Do not take a speculative blog post by a Miami sports writer seriously. When it comes to well known players, the Washington Redskins are always most likely to be named.
All of the Vince Young-to-the-Redskins talk late last week was everybody else reporting what one guy, Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel reported–that the Redskins are the “front-runners” in the bidding for the disgraced Tennessee Titans quarterback. Kelly’s main point to his readers was that the Miami Dolphins had better get busy or they will lose their shot at Young.
Kelly never named his source about Washington’s interest. Technically, that is called “a grain of salt.” But, I digress.
Kelly was beating the drum for the Dolphins to acquire Denver’s Kyle Orton. He saw the Eagles Kevin Kolb as an option, though not a perfect one. Young was a distant third choice, with lots of qualifications.
Kelly wrote: “IF the price is right (FREE….once Tennessee cuts him). But that’s ONLY if he’s mentally right, and motivated. Young’s the quarterback that presents the greatest risk, but if you factor in his QB efficiency when healthy last year, and win-loss record, he’s also the young quarterback who presents the most reward.”
I turned to my long-time blogging colleague Andrew Strickert who covers Tennessee on the Total Titans blog for a quick scouting report on Young. Andrew takes an analytical approach to his team coverage as we do at Redskins Hog Heaven. His assessment is a balanced one. Here’s what he has to say:
“Strengths: Vince Young is a winner. In the last five years, the Titans’ record was 30-17 with VY as a starter, compared to 15-17 with Kerry Collins starting. Vince is extremely athletic for a QB and is most dangerous when he runs. VY also throws a very nice deep ball. Vince’s passing stats have improved and 2010 was his best passing season statistically.
“Weaknesses: Does not have a strong work ethic or good leadership skills. Does not handle adversity or criticism well. Quits on his team. Has difficulty calling plays, even after five years in the league. Too often will refuse to run, even when he has plenty of room to run for a first down, preferring to risk a pass instead, sometimes forcing the pass. Does not throw screen passes or touch passes well.
“Other: Before leaving the Titans, Jeff Fisher convinced owner Bud Adams, who loved Vince, that it was time to part ways with him. It’s very unusual for Fisher to bench a veteran, yet that’s what he did with Vince several times. One of the biggest criticisms of Fisher by Titans fans was his excessive loyalty to his veteran starters, as he was very slow to replace them with younger, more deserving players. Fisher’s multiple benchings of VY says a lot. Fisher also has a reputation for being a players’ coach, so someone who can’t play for Fish will have an even harder time playing for someone else.
“Outlook: Vince is due an $8.5M base salary and a $4.25M roster bonus for the 2011 season, so it’s extremely doubtful if any team would trade for him and his prohibitive contract. It’s far more likely that he’ll sign on with some team as a free agent. Besides Washington, other potential landing spots for VY include Arizona, Miami and Seattle. Somehow, I just don’t see Vince ending up with the Redskins. Fisher and Mike Shanahan are close friends and if Shanahan asks, you can expect Fisher to give him the lowdown on Vince. Frankly, I doubt if Shanahan will want VY after that.”
Vince Young’s top ten games. http://totaltitans.com/2011-articles/january/vince-youngs-top-ten-titans-games.html
So, Vince Young was a winner with Tennessee. So was Albert Haynesworth. That was then and there. We have to think about here and now. Talent transfers. Performance is not certain to follow. Nobody knows that better than Redskins fans.
Tomorrow: Signing Vince Young.
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