Vince Young Broke, Embroiled In Lawsuit

Vince Young has never lacked for confidence, declaring after he was drafted that he would make the Hall of Fame, then making the same statement in 2009 after losing his starting job in Tennessee.

Right now, however, confidence won't help Young much -- he's jobless after being let go by the Buffalo Bills, and broke after squandering all of the $26 million he was guaranteed from his rookie contract, as well as $30 million from endorsements, apparently, though it's less clear what happened to that money. A ridiculous amount of money to spend in such a short period of time, but an effort that is hardly unprecedented in the ranks of professional athletes and musicians, where there are a hundred such stories.

The end result is that Young now has drastically reduced earning power -- there will be no more big-time endorsement deals -- and will need to work harder than he ever has to make a return to the NFL as his career in the league teeters on the edge of the abyss. Besides the CFL, there aren't other leagues that will catch him in his fall, unlike basketball.

At the moment though, the most pressing issue is the lawsuit he has filed against his representation, family friend Major Adams, a former Houston criminal defense attorney, and his financial advisor, which alleges that the two misappropriated money. It's a suit filed in an effort to keep a lender from collecting on a judgement for a loan Young took out during the lockout that has not been repaid.

It's an ugly situation that includes a countersuit filed by the financial advisor and allegations already flying hard and heavy from both directions. It's getting ugly already. Where the actual truth lies is impossible to discern at the moment, but the damage to Young's finances is not.

For younger players entering the NFL, the lesson here is not only to plan as if the first guaranteed contract could be the last, but also to find legitimate professional representation instead of relying on those with little experience, but connections to the family.

Whatever comes of it, the bottom line is that the NFL career of Vince Young hasn't gone as he hoped or as Texas fans hoped, as he faces an uncertain future as a borderline NFL quarterback. To top it all off, he has few prospects of post-NFL success other than his steakhouse in Austin and however else he can continue to use his name and exploits as a Longhorn to keep himself afloat.

This is not the final chapter in the Vince Young story, but the current chapter is quite a sad one, whatever the truth is regarding the pending lawsuits.