Jason Whitlock's HSO's about Vince Young

[mary]

I couldn't find an appropriate thread to put this in, so I'm starting a new one. I guess I could've put it in ocelot's thread, but what the hell - it was getting kinda ugly in that one.

Young not ready for prime time
By Jason Whitlock
Special to Page 2

You have to wonder whether Vince Young knows what job he's applying for, or if he even realizes that he is "applying" for a job.

The NFL doesn't recruit starting quarterbacks. It's not the Marines out looking for a few good men. When it comes to picking its quarterbacks, The League is Halle Berry on Oscar night. She can pick any designer she pleases, and the world's most renowned designers are just grateful for the opportunity to be considered.

Vince Young doesn't get this. He thinks joining the NFL will be similar to joining the NCAA. He mistakenly believes he's holding all (or most of) the cards, and that come April's draft some lucky GM is going to feel like a lottery winner when Vince Young stands next to Paul Tagliabue and pulls on a Saints or Texans or Titans cap.

Vince Young is clueless. And I'm not talking about his score on the Wonderlic test. I'm talking about his understanding of what it takes to make it in the NFL as a quarterback.

Humility is the No. 1 ingredient.

The most prestigious and most difficult job in all of sports -- NFL quarterback -- is played at a high level by the men willing to humble themselves and prepare like each Sunday is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

This isn't the NBA, and Young isn't Shaquille O'Neal. You don't get the first half of the season to play your way into shape. It's not Major League Baseball, and Young isn't Roger Clemens. You don't get to stay at home with your family on certain road trips.

This isn't the University of Texas, and Young is no longer able to rely on his superior athleticism and instincts to outduel his competitors.

Young's success in the NFL will hinge almost exclusively on his willingness to prepare. And that's exactly what Young's Wonderlic score and other curious decisions call into question -- his will to prepare and his level of humility.

The fact that Young had to take the Wonderlic twice in order to score a 16 is an indication to me that Young did not prepare for the test, particularly the first time. That speaks to Young's arrogance. So does his choice in representation and his decision to visit the president and the White House sans sports coat and tie.

Are you following me?

When you have a chance at being the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, securing a $25 million signing bonus and landing one of the 32 most important jobs in professional sports, you don't pick a family friend and local criminal defense attorney (Major Adams) to head up your campaign.

That's not keeping it real. It's foolish and arrogant. It raises questions about your decision-making and maturity.

Now, had Young wanted to give Major Adams a break, Young could've easily stipulated to any experienced potential agent that Adams work as co-counsel. A deal such as this would've provided Adams with a tremendous learning experience and protected Young's interest.

It would've given Team Vince, the loosely formed management posse representing Young, some much-needed professionalism. A seasoned agent might be able to explain to Young the difference between being an NFL quarterback and an NBA small forward.

Small forwards travel with posses decked out in white T's, bling bling and agents in sweat suits. NFL quarterbacks don't.

When Young hit radio row at Super Bowl XL with posse and Major Adams in tow, that was the first time I sensed that Young might not grasp that the rules are different for QBs and DBs. When I learned that the leader of Young's posse (and the man calling the real shots for Team Vince) is a longtime friend and Houston nightclub owner who goes by the nickname "Black," that's when I told a friend to keep an eye on Young's draft stock.

"It's gonna dip."

A starting NFL quarterback is the face of a billion-dollar corporation. He is one of the three or four highest-profile individuals in his city and perhaps in his state. His every move is cussed, discussed and analyzed by millions of people who don't have a clue about playing the position.

It's impossible to exaggerate just how much more important the NFL is than every other sport in this country. Vince Young foolishly thinks that the Texas Longhorns and Mack Brown are more important than the Houston Texans and Gary Kubiak. Young thinks playing USC for the national championship was real pressure.

Playing quarterback in the NFL is the equivalent of getting in the sack with Jenna Jameson. Oh, everybody wants to do it, but it can be an incredibly humbling and "short" experience.

Just ask Ryan Leaf or countless other can't-miss prospects. Michael Vick is in the process of getting humbled. He was supposed to reinvent the position. I don't believe the position will ever be reinvented. The guys who have consistent success will always be the guys who prepare the hardest.

Before any NFL owner gives Young a bunch of guaranteed dollars, the general manager better make sure Young is going to hit the film room and practice field just as hard as Peyton Manning, Donovan McNabb and Tom Brady. The GM also should make sure that the head coach and offensive coordinator -- not some let's-hit-the-strip-clubs posse member -- have the ear of the quarterback.

Playing QB in The League is a different animal.

It's an honor. So far, Vince Young isn't treating it like an honor. He's treating it like it's his right, granted to him by an MVP performance in the Rose Bowl. You can be a fool and argue that Young proved all he needed to prove in Texas' upset of USC. Hmm. Didn't Redskins running back Tim Smith and Cowboys cornerback Larry Brown have big games on football's biggest stage and later prove to be frauds? And what don't people understand about the concept that NFL quarterbacks have to prove themselves week to week?

Right now Young is proving that he doesn't have the necessary intangibles to thrive as a starting QB. He carries himself like a wide receiver.

Jason Whitlock is a regular columnist for The Kansas City Star. His newspaper is celebrating his 10 years as a columnist with the publishing of Jason's first book, "Love Him, Hate Him: 10 Years of Sports, Passion and Kansas City." It's a collection of Jason's most memorable, thought-provoking and funny columns over the past decade. You can purchase the book at TheKansasCityStore.com. Jason can be reached by e-mail at ballstate68@aol.com. Sound off to Page 2 here.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2...hitlock/060309

[Drbio]

The guy makes a valid point. All I know was that the guy looked pretty prepared to me when we played him. But, he is off flaunting around the nation right now. Maybe this guy is dead on. That Jenna Jamison crack was genius.

[sixeightmkw]

VY got a 16 on the Test, same as Dan Marino. So Dan Marino did not prepare and was a sorry quaterback. Give me a break. Everyone wants to look for something.

[Carolina Blue]

Playing quarterback in the NFL is the equivalent of getting in the sack with Jenna Jameson.

I've got $50 that says he got this from some "off the record" Tom Brady comment.

[Drbio]

Originally Posted by sixeightmkw

VY got a 16 on the Test, same as Dan Marino. So Dan Marino did not prepare and was a sorry quaterback. Give me a break. Everyone wants to look for something.

That is hardly a valid cause-effect statement 6-8. Read the article again.

[sixeightmkw]

The entire premise of the article states that VY does not prepare for anything. He didn't prepare for the Wonderlic, so how can he prepare week in and week out for the NFL. He didn't prepare when he got his "crew" represent him so how can he be a good NFL quaterback. He is not humble so how can he be a good NFL quaterback. Looking at NFL quaterbacks today, I don't see a humble one in the bunch. the Mannings are the most non-humble quaterbacks in the league right now. McNabb is not humble. Some are humble, some are not. that doesn't state if you are going to be a good quaterback or not. I don't really kknow if VY will be good or not, but people bashing him before he ever even takes a snap is pretty sorry. The NFL has to take what a player does in college and use that to make decisions on wether they will take him in the draft. Vince did his job in college.

[capitalcity]

weak.

[Drbio]

Originally Posted by sixeightmkw

I don't really kknow if VY will be good or not, but people bashing him before he ever even takes a snap is pretty sorry. The NFL has to take what a player does in college and use that to make decisions on wether they will take him in the draft. Vince did his job in college.

This is really all that matters. Like I said above, he was awfully darned prepared when he played us. However, he has been having a rough off season it seems. That too should get some consideration by a team that is going to spend millions to have him represent their team.

[chumdawg]

Wow. What a charged article. Smacks of racism, to me.

The only substantive parts of this article are the following:

--Young took two tries to make a 16 on the Wonderlic.
--Young hired a family friend as his agent.
--Young showed up at the White House without a sportcoat and tie.
--Young showed up to Radio Row with his "posse" in tow.
--The "leader" of Young's "posse" owns a Houston nightclub and goes by the name "Black."

From these facts alone it is supposed to follow that Vince Young doesn't take quarterbacking in the NFL seriously.

Sorry, I don't buy it. This article is the biggest pile of crap I have read in a long, long time.

[Carolina Blue]

Wow. What a charged article. Smacks of racism, to me.

I would agree if only they weren't members of the same race.

[Drbio]

Playing the race card is weak. There is no racial undertone to this story. That is the proverbial cop out, punt, whatever. Disagree if you want to....perfectly fine....but dropping the race card as an out has lost its' pizzaz.

[Dtownsfinest]

I don't know what to think of the article. Its sort of like the media is out to get Young. Where are all of these articles about Leinhart? Why isn't his Wonderlic being publicized like Young's? Why are we even being informed about Young's personal life? Who his posses is and so forth? Its like they're making him out to be some thug and if you've followed Vince Young you'd know that's not the case. His so called "posse" consists of childhood friends and family who he's trying to give them the chance to cash in on his success. This same crap was done when Lebron James was entering the draft. I won't pull the race card out but all of these columns about Young's personal life has got to end. Atleast let the guy step on the field first.

[chumdawg]

Originally Posted by Drbio

Playing the race card is weak. There is no racial undertone to this story. That is the proverbial cop out, punt, whatever. Disagree if you want to....perfectly fine....but dropping the race card as an out has lost its' pizzaz.

No racial undertone? Are you serious?

That's not keeping it real.

How many non-blacks use that phrase?

Small forwards travel with posses decked out in white T's, bling bling and agents in sweat suits. NFL quarterbacks don't.

How many non-black small forwards travel with posses decked out in white T's, wear bling bling, and are followed by agents in sweat suits?

I'll go ahead and give the benefit of the doubt to the relevance of the longtime friend who owns a nightclub and is nicknamed "Black." But this article is tremendously racially charged, and your own head in the sand won't change that.

[dude1394]

Foolish to hire your own relatives (maybe, unless you don't trust any other blankety-blank) but arrogant? Hmmm....

As far as race card, couldn't care less, go to it everyone, that dog won't hunt anymore.

[chumdawg]

Dude, I think you and Doc need to re-examine what it means to you to "play the race card."

When you come out and say: Vince Young's draft stock is going to slip because he's acting black, and by that I mean lazy, irresponsible, and having poor judgment....well, that's just racist, no way around it.

[dude1394]

As I said, he can play all the race cards he wants, I just don't care about it anymore. Race is irrelevant in this country.

[Carolina Blue]

Why would Jason Whitlock be playing the race card? He's black. Is there some new sort of black on black racism thing that no one told me about?

[Drbio]

Exactly. We don't need to manufacture race cards when they so blatantly don't exist. It all comes down to the ut folk not being able to hear any criticism of VY. Racism? Absolutely not.

[Dtownsfinest]

Originally Posted by Carolina Blue

Why would Jason Whitlock be playing the race card? He's black. Is there some new sort of black on black racism thing that no one told me about?

Whoa. So because he's black that means the comments in his article aren't racist? Because you're black you can't make racist comments? I didn't think much of the comments before until Chum brought them up. WTF is Whitlock trying to say by this comment that Chum brought up:

Small forwards travel with posses decked out in white T's, bling bling and agents in sweat suits. NFL quarterbacks don't.

I'm not familiar with Whitlock but he doesn't get a pass using such comments even if he is black. What makes you think a white reporter won't make these same comments about Young? They're not allowed to because their not black? Its sort of like when black people use the n-word referring to each other yet when another race uses the word all hell breaks loose.

[Dtownsfinest]

Originally Posted by dude1394

As I said, he can play all the race cards he wants, I just don't care about it anymore. Race is irrelevant in this country.

Its irrelevant to whom?

[Carolina Blue]

What makes you think a white reporter won't make these same comments about Young?

Because if they did it would be considered racist.

They're not allowed to because their not black? Its sort of like when black people use the n-word referring to each other yet when another race uses the word all hell breaks loose.

Correct.

[chumdawg]

This issue can get kinda complicated, but all I really need to know is that this story never gets written if Vince Young leaves the white-tee-wearing posse at home and brings a white Jewish lawyer with him to Radio Row.

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by Dtownsfinest

Its irrelevant to whom?

You, me everyone. It's a non-issue and should be treated as such. All people in america have equal opportunity to succeed or fail on their own.

There are no legal racist practices in this country, get the blank over it. There are people who don't like each other because of race but there are those that don't like each other because of how they smell, look or where they come from, it's a waste of time except for the folks who try to exploit it.

I'm just not playing anymore.

[u2sarajevo]

Thank God we still have court systems that are still "playing".

And, just for clarification, if someone doesn't like someone because of their race.... that is indeed racism. To say it is a non-issue, which means it doesn't exist, is like me claiming that Terrorism isn't an issue because no Terrorists have committed crimes on US soil for 5 years.

And yes, there are also "elitists" that don't like people because of how they smell, or where they come from. That too is atrocious, but I don't ever remember reading about Howard the III from xxxxx Country Club killing homeless boy John because he smelled bad.

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by u2sarajevo

Thank God we still have court systems that are still "playing".

That's for sure.

[Carolina Blue]

All people in america have equal opportunity to succeed or fail on their own.

Quality humor at it's best.

[Dtownsfinest]

You, me everyone. It's a non-issue and should be treated as such. All people in america have equal opportunity to succeed or fail on their own.

Damn Dude. You don't really believe that do you?

[Five-ofan]

I will start by saying that i am white but racism does exist. Legally dude is correct, racist laws no longer exist but sadly, racism is alive and thriving as i suspect it will always continue to.