Is this what TT saw in Vince Young?

[woodbuck27]

I think if he falls into the right system he can be a star. He is an amazing but raw athlete with the potential to be great.

He's certainly an impressive young man. I do believe those rumor's that we heard before the draft, that TT loved what he saw in Vince Young.

Who wouldn't ?

[BallHawk]

Vince Young will be the best QB coming out of this draft. Leinart will be a Kyle Boller and Jay Cutler will be a Jay Fiedler. Young will be Michael Vick with a little less speed, but better passing. If I had to rank him out of 100 I would say he is an 84.

[woodbuck27]

Monday, 06/26/06

Young passes inspection
As team's top draft pick learns system, playbook, Titans like what they see

By JIM WYATT
Staff Writer


One of the initial conversations between Titans offensive coordinator Norm Chow and rookie quarterback Vince Young after the NFL Draft had nothing to do with a playbook.

Chow wanted to clear the air about the decision that brought Young to the Titans. He didn't hide the fact that he was among those who preferred Matt Leinart, his former pupil at Southern Cal, to Young. Titans owner Bud Adams, of course, was among those who wanted Young.


"We both understood the situation. We talked about it,'' Chow said. "I wasn't sitting around here pining away for Matt, but if we had to choose he was the one because I knew him better. Vince understood that. It wasn't a big deal for either of us and we got started.''

Nearly two months later, Chow and the Titans know Young a whole lot better. And they like what they've seen of the former Texas star through May and June minicamps.

"The strides have been monumental,'' Chow said. "He is every bit the athlete you thought he was, but he has some good quarterback skills as well. The thing about Vince is he's not an athlete playing quarterback. He is a quarterback who is a good athlete. There is a big difference.''

Young, the third overall pick of the draft, has already pushed his way ahead of Matt Mauck, last season's No. 3 quarterback, but he's still well behind veteran Billy Volek and probably won't catch him before the start of the regular season.

Barring an injury or a free-agent acquisition, Volek is expected to start the season opener against the New York Jets at LP Field on Sept. 10. If Volek plays well and stays healthy, he could hold the job the entire season while Young gets a chance to mature.

Right now when the Titans speak of Young, they can speak only to what they've seen to this point.

"The first thing I told Vince when he got here is, 'The media is going to pump it up for you to be out there from the very beginning, but just stay patient. It took you 23 years to get here — you don't have to get on the field immediately,' '' tight end Ben Troupe said. "It is going to come when he's ready, and when he is ready I think it is going to be fireworks out there.

"So far we've seen just some of the things he's capable of doing, but we'll see more. I know he can make some throws that I don't think guys that have been in the league a while can make.''

Young attended rookie orientation in May and then began working with the veterans in minicamps later that month. This week veterans recalled a player who was unsure of himself in the huddle, a guy who sometimes used the wrong verbiage when calling the plays because of his nervousness. He even had trouble with the most basic things, like taking a snap.

But during the two weeks of June workouts, Young cut down on his mistakes. He looked more comfortable behind center and his footwork was improved. He said he knows his plays.

"He is throwing much better in the pocket,'' Coach Jeff Fisher said. "He is making instinctive throws down the field, back shoulder, away from the coverage and so on. We have seen steady improvement and we expect to continue to see that.''

Young, however, hasn't been perfect. On the final day of minicamp, he mishandled at least one snap and some footballs hit the ground in the shotgun, though coaches put most of the blame on the snapper. Young was intercepted near the goal line during a 2-minute drill.

Over the last month, Young didn't get a whole lot of reps with the starters. Those snaps went to Volek. When Young did work with the first unit, he made some good throws and some bad ones, along with some risky ones that coaches probably didn't want him to make. He also showed he was willing to run when the opportunity presented itself.

As for his willingness to learn, coaches said they couldn't be happier. They said Young has put in extra time on the field and in the classroom.

"If I wasn't coming in and doing the things behind the scenes, I wouldn't be as far along as I am," Young said. "But I am getting more comfortable every day, getting better and better. I know the plays so I can be more loose out there."

Indications are Young has been embraced by his new teammates.

"I wanted to come in here and earn the guys' respect and show those guys, just because I got picked third I don't think I'm over anyone," Young said. "I am the same guy and I am going to get in here and work and win ball games. I'm getting more used to things. I just want to keep it going.''

The Titans wrapped up their offseason workouts on Thursday and aren't scheduled to be back on the field until training camp begins in Clarksville on July 28.

Young is scheduled to attend the NFL Rookie Symposium in California, and he'll get away on his own for a while. Young said he'll also be studying his playbook, and he has plans to work out with veteran receiver David Givens while the two are in Houston next month.

When Young returns, the learning process will continue. Fisher said Young could play a half a game in the preseason, and even hinted that he might start a preseason game.

"But were are getting Billy ready to win games for us,'' Fisher said.

Eventually, Young's time will come.

"He has an opportunity to be something special, but really, you never know what will happen,'' veteran center Kevin Mawae said. "You've had guys come into this league that nobody gave a shot to and now they are Pro Bowlers and then you have guys who are supposed to be the next Joe Montana and they don't end up doing squat.

"It is just one of those things where you just have to play it out and see what happens. (Young) seems to have a pretty good work ethic and desire to want to be a better player. He is the kind of guy that could be a great player in this league if he can figure it out, which I think he will. But we'll have to see.''

[Partial]

Vince Young will be the best QB coming out of this draft. Leinart will be a Kyle Boller and Jay Cutler will be a Jay Fiedler. Young will be Michael Vick with a little less speed, but better passing. If I had to rank him out of 100 I would say he is an 84.

Leinart is polished. The one knock on him period is his arm strength. Boller put himself in the first round by bombing a ball 40 yards on his knees through the uprights. The man has a cannon.

Leinart will be a damn good player, he's got the arrogance and the skills to succeed.

Cutler will be a leftwich. Just a straight up baller who plays the game the right way. Maybe not the best quarterback in the game, but he is the type of character you want leading your team.

[woodbuck27]

The cost of a HIGH draft pick:

Want Young? Titans need about $50M

By Terry McCormick, tmccormick@nashvillecitypaper.com
July 11, 2006

Wondering what it might take to get quarterback Vince Young into the fold with the Tennessee Titans?

The structuring of the deal and the amount of the signing bonus are yet to be determined, but a package somewhere in the neighborhood of $50 million, with approximately 40 to 50 percent of that amount guaranteed, is probably what it will take to bring the No. 3 overall pick under contract.

When NFL rookies are signed, several factors are weighed. The league has generally used a slotting system for contracts, meaning the higher a player was selected, the more money he can generally expect to receive at contract time.

Also, contracts from the previous season are looked at as well, with a slight increase usually in the amount of the rookie pool increase factored in.

As well, in Young’s case, as a quarterback, he can also generally expect a little bigger payday than players at other positions.

When the Houston Texans pulled a draft day surprise by agreeing to terms with defensive end Mario Williams over running back Reggie Bush, that deal helped set the bar for this year’s draft.

Williams agreed to a six-year, $54 million deal. The contract did not include a signing bonus for Williams, but according to reports, contains $26.5 million in guaranteed money over the first two years of the deal.

What happens in regards to Bush and his demands from the New Orleans Saints could also play a factor as well, as could the deal with D’Brickashaw Ferguson at No. 4 with the New York Jets.

But as a quarterback, Young’s agent, Major Adams, says the $49.5 million contract Alex Smith landed as the No. 1 overall pick in San Francisco in 2005 will be part of the equation as well.

“I’m sure all those are the parameters we’ll be looking at,” Adams said. “We’ll take into consideration what the first quarterback got last year, and what the first two picks get this year. It’ll be a little bit different since they’re not quarterbacks.”

Young has said he wants to be in training camp by the time it opens July 28, and his Adams echoed that sentiment Monday.

“I don’t anticipate any problems in getting a deal done. They’ve treated us great the whole time, because Vince was the guy they wanted all along,” Adams said.