Bob Magaw
Footballguy
some nice testimonials from some league sources i hadn't head before, like scott linehan & skeletor... they specifically addressed passing skills question by noting marked improvement during 2005 season... linehan suggested he would take VY over bush with the #1 overall pick (i wouldn't, but i would take him at #3 after leinert & ahead of cutler, super mario & hawk)...
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/dr...ate-young_x.htm
Young's talents, perceived shortcomings fuel great draft debate
By Jim Corbett, USA TODAY
INDIANAPOLIS — There is no more qualified Vince Young expert than the former Texas quarterback's longtime mentor and father figure, Steve McNair. McNair proudly touts Young's talent, which he discovered at his youth football camp in Mississippi a decade ago.
McNair was wowed by an immensely poised and gifted high school sophomore from Houston who heaved 70-yard passes with ease and had the camp's founder wondering exactly how old Young was.
"From start to finish, Vince has always been a man amongst boys," McNair says. "Even back then Vince played to another level and stood out from other players."
McNair's Alcorn State roommate and close friend, Ivory Young, talked up his nephew to McNair, who invited Young the younger to attend his camp. Now 22, Young is considered one of the top six prospects in the NFL Draft along with Southern California running back Reggie Bush and his Trojans teammate, quarterback Matt Leinart.
McNair takes pride in Young's beyond-his-years-maturity, having filled a void in Young's life. The quarterback's father, Vince Young Sr., has spent most of the last 10 years in prison for burglary and other crimes.
"I'd hate to be playing against him in 2008 when he gets a feel for the NFL game," McNair says. "He's the next generation at quarterback. You have your Michael Vick. You had your Steve McNair. You had your Warren Moons and Randall Cunninghams. Now you've got a Vince Young, who's separated himself tremendously."
There's a chance Young could emerge as the No. 1 overall selection depending on how well he answers questions about his funky throwing motion and perceived shortcomings on the NFL's Wonderlic test at his March 22 pro day.
"Vince Young is in the mix for the first pick," Houston Texans general manager Charley Casserly says. "He's a special talent. He's a heck of an athlete, and he has the arm strength to make all the NFL throws.
"He has tremendous upside. He has unique running ability, and when he scrambles, he has ability to refocus and find a guy downfield. He does that as well as anybody I've ever seen. He'll have to adjust from playing in the shotgun. It'll be a learning curve."
So how fast can Young reach that upside? That's the $26 million question, considering the guaranteed signing bonus this year's first overall pick probably will receive.
When it comes to that learning curve, the Tennessee Titans would be an ideal spot for Young at No. 3 overall with McNair, 32, indicating he'd like to play only a couple of more years.
Bridging the gap between an 11-year veteran and Young would be a dream handoff for McNair should Young fall to the Titans and Bush and Leinart go first and second to the Texans and New Orleans Saints.
"One of the options I gave the Titans in my contract talks was I wouldn't mind bringing Vince in and tutoring him for a couple of years and letting him take over for me after that. I think I've got a couple more years in me. If I could mentor a protégé of mine until then, that would be the thing to do," McNair says.
McNair was in the Rose Bowl stands Jan. 4 when Young led the Longhorns to a 41-38 overtime victory against Southern California to deliver Texas its first national championship in 36 years.
"I can remember Steve telling me about Vince Young when Vince was a sophomore in high school, saying, 'Wait until you see this guy!' " Titans general manager Floyd Reese says. "He's special."
It would be special for Young to follow in the footsteps of McNair, the third overall pick in 1995 who sat and learned two seasons behind Chris Chandler.
"Knowing how long we've been together, how many different things he has taught me to become the man that I am and how to better myself on the football field and understanding the leadership of a quarterback ... if I get drafted by Tennessee, that would be a blessing," Young says. "Steve and I are real similar, so that would be real good."
Bush appears close to a lock to hold up a No. 1 Texans' jersey alongside Commissioner Paul Tagliabue on April 29. Part of the reason is because Bush would take pressure off quarterback David Carr, who received an $8 million option, extending his contract for three more seasons. But are the Texans really sold on Carr, or did the extension just buy time for another quarterback — such as Young — to develop behind him? Or did the extension make Carr more tradable to another quarterback-needy team? Only time will tell.
The debate about whom to select between Young and Bush is compounded in that Young does not fit the conventional concept of a dropback quarterback. He played entirely in the shotgun, and his unorthodox delivery makes him hard for some old-school talent evaluators to grasp.
"I don't have that dilemma of having to decide who to take with the No. 1 pick. But if I was sitting there with the first pick, it would be hard to pass up a guy who can affect the game in so many ways the way Vince Young can," says new St. Louis Rams head coach Scott Linehan, who developed Daunte Culpepper into an MVP-caliber quarterback in 2004 as offensive coordinator with the Minnesota Vikings.
"As good as Reggie Bush is, (Young) does a lot of things that make him special."
The bottom line? No one will be more scrutinized under the predraft microscope than Young, this year's wild card.
The best personnel men have the vision to see a prospect's future. Young will test that vision because he has every chance to be a great pro supported in the right system and tutored by the right quarterback guru.
Perhaps new Texans head coach Gary Kubiak is that guru. He's a former backup to John Elway, and he successfully rewired Pro Bowl quarterback Jake Plummer as the Denver Broncos offensive coordinator. He must be asking himself: After raising Plummer's game last season, what can be done with Young?
"Vince Young in that offense Gary Kubiak runs would be unreal," says Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms, Young's former Longhorns teammate. "It's like having Jake Plummer, only three-tenths of a second faster in the 40, who is 6-5 and can do some unbelievable things with his feet and his arm. He throws the deep ball better than people think.
"Personally, I think the Texans would love to have Vince Young with the first overall pick. The only thing is in the NFL there's the salary cap to consider (with Carr)."
There's also Young's greatest intangible that can't be measured at any combine: Young might lead this draft class in intuitive upside. He was 30-2 during his career at Texas.
"This is a playmaker's league," Linehan says. "If you start with the No. 1 criteria, scoring points and affecting the game, there isn't a guy at that position who can affect a game more than Vince Young can.
"You go back with Vick, Daunte Culpepper, Randall Cunningham, this guy is special. He's really showed me in this last year he's worked on his ability to throw it and produced.
"People question his throwing motion. But just in this last year the improvement he made as a thrower put him in a whole new league."
Young ranked third in the NCAA with a 163.95 passer rating and completed 65.2% of his passes. Yet Young has scouts scrambling to project how he will do taking snaps under center with his back to the defense, then planting and trying to find his rhythm, not to mention throwing through windows in an opposing defense.
It's why Young's pro day will carry more weight than most.
"If it's even, you have to take the quarterback," NFL.com analyst Gil Brandt says. "What you have to decide if you are the Texans is that if Reggie Bush and Leinart and Vince Young are equal talents, then you have to go with the quarterback because the quarterback has more profound ways of winning games. You can also get a running back later in the draft."
Coaches have taken notice of Young's skill.
"The thing that was impressive was Young's ability to make plays and the consistency of his throws," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan says. "He's been known to not be that accurate and not have the best motion. But when you take a look at the stats and the passing efficiency, it's off the charts.
"Then he makes plays with his legs, and that's what you're looking for in a quarterback, someone who's always making plays. And he does that consistently."
Young won't be able to rely as heavily on his fleet feet in the pros, where defenders are faster and better disguise their intentions.
"There are two distinct camps on Vince Young," NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock says. "The first camp is, 'I don't care what his throwing motion looks like, or that he's not a sophisticated reader of defense. He makes plays and might be the most exciting athlete to ever come into this league.' Then there's the other camp that says, 'He's a bigger Michael Vick. While he's exciting, will he ever get to the next level as a sophisticated quarterback and reader of defense?'
"That second concern is starting to bother personnel people, because the guaranteed dollars are immense. It makes for a more difficult evaluation. Can he come into the NFL and run the ball 15-18 times a game? I'll show you 31 defensive coordinators who would love to have Vince Young run the ball 15-18 times a game.
"(But) sooner or later, he has to be able to throw the football. Are you willing to pass all your chips into the middle of the table and gamble on him?"
Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick says: "This league will pick Vince Young apart pretty good in the time before the draft. But I imagine Vince Young will come out of it pretty good.
"What he was able to do last year by way of substantially upgrading his quarterbacking skills, just the numbers, not only the improvement he's made, it shows the upside that's there. That upside is what you want."
Says Pittsburgh Steelers director of football operations Kevin Colbert: "When you watch Vince Young, you see a player who sometimes seems indefensible. He makes plays, be it with his arm or his feet. You would think that would project to success on this level, too.
"When you have a passer who can run like he can, that's a unique player."
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/dr...ate-young_x.htm
Young's talents, perceived shortcomings fuel great draft debate
By Jim Corbett, USA TODAY
INDIANAPOLIS — There is no more qualified Vince Young expert than the former Texas quarterback's longtime mentor and father figure, Steve McNair. McNair proudly touts Young's talent, which he discovered at his youth football camp in Mississippi a decade ago.
McNair was wowed by an immensely poised and gifted high school sophomore from Houston who heaved 70-yard passes with ease and had the camp's founder wondering exactly how old Young was.
"From start to finish, Vince has always been a man amongst boys," McNair says. "Even back then Vince played to another level and stood out from other players."
McNair's Alcorn State roommate and close friend, Ivory Young, talked up his nephew to McNair, who invited Young the younger to attend his camp. Now 22, Young is considered one of the top six prospects in the NFL Draft along with Southern California running back Reggie Bush and his Trojans teammate, quarterback Matt Leinart.
McNair takes pride in Young's beyond-his-years-maturity, having filled a void in Young's life. The quarterback's father, Vince Young Sr., has spent most of the last 10 years in prison for burglary and other crimes.
"I'd hate to be playing against him in 2008 when he gets a feel for the NFL game," McNair says. "He's the next generation at quarterback. You have your Michael Vick. You had your Steve McNair. You had your Warren Moons and Randall Cunninghams. Now you've got a Vince Young, who's separated himself tremendously."
There's a chance Young could emerge as the No. 1 overall selection depending on how well he answers questions about his funky throwing motion and perceived shortcomings on the NFL's Wonderlic test at his March 22 pro day.
"Vince Young is in the mix for the first pick," Houston Texans general manager Charley Casserly says. "He's a special talent. He's a heck of an athlete, and he has the arm strength to make all the NFL throws.
"He has tremendous upside. He has unique running ability, and when he scrambles, he has ability to refocus and find a guy downfield. He does that as well as anybody I've ever seen. He'll have to adjust from playing in the shotgun. It'll be a learning curve."
So how fast can Young reach that upside? That's the $26 million question, considering the guaranteed signing bonus this year's first overall pick probably will receive.
When it comes to that learning curve, the Tennessee Titans would be an ideal spot for Young at No. 3 overall with McNair, 32, indicating he'd like to play only a couple of more years.
Bridging the gap between an 11-year veteran and Young would be a dream handoff for McNair should Young fall to the Titans and Bush and Leinart go first and second to the Texans and New Orleans Saints.
"One of the options I gave the Titans in my contract talks was I wouldn't mind bringing Vince in and tutoring him for a couple of years and letting him take over for me after that. I think I've got a couple more years in me. If I could mentor a protégé of mine until then, that would be the thing to do," McNair says.
McNair was in the Rose Bowl stands Jan. 4 when Young led the Longhorns to a 41-38 overtime victory against Southern California to deliver Texas its first national championship in 36 years.
"I can remember Steve telling me about Vince Young when Vince was a sophomore in high school, saying, 'Wait until you see this guy!' " Titans general manager Floyd Reese says. "He's special."
It would be special for Young to follow in the footsteps of McNair, the third overall pick in 1995 who sat and learned two seasons behind Chris Chandler.
"Knowing how long we've been together, how many different things he has taught me to become the man that I am and how to better myself on the football field and understanding the leadership of a quarterback ... if I get drafted by Tennessee, that would be a blessing," Young says. "Steve and I are real similar, so that would be real good."
Bush appears close to a lock to hold up a No. 1 Texans' jersey alongside Commissioner Paul Tagliabue on April 29. Part of the reason is because Bush would take pressure off quarterback David Carr, who received an $8 million option, extending his contract for three more seasons. But are the Texans really sold on Carr, or did the extension just buy time for another quarterback — such as Young — to develop behind him? Or did the extension make Carr more tradable to another quarterback-needy team? Only time will tell.
The debate about whom to select between Young and Bush is compounded in that Young does not fit the conventional concept of a dropback quarterback. He played entirely in the shotgun, and his unorthodox delivery makes him hard for some old-school talent evaluators to grasp.
"I don't have that dilemma of having to decide who to take with the No. 1 pick. But if I was sitting there with the first pick, it would be hard to pass up a guy who can affect the game in so many ways the way Vince Young can," says new St. Louis Rams head coach Scott Linehan, who developed Daunte Culpepper into an MVP-caliber quarterback in 2004 as offensive coordinator with the Minnesota Vikings.
"As good as Reggie Bush is, (Young) does a lot of things that make him special."
The bottom line? No one will be more scrutinized under the predraft microscope than Young, this year's wild card.
The best personnel men have the vision to see a prospect's future. Young will test that vision because he has every chance to be a great pro supported in the right system and tutored by the right quarterback guru.
Perhaps new Texans head coach Gary Kubiak is that guru. He's a former backup to John Elway, and he successfully rewired Pro Bowl quarterback Jake Plummer as the Denver Broncos offensive coordinator. He must be asking himself: After raising Plummer's game last season, what can be done with Young?
"Vince Young in that offense Gary Kubiak runs would be unreal," says Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms, Young's former Longhorns teammate. "It's like having Jake Plummer, only three-tenths of a second faster in the 40, who is 6-5 and can do some unbelievable things with his feet and his arm. He throws the deep ball better than people think.
"Personally, I think the Texans would love to have Vince Young with the first overall pick. The only thing is in the NFL there's the salary cap to consider (with Carr)."
There's also Young's greatest intangible that can't be measured at any combine: Young might lead this draft class in intuitive upside. He was 30-2 during his career at Texas.
"This is a playmaker's league," Linehan says. "If you start with the No. 1 criteria, scoring points and affecting the game, there isn't a guy at that position who can affect a game more than Vince Young can.
"You go back with Vick, Daunte Culpepper, Randall Cunningham, this guy is special. He's really showed me in this last year he's worked on his ability to throw it and produced.
"People question his throwing motion. But just in this last year the improvement he made as a thrower put him in a whole new league."
Young ranked third in the NCAA with a 163.95 passer rating and completed 65.2% of his passes. Yet Young has scouts scrambling to project how he will do taking snaps under center with his back to the defense, then planting and trying to find his rhythm, not to mention throwing through windows in an opposing defense.
It's why Young's pro day will carry more weight than most.
"If it's even, you have to take the quarterback," NFL.com analyst Gil Brandt says. "What you have to decide if you are the Texans is that if Reggie Bush and Leinart and Vince Young are equal talents, then you have to go with the quarterback because the quarterback has more profound ways of winning games. You can also get a running back later in the draft."
Coaches have taken notice of Young's skill.
"The thing that was impressive was Young's ability to make plays and the consistency of his throws," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan says. "He's been known to not be that accurate and not have the best motion. But when you take a look at the stats and the passing efficiency, it's off the charts.
"Then he makes plays with his legs, and that's what you're looking for in a quarterback, someone who's always making plays. And he does that consistently."
Young won't be able to rely as heavily on his fleet feet in the pros, where defenders are faster and better disguise their intentions.
"There are two distinct camps on Vince Young," NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock says. "The first camp is, 'I don't care what his throwing motion looks like, or that he's not a sophisticated reader of defense. He makes plays and might be the most exciting athlete to ever come into this league.' Then there's the other camp that says, 'He's a bigger Michael Vick. While he's exciting, will he ever get to the next level as a sophisticated quarterback and reader of defense?'
"That second concern is starting to bother personnel people, because the guaranteed dollars are immense. It makes for a more difficult evaluation. Can he come into the NFL and run the ball 15-18 times a game? I'll show you 31 defensive coordinators who would love to have Vince Young run the ball 15-18 times a game.
"(But) sooner or later, he has to be able to throw the football. Are you willing to pass all your chips into the middle of the table and gamble on him?"
Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick says: "This league will pick Vince Young apart pretty good in the time before the draft. But I imagine Vince Young will come out of it pretty good.
"What he was able to do last year by way of substantially upgrading his quarterbacking skills, just the numbers, not only the improvement he's made, it shows the upside that's there. That upside is what you want."
Says Pittsburgh Steelers director of football operations Kevin Colbert: "When you watch Vince Young, you see a player who sometimes seems indefensible. He makes plays, be it with his arm or his feet. You would think that would project to success on this level, too.
"When you have a passer who can run like he can, that's a unique player."
