TheTruth
04-15-2006, 08:20 PM
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/michael_silver/04/14/young/index.html
"The trouble with you is the trouble with me. You've got two good eyes but you still don't see...."
-- Grateful Dead, "Casey Jones"
Back when he was at UCLA, my father took a final exam in which the professor presented only a single hypothetical question requiring a yes or no answer, with the addendum, "If yes, explain."
Reasoning that the basic setup of the query begged for an affirmative response, each of my dad's classmates began scribbling furiously -- but my father simply sat at his desk and stared at the test. After a couple of minutes he went with his gut, wrote "No" in his blue book and, to the amazement of his fellow students, walked out of the room and headed straight to Santa Anita to bet on the Daily Double.
It was a hell of a gamble, and it spoke to a basic premise that applies to the NFL's bizarre courtship of former Texas quarterback Vince Young: If the available evidence tells you something is so, there's no need to overthink the question.
Or, to put it another way: Why do so many teams at or near the top of the NFL draft seem to be going to such great lengths to talk themselves out of picking Young?
Yeah, I know, Reggie Bush is fantastic, and his fellow ex-USC backfieldmate, Matt Leinart, is a ballsy leader who's probably going to be a heck of an NFL player. And while I can't say I've watched a whole lot of North Carolina State football recently, I'm sure 6-foot-7 defensive end Mario Williams has the potential to be a pass-rushing beast for some lucky team.
I'm also well aware that at the combine, Young reportedly had a subpar showing on the Wonderlic test, the same faithful measuring stick of intelligence that rated Ryan Leaf 11 points ahead of Dan Marino. And no, Young does not fit the traditional drop-back profile of a classic NFL quarterback, and he'll certainly have to adjust to the speed and complexity of pro defenses and may take some lumps in the process.
Fine. All of those points are valid. Now let me start by offering a two-word rebuttal: Rose Bowl.
Oh yeah, remember that game? My new friend LenDale White does -- more on our burgeoning relationship later -- and the ultra-confident former USC running back is still haunted by the sight of Young snatching a national title from the Trojans by the sheer force of his talent, will and poise.
"What can you honestly say about a kid that single-handedly beat 'SC in the national championship game?" White asks. "I don't know what he scored on a Wonderlic test, but I know when you put him in pads he'll produce for you. He ran a 4.5 [in the 40-yard-dash], but he was running circles around us. How could you not want him?"
More specifically, since they are already on the clock, how could the Houston Texans not want him?
Granted, Texans general manager Charley Casserly knows more about football in a nitrous-oxide-induced haze than I do after a bottle of ginkgo biloba. That said, let me break down the situation as I see it.
• The Texans currently have a quarterback, David Carr, who has been the team's starter since Houston made him the No. 1 overall pick three years ago. Carr's play has been underwhelming, partly because he continually gets pummeled in the pocket -- which may or may not be a reflection of the team's dubious offensive line -- and partly because some of his receivers have trouble getting open. Or, perhaps, Carr holds onto the ball too long and simply isn't very good. At this point in Carr's career, even a certain former Texas governor might not be convinced that staying the course is the most prudent option.
• If a team has trouble protecting its quarterback, Young would seem to be the ideal person to put behind center while the line gets it together. If anyone seems capable of literally learning on the fly, this is the guy.
• Sure, you say, it all sounds great, but would Young be embraced by the football-obsessed locals? Yes, he was the man in Austin, but this is the big city, and how in the world would a kid from ... oh, right, Young is from Houston. I'm guessing he might be able to fit in nicely with this otherwise faceless franchise.
I'm sure there are countless people with stopwatches and stat packs and swelling Internet blogs who can tell me all about Young's deficiencies, but all I know is every time I watched the guy play, he was amazing when it counted most. Yeah, he ran a lot at key moments, but he also made huge plays with his arm, like the sweet touchdown pass he threw to beat Ohio State at the start of last season. And he displayed every intangible quality that a quarterback possibly can in a very protracted period of time. Whatever "it" is -- toughness, cool under fire, a penchant for clutch play -- Young definitely has it.
People like to compare him to Michael Vick or Randall Cunningham, but the guy he really reminds me of is Steve Young -- a breathtaking runner who is as capable of bulling through defenders as he is of blowing by them, a deft touch-passer with an outrageously untapped upside, a once-in-a-generation talent whose skills are too blatant to be ignored.
OK -- and I know this will crush some of you -- let's forget about me for a second. Instead, let's ask the opinion of a pure drop-back passer, Cleveland Browns quarterback Trent Dilfer. He said, when discussing Young (Vince, not Steve) the day before the NFC Championship Game, "Can he run an NFL offense? No. And you know what -- who cares? If you get a guy like that on your team, you change the offense. It would be bold, and this league is very resistant to change, but it would be awesome and he'd be a star."
A few days ago I spoke to a longtime scout for an NFC team, a film junkie who tends to be skeptical by nature. When Young's name came up, he instantly lapsed into a love sonnet that caught me off-guard.
"I'm telling you," he said, "this guy's John Elway. All those people saying he won't be good, what are they thinking? He's a rare passer -- the guy can be on the run, under pressure and flip the ball on a line. You watch him do these things and it goes on and on and on. Normally, if you watch a guy on film over and over again, he gets a little less attractive than what you'd thought. This guy gets better.
"His poise is just incredible, and he's so explosive. There's a reason Texas averaged 50 points a game. When they got the ball to the 30-yard line, he scored, period. He may not have the greatest test score, but he definitely has the leadership skills to compensate."
It should be pointed out that this scout is a huge Bush fan. "Bush is terrific," he said. "But if you've got the Number 1 pick, do you take Barry Sanders or John Elway?"
That, my friends, is a no-brainer, and when I posed the same question to my father last night, he didn't hesitate to give me the correct answer.
The man does have a track record: Forty-five years ago, he scribbled two letters on a final exam and got the only A in the
"The trouble with you is the trouble with me. You've got two good eyes but you still don't see...."
-- Grateful Dead, "Casey Jones"
Back when he was at UCLA, my father took a final exam in which the professor presented only a single hypothetical question requiring a yes or no answer, with the addendum, "If yes, explain."
Reasoning that the basic setup of the query begged for an affirmative response, each of my dad's classmates began scribbling furiously -- but my father simply sat at his desk and stared at the test. After a couple of minutes he went with his gut, wrote "No" in his blue book and, to the amazement of his fellow students, walked out of the room and headed straight to Santa Anita to bet on the Daily Double.
It was a hell of a gamble, and it spoke to a basic premise that applies to the NFL's bizarre courtship of former Texas quarterback Vince Young: If the available evidence tells you something is so, there's no need to overthink the question.
Or, to put it another way: Why do so many teams at or near the top of the NFL draft seem to be going to such great lengths to talk themselves out of picking Young?
Yeah, I know, Reggie Bush is fantastic, and his fellow ex-USC backfieldmate, Matt Leinart, is a ballsy leader who's probably going to be a heck of an NFL player. And while I can't say I've watched a whole lot of North Carolina State football recently, I'm sure 6-foot-7 defensive end Mario Williams has the potential to be a pass-rushing beast for some lucky team.
I'm also well aware that at the combine, Young reportedly had a subpar showing on the Wonderlic test, the same faithful measuring stick of intelligence that rated Ryan Leaf 11 points ahead of Dan Marino. And no, Young does not fit the traditional drop-back profile of a classic NFL quarterback, and he'll certainly have to adjust to the speed and complexity of pro defenses and may take some lumps in the process.
Fine. All of those points are valid. Now let me start by offering a two-word rebuttal: Rose Bowl.
Oh yeah, remember that game? My new friend LenDale White does -- more on our burgeoning relationship later -- and the ultra-confident former USC running back is still haunted by the sight of Young snatching a national title from the Trojans by the sheer force of his talent, will and poise.
"What can you honestly say about a kid that single-handedly beat 'SC in the national championship game?" White asks. "I don't know what he scored on a Wonderlic test, but I know when you put him in pads he'll produce for you. He ran a 4.5 [in the 40-yard-dash], but he was running circles around us. How could you not want him?"
More specifically, since they are already on the clock, how could the Houston Texans not want him?
Granted, Texans general manager Charley Casserly knows more about football in a nitrous-oxide-induced haze than I do after a bottle of ginkgo biloba. That said, let me break down the situation as I see it.
• The Texans currently have a quarterback, David Carr, who has been the team's starter since Houston made him the No. 1 overall pick three years ago. Carr's play has been underwhelming, partly because he continually gets pummeled in the pocket -- which may or may not be a reflection of the team's dubious offensive line -- and partly because some of his receivers have trouble getting open. Or, perhaps, Carr holds onto the ball too long and simply isn't very good. At this point in Carr's career, even a certain former Texas governor might not be convinced that staying the course is the most prudent option.
• If a team has trouble protecting its quarterback, Young would seem to be the ideal person to put behind center while the line gets it together. If anyone seems capable of literally learning on the fly, this is the guy.
• Sure, you say, it all sounds great, but would Young be embraced by the football-obsessed locals? Yes, he was the man in Austin, but this is the big city, and how in the world would a kid from ... oh, right, Young is from Houston. I'm guessing he might be able to fit in nicely with this otherwise faceless franchise.
I'm sure there are countless people with stopwatches and stat packs and swelling Internet blogs who can tell me all about Young's deficiencies, but all I know is every time I watched the guy play, he was amazing when it counted most. Yeah, he ran a lot at key moments, but he also made huge plays with his arm, like the sweet touchdown pass he threw to beat Ohio State at the start of last season. And he displayed every intangible quality that a quarterback possibly can in a very protracted period of time. Whatever "it" is -- toughness, cool under fire, a penchant for clutch play -- Young definitely has it.
People like to compare him to Michael Vick or Randall Cunningham, but the guy he really reminds me of is Steve Young -- a breathtaking runner who is as capable of bulling through defenders as he is of blowing by them, a deft touch-passer with an outrageously untapped upside, a once-in-a-generation talent whose skills are too blatant to be ignored.
OK -- and I know this will crush some of you -- let's forget about me for a second. Instead, let's ask the opinion of a pure drop-back passer, Cleveland Browns quarterback Trent Dilfer. He said, when discussing Young (Vince, not Steve) the day before the NFC Championship Game, "Can he run an NFL offense? No. And you know what -- who cares? If you get a guy like that on your team, you change the offense. It would be bold, and this league is very resistant to change, but it would be awesome and he'd be a star."
A few days ago I spoke to a longtime scout for an NFC team, a film junkie who tends to be skeptical by nature. When Young's name came up, he instantly lapsed into a love sonnet that caught me off-guard.
"I'm telling you," he said, "this guy's John Elway. All those people saying he won't be good, what are they thinking? He's a rare passer -- the guy can be on the run, under pressure and flip the ball on a line. You watch him do these things and it goes on and on and on. Normally, if you watch a guy on film over and over again, he gets a little less attractive than what you'd thought. This guy gets better.
"His poise is just incredible, and he's so explosive. There's a reason Texas averaged 50 points a game. When they got the ball to the 30-yard line, he scored, period. He may not have the greatest test score, but he definitely has the leadership skills to compensate."
It should be pointed out that this scout is a huge Bush fan. "Bush is terrific," he said. "But if you've got the Number 1 pick, do you take Barry Sanders or John Elway?"
That, my friends, is a no-brainer, and when I posed the same question to my father last night, he didn't hesitate to give me the correct answer.
The man does have a track record: Forty-five years ago, he scribbled two letters on a final exam and got the only A in the