Cbz40
The Grand Poobah
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The rehab that Young really needs
Buck Harvey -
Vince Young talked about his mother. He blamed himself. And afterward, asked to evaluate how he had played, he looked at the floor.
“Terrible,” Young said. “Real bad. Real bad.”
Oh, the depths.
That was after his first game as an NFL starter.
From the beginning, the kid needed the team psychologist. Young played as he probably should have that day against the Cowboys in 2006.
He would go on to become the rookie of the year, but not even that was good enough for him. He would later tell a reporter that, shortly after his rookie season, he had thought about retiring.
“I really thought long and hard about it,” he said.
He never really thinks long and hard about anything. He lives as he passes (sometimes too high and sometimes too low). The same quality that made Young so special at Texas — his personality — jeopardizes his career, which is why the rehab for his recently injured knee might not be enough.
Unless they rehab his head, too.
It's not over for him, and he's far from being a bust. Alex Smith and Matt Leinart are closer to being that.
Only 11 quarterbacks drafted in the first round since 1983 have gone to the playoffs in a first or second season, and Young is one of them. Don't forget this, either: The Titans were a combined 9-23 the two seasons before Young arrived.
Anyone else would see the glass half full. Young sometimes drowns in his glass, and there were times in Austin when he was the same. Mack Brown, who said he has been in communication with Young this week, saw several such moments.
One came at the end of the 2005 season. Texas had just won its 11th consecutive game, and six weeks later, it would win the national championship. But that day, Young felt awful. He had struggled against the Aggies, and because of that, Reggie Bush had clinched the Heisman.
So in a stairwell of Kyle Field, with no one else around, Brown counseled his quarterback. Brown often knew what Young needed to hear, and Brown had been at it just days before.
Then, Brown declared Young would someday be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In the stairwell, Brown opted for the present. “Here's what matters,” Brown told Young. “11-0. No. 2 in the country.”
The pep talk worked. After all, 13-0 and No. 1 followed.
Most wouldn't have to be reminded of a perfect record. But few see the world as Young does. He's emotional, demanding and dramatic.
Brown chooses to put it another way. “He set a very, very high standard for himself,” Brown said Wednesday. “And when he doesn't feel like he reached that standard at that moment, he does get disappointed.”
In college, Young could overcome the disappointment with the confidence and joy that inspired his teammates. In the NFL, where some failure over 16 games is assured, the emotions turn on him.
It's a destructive trait, as well as an immature one. Eli Manning has heard boos, and New York sports talk once called him “She-li.” Rex Grossman took the Bears to the Super Bowl as a civic joke. And then there's Tony Romo.
He's a gym rat with passion for the game, yet he's handled his failures. It's called being a professional, and maybe his background has a lot to do with that. After all, when Young was about to start his first game in 2006, Romo was a sub.
At the time, the Cowboys had their own confusing story of depression. Just days before, Terrell Owens had survived what they called “an accidental overdose.”
Despite the circus, the Cowboys weren't worried. The Titans were 0-3, and here's something else for those who think Kerry Collins is a better quarterback than Young: Collins lost his job to Young then because he had been awful.
So Young stepped in, and he made a few mistakes and a few nice plays. “He's going to be a great quarterback in this league soon,” Jeff Fisher said.
Young could still be. But he will throw more interceptions, and he will be booed again, and he will have to find some perspective and wisdom.
One outcome is probable. Rehab will help the knee.
Buck Harvey -
Vince Young talked about his mother. He blamed himself. And afterward, asked to evaluate how he had played, he looked at the floor.
“Terrible,” Young said. “Real bad. Real bad.”
Oh, the depths.
That was after his first game as an NFL starter.
From the beginning, the kid needed the team psychologist. Young played as he probably should have that day against the Cowboys in 2006.
He would go on to become the rookie of the year, but not even that was good enough for him. He would later tell a reporter that, shortly after his rookie season, he had thought about retiring.
“I really thought long and hard about it,” he said.
He never really thinks long and hard about anything. He lives as he passes (sometimes too high and sometimes too low). The same quality that made Young so special at Texas — his personality — jeopardizes his career, which is why the rehab for his recently injured knee might not be enough.
Unless they rehab his head, too.
It's not over for him, and he's far from being a bust. Alex Smith and Matt Leinart are closer to being that.
Only 11 quarterbacks drafted in the first round since 1983 have gone to the playoffs in a first or second season, and Young is one of them. Don't forget this, either: The Titans were a combined 9-23 the two seasons before Young arrived.
Anyone else would see the glass half full. Young sometimes drowns in his glass, and there were times in Austin when he was the same. Mack Brown, who said he has been in communication with Young this week, saw several such moments.
One came at the end of the 2005 season. Texas had just won its 11th consecutive game, and six weeks later, it would win the national championship. But that day, Young felt awful. He had struggled against the Aggies, and because of that, Reggie Bush had clinched the Heisman.
So in a stairwell of Kyle Field, with no one else around, Brown counseled his quarterback. Brown often knew what Young needed to hear, and Brown had been at it just days before.
Then, Brown declared Young would someday be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In the stairwell, Brown opted for the present. “Here's what matters,” Brown told Young. “11-0. No. 2 in the country.”
The pep talk worked. After all, 13-0 and No. 1 followed.
Most wouldn't have to be reminded of a perfect record. But few see the world as Young does. He's emotional, demanding and dramatic.
Brown chooses to put it another way. “He set a very, very high standard for himself,” Brown said Wednesday. “And when he doesn't feel like he reached that standard at that moment, he does get disappointed.”
In college, Young could overcome the disappointment with the confidence and joy that inspired his teammates. In the NFL, where some failure over 16 games is assured, the emotions turn on him.
It's a destructive trait, as well as an immature one. Eli Manning has heard boos, and New York sports talk once called him “She-li.” Rex Grossman took the Bears to the Super Bowl as a civic joke. And then there's Tony Romo.
He's a gym rat with passion for the game, yet he's handled his failures. It's called being a professional, and maybe his background has a lot to do with that. After all, when Young was about to start his first game in 2006, Romo was a sub.
At the time, the Cowboys had their own confusing story of depression. Just days before, Terrell Owens had survived what they called “an accidental overdose.”
Despite the circus, the Cowboys weren't worried. The Titans were 0-3, and here's something else for those who think Kerry Collins is a better quarterback than Young: Collins lost his job to Young then because he had been awful.
So Young stepped in, and he made a few mistakes and a few nice plays. “He's going to be a great quarterback in this league soon,” Jeff Fisher said.
Young could still be. But he will throw more interceptions, and he will be booed again, and he will have to find some perspective and wisdom.
One outcome is probable. Rehab will help the knee.
