Vince Young, Tennessee Titans / Photo: Newscom

But it wasn’t merely that Vince led the Titans to the win, as impressive as that was. It’s the manner in which he did it. Down 17-13 with 2:37 to play, Vince took the Titans on a 99-yard journey that concluded with a 10-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Kenny Britt with no time left on the game clock. Vince converted three 4th down plays (all passes) on the game-winning drive and finished the day with a career best 387 yards passing. I never thought I’d see the day Vince Young would throw for close to 400 yards.

Source: TitansOnline.com

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Vince Young, Titans Continue Win Streak

Vince Young, Tennessee Titans / Image: Zuma Press

But one thing’s for sure right now. After a thrilling 20-17 win over the Houston Texans last night, Vince Young has the hot hand and the Titans are 4-0 with Vince as the starting quarterback. Whether or not he’ll ever fulfill the expectations that come with being the third overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft remains to be seen. But it’s pretty clear the 21 games he spent “riding the pine” had a positive impact both on and off the football field.

Source: TitansOnline.com

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Vince Young Leads Surging Titans

Vince Young, Tennessee Titans / Image: Zuma Press

So, where does the team go from here? Well, for starters, they can keep handing the ball to Chris Johnson. Chris had a franchise record 228 yards with two touchdowns today. That makes Vince’s (or any quarterback’s) job a lot easier. And with a favorable schedule the rest of the way (five of their upcoming opponents have losing records)—I’m not saying the Titans have any shot at the playoffs—but maybe they can make this thing respectable. And rediscover their franchise quarterback in the process.

Source: NFL.com

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Vince Young is Back, Titans Win First Game

Vince Young, Tennessee Titans / Image: Zuma Press

But coach Fisher insisted any quarterback decision will be made between owner and coach:

“We’ve been communicating through the whole process, and we don’t have any issues. Despite what you hear, despite what you read, the decisions we make are collective decisions.”

The Titans are pitiful. And Kerry’s numbers aren’t far behind—he only has five touchdowns to eight interceptions with a horrible quarterback rating of 62. So as far as any kind of change in Tennessee is concerned—if not now, when? I don’t think Vince will fare much better, but any chance to spark the team is worth a shot at this point.

Source: NFL.com

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Titans Owner Wants Vince Young to Start

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

The Tennessee Titans may have lost their best defensive player, Albert Haynesworth, earlier today. But they weren’t about to lose their starting quarterback. So they gave Kerry Collins a two-year, $15 million deal with $8.5 million guaranteed. Kerry was pleased to stay in Tennessee:

“This is where I wanted to be, and my family loves Nashville. It is just part of the process. Free agency comes about, and there are lots of talks and rumors. At the end of the day, this is where I want to be, and I am happy it worked out.”

Kerry led the Titans to an AFC South title and NFL-best 13-3 record this past season and even though he’s 36-years-old, I think he’s playing some of the best football of his career. He’s got veteran leadership, plenty of experience and football smarts, and (obviously) the skills to still compete with the best in the National Football League. With this new deal, it’s pretty much assumed that former starter (and 2006 Offensive Rookie of the Year) Vince Young will continue to hold the clipboard and learn by watching until Kerry retires.

Source: TitansOnline.com, Photo: Newscom

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Titans Keep Kerry Collins

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young is injured inside and out. And he’s on the verge of losing his job and the respect of his teammates. But he really only needs to look as far as teammate Kerry Collins for advice on not only how to handle the very situation he is currently going through, but also how to beat it. According to Kerry, who is now the Titans’ starting quarterback:

“I felt the pressure and I was trying to be something and someone I wasn’t. Being a first-round pick, being the quarterback, I felt I needed to be the whole deal. I did not understand the maturity it took. When you have early success, you are not thinking 10 years down the road, but now. When trouble comes, you can be shocked by it because of that early success. When you play early, there is no time to ease into it. Sometimes, a certain amount of perspective is needed about the whole thing. It can all get so involved that the mental aspects of it will play with you and play with your mind.”

That sounds like something Vince Young might say today. I’ve followed Kerry’s career from Penn State until now. And I remember when he was accused of being a quitter, a bum and a bad guy when he first entered the league with the Carolina Panthers. I had a hard time believing the behavior I was seeing from Kerry. I spoke with him about it on a national conference call back in 2000 when he was with the N.Y. Giants and he said once he finally was able to understand his situation and mature as a person, everything came together in his life and his professional football career. Fourteen seasons later he’s considered a stand-up guy, a true professional and still a heck of a football player. Vince Young would be wise to take notice.

Source: NFL.com, Photo: Newscom

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Kerry Collins Leads by Example

The police report filed after this week’s search for Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young states Titans head coach Jeff Fisher told police Vince’s therapist said he “mentioned suicide several times.” And he was driving around with a gun in his car. You can read the entire police report for yourself: Vince Young Police Report.

Whatever happened this past week, hopefully it’s in the past. I can’t speak or completely understand what Vince was going through or is still going through. I only hope he can cope with whatever pressure or depression he might be feeling and be able to come back and improve his game and lead the Titans offense. His football career is of great interest to many but his personal well-being is far more important.

Source: Nashville City Paper

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Vince Young Police Report

Injured Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young spoke out against the rumors that he was tired of playing football today. He took questions for about 15 minutes after practice today (he didn’t practice) and set straight the idea that he was not committed to being the leader of the Titans. It was his first time to speak publicly since a bizarre incident in which Titans head coach Jeff Fisher, concerned about Vince’s mental state, called police for help in locating him Monday night:

“I’m fine. I’m good. I just needed a day-and-a half to get through some things and how to handle things, but now I am OK. I was never depressed, I just hurt a little bit ….. When it happens again I’ll know how to handle it. I just want everyone in the world to know I am fine ….. It was my first time getting booed. I didn’t know how to handle that ….. Football, this is my life. This is my dream. All I did all these years growing up to get to this point and never had an injury like this before in my life. It’s a hard time because I’m a competitor, and I definitely want to be out on the football field with my teammates.”

This is all well and good but the fact remains, Vince hasn’t settled in to being a successful NFL quarterback and the clock is ticking. If the Titans are winning football games with backup QB Kerry Collins, I would be surprised if Coach Fisher puts Vince back into his starting position.

Sources: TitansOnline.com, Tennesseean.com

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Vince Young: ‘Football, This is My Life’

This is getting kind of ridiculous. Yesterday I reported on Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young’s injured knee and his devastation at being booed by his hometown fans. Apparently the Titans had to summon the police to find him yesterday, prompting this statement from the team today:

“Last night, we received a call from people that are closest to Vince informing us that he had left his house in a state of mind that had them concerned; and that he was unreachable, having left his cell phone at the house. Not having all the facts available to us and approaching the matter prudently, we contacted Metro Police to make them aware of the situation and asked for their assistance in locating Vince. He was located at a friend’s house, where we made contact with him. He then came to the practice facility where it was determined that those initial concerns by his friends and family were unfounded and he returned home without incident.”

Geez. As it turns out, Vince was at a friend’s house eating chicken wings and watching football (according to his agent, Major Adams). Vince probably wondered what the big deal was. I’d like to know what those “people that are closest to Vince” witnessed to make them so concerned. I think everyone needs to take off the kid gloves with this guy. Maybe he’s been so pampered as an athlete he hasn’t been given a chance to grow up. He would probably do better without everyone’s “help”. So when he returns from this injury (assuming he still has his starting job), it’s going to be Vince Young’s time to put up and shut everyone else up. He may need to work harder than he ever has, but it would behoove him to do so because his career is on the line.

Sources: NFL.com, TitansOnline.com

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Statement From Titans on Vince Young

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

With all the talk of Tom Brady’s season-ending knee injury yesterday, fellow QB Vince Young’s reported MCL sprain kind of went unnoticed. Vince went down in the 4th quarter of a 17-10 win over the Jacksonville Jags. No diagnosis was available from the Titans today. Head coach Jeff Fisher did not have the results of the tests on Vince’s injury when the coach met with the media this afternoon. He promised the results will be shared once available. Coach Fisher said if the injury is a third-degree MCL sprain, Vince could be out a couple of weeks. But he reiterated the Titans don’t know yet.

Many feel the bigger concern here is Vince’s play before the injury. He appeared unwilling to take the field midway through the fourth quarter following his second interception and some rough treatment from the fans at LP Field. What the heck? Apparently Vince began to experience some tightness in his hamstring after one of his INTs. But he was not being attended to by medical personnel. He was just sitting on the bench. When it was the offense’s turn to take the field again, Coach Fisher reportedly had to find Vince and talk to him (in an animated fashion) about getting back into the game. That’s just wrong. As a quarterback and leader of your team, you can’t let something like that happen. If you’re hurt, let the training staff take care of you. Talk to the coaches. You can’t just not take the field when it’s your turn.

Vince seems immature to me. On the field, he simply hasn’t grown into the pocket passer the Titans need him to be. That, coupled with an apparent problem dealing with adversity, equals quarterback troubles in Tennessee. Vince was an amazing college quarterback. But it will be interesting to see if he still has his starting job with the Titans when he returns from this injury.

Sources: TitansOnline.com, Tennesseean.com, Photo: Newscom

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Vince Young Knee Injury