the oportunity to watch him beat you twice a year, including during your only sell out crowd at Reliant Stadium each season.  

P.S.  If the Saints try to trade up for your pick, don't do it.

I've been pretty honest in saying here and on other blogs that I think VY will have a successful NFL career. Success can be a Super Bowl ring or a Hall of Fame career. Obviously both would be the ultimate.  Anything less than those three would not spell success in my eyes, and certainly not in Vince's.

While 2 months have passed since the Rose Bowl I've put that tough loss behind me and feel that I have a pretty objective opinion of Vince Young.  His performance in the RB has shown to many people, including me, that he probably should have won the Heisman.  While that's my opinion I really can't back it up with facts.

I heard on the radio earlier this week that a lot of the negative press on VY has been because most of the press was on the SC bandwagon.  I think there may be some truth to that. The media has always shown to be fickle and this is their way covering their collective butts.

That being said, it is also easy for VY fans to get their back up when they feel he has been disrespected.  Weather you agree with it or not the Wonderlic test is a part of the process. The concept may be flawed and it SHOULD be revaluated as a tool in assessing a player's intelligence, but until that happens it is a part of the process.  It might not matter to us if he got a 6 or 16 on the test but to those who are evaluating him it does matter.  I believe I heard that 95% of all QB's who received a 25 or better had successful NFL careers, so the test obviously has some merit but it shouldn't carry that much weight.  Personally the only  "test" I need are the tapes of LAST 2 Rose Bowl Games.

But here's the rub to me. I understand the sentiment, but have trouble agreeing with the "true sign of intelligence failure" line.  Change in the NFL is a slow process and it will take a real visionary to let Vince be Vince.  

Who is that visionary?  

Is it within the new youth movement in the NFL or will it be an old dog that is able to learn new tricks?  Mangini of the Jets comes to mind as the former. Chow of the Titans comes to mind as the latter.  The team that drafts him will get a real treasure and using the full extent of his talent should be a measured process. It can't and won't happen overnight.  Any other way would put Vince at risk for failure or serious injury.

Vince's biggest disadvantage isn't a test or his throwing motion but rather his extraordinary talent.  You can't categorize it in to any one category.  Again, it will take someone with real vision to take full advantage of it.

I would not see it as bad thing if Vince dropped a few spots in the first round.  He might get to a better team with better protection and who won't have the sense of urgency to get him into the game right away.  

Pushing VY to perform right away might be counter productive in the long run and isn't it more important that we get to watch perform his magic over the long haul? I do, I'm willing to wait a year or two of Vince carrying the clipboard to really see him flourish in the league.

Offensive genius

"To get the most out of Young an NFL team is going to have to build an offense around him. You would think that anyone would want to take advantage of his skills -- his running ability is like having an extra back and his ability to work free for the pass sets up all sorts of deep routes."

However, most every offensive coordinator has a pet 'system' that got him his job. Many did not design their own systems but just coached on a team that had one. They had much rather plug a new quarterback into an established system than retool the offense at the same time as breaking in a rookie quarterback."

So the question is what team can find the courage to make the changes necessary to utilize Young's talent? For a while there it looked like Houston might, but fear of failure seems to have done them in. New Orleans -- maybe. Tennessee -- probably. Niners -- hmmm. But not the stiffs who want to play it safe."