Is Vince Young a good fit?
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Is Vince Young a good fit?
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
The Eagles continue to be a franchise willing to take risks.
That was my first thought when I woke up to the news that the team has agreed to a one-year deal with quarterback Vince Young, as reported by NFL Network's Albert Breer.
We saw it back in 2004 when the Eagles acquired Terrell Owens, despite questions about his personality in San Francisco. The Birds of course got to a Super Bowl before things blew up and T.O. was sent packing.
A couple years ago, they surprised everyone by taking a chance on Michael Vick. Now, he's arguably the face of the franchise and the team's starting quarterback.
Last offseason, despite popular opinion that they wouldn't trade Donovan McNabb within their own conference, never mind their own division, the Eagles sent him to the Redskins for a pair of picks.
And now, Vince Young. A quarterback who kept Titans fans entertained for five years and won a lot of football games (Tennessee was 30-18 in games he started). But also a quarterback who frustrated Titans coaches and fans with a perceived lack of professionalism.
I have been following the Titans from afar like everyone else, but here's what Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean had to say about Young's release yesterday:
Young thrilled fans with his play at times, but also frustrated coaches and teammates at times with his inconsistency. As a Titan he was 30-18 as a starter, went to two Pro Bowls and was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2006.
But his volatile relationship with former coach Jeff Fisher came to a head after a game against the Redskins last season, when Young cussed out the coach in front of the team. The following week the Titans put Young on injured reserve because of a thumb injury that required surgery.
Earlier in the offseason, Wyatt wrote about Young missing meetings and provided more details on his issues with the coaching staff.
But after doing their homework, the Eagles apparently feel like Philadelphia can be a good place for Young to resurrect his career at the age of 28.
And why not?
The Eagles drafted and groomed Kevin Kolb, before turning him around for a Pro Bowl-caliber cornerback and a second-round pick. They gave Vick a chance, and he turned in his best year as a pro in 2010.
And now, they'll reportedly take a chance on Young. There are a lot of reasons why this could work. And it all starts with Young's talent. Despite the issues I mentioned above, Young still had success on the field in Tennessee. The Titans went 13-6 in the last 19 games he started. And Young threw 20 touchdowns and 10 interceptions the last two seasons.
No one questions his arm, as Young was able to hit on big plays in 2010, averaging 8.0 yards per attempt, just a notch below Vick (8.1).
In Philadelphia, he'll have structure with Andy Reid and Marty Mornhinweg, two coaches who continue to build their reputations as quarterback-molders. And he'll have downfield weapons in DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin.
Perhaps most importantly, Young will have someone to look up to. Imagine if last year at this time, I told you Vick was going to have to take Young under his wing in Philadelphia. No one would have believed it.
And so, while Vick continues to work on his own game and continues his own rehabilitation process, here is one more item to add to his plate: mentor Young. Given the course of events that landed Vick here in the first place, you get the feeling this is something he'll embrace.
On the field, the question is: Will Young be able to win games? He'll have a shortened offseason to learn the offense, and the Eagles will need him to be ready to play if Vick goes down. But a lot of that is going to fall on Reid and Mornhinweg. As long as Young has the right attitude, shouldn't they be able to simplify the offense and play to his strengths? They've been up to the challenge in the past, so it's not surprising they think they can do it again with Young.
From afar, it seems like Young has been at his best when he's been allowed some improvisation. The numbers suggest that too. According to Pro Football Focus, Young had a 115.1 QB rating last year when pressured and a 99.0 QB rating when blitzed.
I'd like to take a closer look at Young's performance last year, but my initial reaction here is that the Eagles took a good risk. According to Breer, it's a one-year contract, meaning that if things don't work out, the Eagles can likely get rid of Young and find a safer option. As I've mentioned many times before, Vick's injury history has been a little exaggerated. In five years as the Falcons' starter, he missed more than one game just once.
But if he does go down, it seems like Young would give the Eagles as much of a shot to win games as the other names out there.
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Good move by the Eagles. Mary and Andy will groom him and trade him to a team that needs a QB later down the road.— briandawkins20- So essentially the Eagles upgraded their #2 QB spot (with an exciting veteran former #3 overall pick, still with tons of upside) and picked up a starting RCB and a second rounder next year. And all they gave up was a former second rounder with a second-string arm. Nice moves, Eagles brass . . .— Leegles
- Vince Young is another soft, scrambling QB with mental issues. What are his upsides? LOL. The ghetto birds are toast this year. — The Real Taxmann is BACK
- VY reminds me of Shawn "The Big Kid" Andrews— Ted Mosby
- Who just got released by the Ginas! Bring him back
— Girth Brooks - wow - 'half full' sentiments so far. I'm skeptical. (SOMEone's gotta do it). I thought you surrounded bad guys with good guys to straighten them out. Adding DRC, VY - I won't claim to know them; but they're not bringing the best of good teammate reps with them. Kinda glad they missed on Haynesworth— raoool
YESSS, my two favorite QBs on the same team! They got him on the cheap, they can fine tune his game, and trade him for a nice pick later on. The dude can play, and he's a winner. I believe the Eagles hold an option for a second year on his contract. Now, they don't need to change the offensive game plan that much if Vick goes down.— EmanuelP- as many shortcomings reid has as a coach, and there are many, the one thing he does probably better than anyone in the league is get production from a QB. he got mcnabb to run the west coast when no one thought he could. he got vick to have the best year of his career, he got the cardinals to trade for kolb, and most importantly he absolutely robbed the dolphins into trading a second round pick for a QB who couldn't play. point is if anyone can get young to be productive it's reid.— pbuscio
- Reid will have Young running for pizza.— Boru
- Its a nice move. Insurance for Vickthis year...A possible future starter for us if Vick gets hurt or unravels...A possible future pick for us if he renews his contract...Buys time for Kafka to develop...Buys time for Eagles to draft a rookie QB if Kafka doesn't develop. Just a solid move.— PHLtoLAX
Comment removed.- Sounds like a great idea...adding another character QB would be a superb move by Andy Reid. Vince's strong work ethic would set a new gold standard for Philly QBs.— Kioto
- Comment removed.
again, I am impressed by Reids brilliance. Hes already tried and failed with scrambling QB's for 12 years now..so what does he get...another scrambling QB. And one with possibly innacuracy problems bad enough to be on par with McNabb. Just wait until this guy actually plays and youll see. Young is OK, and thats it. Basically he is McNabb with tantrums instead of vomit. Real great signing Andy.- Yeah, he should have drafted Tim Couch instead. And defenses love facing Vick because it makes things so easy for them. — EmanuelP
- How many non-scambling QB's did the Eagles have that ever did anything? This is 2011 not 1960. And don't even say Jaws.
— jzy5400 - Hey armchair, if you're so smart why don't you tell us what you would have done? — blackscreen
- no one does any research lol, did anyone even google his career stats like I did ? Vince youngs career qb rating is 75....thats LOWER then McNabbs...his completion percent is 57.9...that is also LOWER then McNabbs...did McNabb win s SB here ? HE won 4 ? really ? oh no, he failed miserably because hes NOT ACCURATE AND VINCE YOUNG IS EVEN LESS ACCURATE. I would have started Kevin Kolb, and traded Vick to improve the defense, run the ball, and that would give this team a better chance to win a SB. Reid is an idiot and will fall every year. I have been saying it since 08 and am proved right every year. I Want this team to win and Reid will NEVER win a SB. IT WILL NOT HAPPEN.
- good
move— main liner - The injury issue isn't because Vick's prone to injury, which I don't think he is. The issue is the offensive line not being able to protect him, so he gets creamed! We still need to add to the O-line and linebackers.— uncle meat
- This comment has been deleted.— warbiscuit
- You know it was pretty nice to see balls thrown accurately to receivers (Via Vick) instead of at the ground 3-5 feet in front of receivers. Vick has become an all around complete QB. Man could you see Vick 5 years ago playing this good. That would have been scary. — jzy5400
- What? Roman Gabriel was unavailable??— kelprod2
- r there ever any eagles fans that comment?— first down
- Would have enjoyed a wily veteran QB instead. Some one who'd just ignore some of Mornhinwegs awful red zone playcalls--and just do what works. Hoping new team and atmosphere are a fresh start for Vince, we all need them sometimes.— Smashmouth
- I don't mind the risk, but we should have gotten an option on a second year...if Vick gets hurt and VY plays well this year/redeems himself, we'll have to risk franchise tagging him to get anything in return. That aside, it'll at least keep things interesting this season. And if the Eggs aren't gonna win a SB, they better entertain.— GhostOfJeromeBrown99
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- Then the ghetto birds would have two scrambling QBs that play soft not to mention that Vince Young is a head case. I hope they do get him, he's a perfect fit for this criminal thug team.— The Real Taxmann is BACK
- why only 1 year... He'd be a trade-able asset if we had VY for more than 1 year.— mike
- Let's see... Andy drafted a set of legs in McNabb, then gave the job to Michael due to his legs, and now selects Young based on his legs....and the first two had success because of their third option, throw down field #1, hand the ball off #2, but they can escape #3 and those legs are what defensive coordinators fear.....so if Andy is such a genius with his quarterbacks, why does he select non-typical stand up, pocket passers....Maybe he is overrated as a QB coach but a great selector of natural talent (i.e. escapability) which will give the his game plan an edge (forcing the other team to use a man to spy) or having the ability sscramble to gain more time to throw or to get the yards on his own.....hmmmmmmmmmmmm Maybe it has more to with the athlete than the scheme......(remember when we won all those secondary trophies it was because McNabb could run.....and it is only when he stop running did we stop winning divisions)— nuggett
- Great move / gamble. if he pans out they can trade him. If vick gets hurt, we have a back up with an Arm and Legs. Watch out for trick plays with Young THIS SEASON.— Don Cornelius
- The Philadelphia Halfway House. At some point, maybe I'll get my football team back. What a joke. How about someone who can pick up an offense quickly and isn't a drama queen? But maybe that's why Andy has never won the big one.— Dean1
- Some you guy's didn't see the season opener. Kevin kolb got killed in the first half of football played in 2010. That being said you better have a running QB, back there or forget about the season!!!!— killerkam68
- I like it. Nice trade and free agent signings. Get DeSean in camp, see what's available as camp progresses in the linebacker, OLine areas and let's crank it up! Could be a great season.
— TexColorado - I see a formation of Vick under center w/ VY, DJax, McCoy in backfield. SPEED glorious SPEED!— bsgratch
- right tackle, right tackle, right tackle or is andy gonna continue to deny it's the black hole of calcutta for this team.— czc
- Kolb vs. Young. I'll take Young!!! And what they got for Kolb...GREAT JOB!!! This team is better!!— sarah89
- 3 points: 1) in ANY scheme, there is less pressure on qb position if the defense has to respect a credible run threat; 2) all this hatin' on young vs all this lovin' the signing - NObody has a clue at this time how well the man will adapt to reid and company; and 3) with this compressed preseason, Kafka will probably be the #2 because he knows this offense and young is not going to see a lot of reps.— gnarlyscuzz
- different season,same old eagles. They'll go nowhere this year.— MIKEI
- another reason not to root for them. andy reid hates any white player— clubber_lang
- Line up the purple drank
— rvb2321 - everyone who hates this pick up is either not really an Eagles fan, or not really a knowledgeable fan. Any hater-remarks will be discarded/ignored as "haterism" unless an alternative move is suggested by the poster...How about something like, "oh great another running back at QB...the Eagles should instead bolster their offensive line by maybe offering a 2nd round pick to the Jets for tackle D. Ferguson." I'm not saying that's what the Eagles should do because I'm not an NFL GM, i'm just tired of reading hateful comments by these non-fans who don't include alternative solutions.— sedale
- Based on what the staff has done with Vick and the other QB's that have come thru Philly, This might just be a brilliant move. There is an awful lot of upside to have Young on the bench as backup.— Boto
- Like others have said, this staff's track record with QBs is pretty amazing, so this makes sense. As a back-up, Young may not be SB material, but if he plays well they would certainly have a chance to win for a few games. Otherwise I agree that the one-year thing kind of stinks--could have had the same situation as Kolb where you cash in a back-up (or it would have been Vick) for a heckuva lot. How long will Young stay as a back-up?— Jim C.
- Considering their options I think the Iggles Brass made the best move possible in signing him. Who ELSE was available AT THAT TIME! Exactly. Here's hoping he gets enough instruction and practice time in this new system that he can be decently effective when (NOT IF!) he'll be needed this season. FLY EAGLES FLY!!!— TBear
- Basket case whiner this team is done.— aintmisinphilly
- Is he a good fit? I don't know....can he play right tackle, lb or dl?— Luriesucks
- Wow...can any of the sane fan base believe that there are so many so called fans complaining??? The Eagles have handled every aspect of this off season perfectly so far.
These chat boards are now full of malcontent whining about invented controversy. Racial issues? Seriously? If you have something racial to say about this story...you need to come out of that dark corner in your mom's basement more often and re-join society.— Joyner80 - Total head case... Saying my prayers now for a 16 game season from Vick (not likely).— shaman0607
- to those Eagles 'fans' that have no clue .. great signing! Time to JUMP!!!! still need OT,LB and S help.— bill poore
- He is a backup with experience and with the Eagles record on shaping QBs, it is a good fit. Face it. If Vick goes down, the Eagles had no chance with any of the other Backup QBs on the market eaither.— SlinkTMP
- Great pick up.— bobcitydoc
- Yes, If he grows up and is patient.— jjthree
- Hr should give the media some things to write about. He will be in Marty's remedial QB class for quite a while.— chops10
- we need a right handed bat.\— tockeyhockey
- This tells you all you need to know about Andy Reid. Get out all those excuses you have been using for McNabb for Eleven seasons and for Vick last year. This is Reid's make or breakm year. Crack!!!!!— marioP
- eagle had NO offensive line or running game during cunningham's time here dummy if they did they would have won probably 2 SB's cunningham WAS the running game and QB that kind of stupidity goes to the coaches who traded away chris carter(wr) vick and young soft only a moron and bigot would say that, now kolb is soft no arm no mobility, afraid, can't take a hit throws blindly into coverage yet he is making millions because he is a sub-standard so-called white QB.— only 9
- Good to see the Eagles continue their role as rehabilitators of troubled men. Now, could they get back to trying to win a Super Bowl?— gulf coast Mike
- I kind of like the signing. Left handed mobile QB. The line won't have to change schemes if he does see playing time (hopefully he doesn't). I'm guessing he's not wearing #10 here. He's worn that since college. Anyone know if his # was different in HS?— Mabus
- Someone should take the idiot moron who always posts "joe nickles banner", kick him in the groin, drive him to the city limits and tell him to never come back.— tomhanks
- Someone should take the idiot moron who always posts "joe nickles banner", kick him in the groin, drive him to the city limits and tell him to never come back.— tomhanks
- no way vince young is gonna learn phillys offense as a backup. lol.— bloodymess
- Great day for Philly. Nobody can call us bumbling idiots anymore. God bless America! God bless Philadelphia! One in the same.— BIGEGLFAN
- Great day for Philly. Nobody can call us bumbling idiots anymore. God bless America! God bless Philadelphia! One in the same.— BIGEGLFAN
- Kolb is a brilliant QB except after being hit by a D Linemen or blitzing Safety. Sorry all you Kolb Fans, but once he's hit in Arizona the cardinals will see exactly what I see in Kolb. Performing in the red jersey at practice is one thing, standing in during a hot rush is totally something different. Kolb displayed the heart of the Easter Bunny, and the arm of Cotton Candy after being hit.
— Dexter
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