By now, you've probably heard that the New England Patriots cut Tim Tebow.
You might not have heard that the Green Bay Packers cut Vince Young.
Now, if you follow football, you're probably not surprised by either of these. Tebow was almost out of the league until the Patriots gave him a chance to try and be a backup, but they went with the guy they already had. Young was out of the league and was brought in to Green Bay to be Aaron Rodgers' backup, but they changed their minds.
Both guys are mobile quarterbacks that are arguably the two greatest college quarterbacks from the past decade. Both guys aren't the greatest passers, and Tebow's struggles have been well documented. But both guys boast winning records in their now-dormant NFL careers.
The last time we saw Tim Tebow as a starter, he took over a 1-4 team and led them to the playoffs, where he beat the league's top defense that year. He has a career record of 9-7 as a starter in the NFL, but has never started a full season.
The last time we saw Vince Young as a starter, he took over a team that started 0-6 and led them to the playoffs - which, by the way, is the only time in NFL history a team made the playoffs after starting out that poorly. He has a 30-17 career record which gives him a 63.8 career winning percentage - only Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, and Ben Roethlisberger have a better one. He's also been to a few Pro Bowls.
Unfortunately for both, their organizations are the reason their careers are where they are now. It was very clear in Denver that John Elway (now the Broncos' VP of Football Operations) did not want Tebow to be his quarterback, and was given a gift when Peyton Manning signed with Denver. Jeff Fisher, then the head coach of the Tennessee Titans, only drafted and played Vince Young because of pressure from ownership management - he was much more interested in playing Kerry Collins and got rid of Young and the first opportunity.
Now, I am not here to tell you these guys would be the best quarterbacks in the league or make Pro Bowls every year or what have you. There is some reason as to why they are in the situation they're in. Say what you will about Tebow's wobbly passes or Young's wonderlic score, because that's all warranted. But they just win games.
Even the most narcissistic Tebow hater knows the Buffalo Bills would win more games with him at quarterback than with Jeff Tuel - an undrafted rookie who won 2 career games in college. Vince Young would play better for the Jacksonville Jaguars than Blaine Gabbert.
Let's go through a list of terrible quarterbacks who are on NFL rosters - withholding the two in the last paragraph.
Jimmy Clausen. Dan Orlovsky. Brady Quinn. Bruce Gradkowski. John Skelton. Chad Henne. Tavaris Jackson. Derek Anderson. David Carr. Rex Grossman. Kyle Orton. Terrelle Pryor. Everyone on the Jets.
It absolutely blows my mind that these players are getting paid six or seven figures to hold a clipboard and have considerably less talent and ability than Tebow and Young. When the NFL season starts on Thursday, you will see a lot of terrible quarterback play from terrible teams that would greatly improve themselves if they had a solid quarterback.
That read option you see Colin Kaepernick and RGIII running? That was made popular by Tebow and Young. People realized it could work in the NFL because both the Broncos and Titans had it in their playbooks on different levels.
Now Tebow will be known best for being the most talked about on Sportscenter for no good reason. Young will be known for blowing all of his money at T.G.I. Friday's and the Cheesecake Factory. Which is just a shame on so many different levels.
But let's not forget the Tim Tebow that won two national championships and was the first underclassman to ever win the Heisman.
And let's not forget the Vince Young who beat what was supposed to be the best college football team ever.
I hope each get another shot in the NFL. They both deserve to at least be on a roster because they make their teams better. Chances are, though, they're done. Nobody wants the Tebow circus. Young is starting to get a little bit old, especially for a running quarterback.
Both will continue to live on as college football legends. But their NFL lives? Tebow will be remembered for not being given a chance. Young will be remembered for being a wasted talent.
Now, they're just the latest stories of what could have, should have, and would have been.
You might not have heard that the Green Bay Packers cut Vince Young.
Now, if you follow football, you're probably not surprised by either of these. Tebow was almost out of the league until the Patriots gave him a chance to try and be a backup, but they went with the guy they already had. Young was out of the league and was brought in to Green Bay to be Aaron Rodgers' backup, but they changed their minds.
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| Tebow experienced playoff success in Denver |
The last time we saw Tim Tebow as a starter, he took over a 1-4 team and led them to the playoffs, where he beat the league's top defense that year. He has a career record of 9-7 as a starter in the NFL, but has never started a full season.
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| Young had a promising start to his career, gracing video game covers |
Unfortunately for both, their organizations are the reason their careers are where they are now. It was very clear in Denver that John Elway (now the Broncos' VP of Football Operations) did not want Tebow to be his quarterback, and was given a gift when Peyton Manning signed with Denver. Jeff Fisher, then the head coach of the Tennessee Titans, only drafted and played Vince Young because of pressure from ownership management - he was much more interested in playing Kerry Collins and got rid of Young and the first opportunity.
Now, I am not here to tell you these guys would be the best quarterbacks in the league or make Pro Bowls every year or what have you. There is some reason as to why they are in the situation they're in. Say what you will about Tebow's wobbly passes or Young's wonderlic score, because that's all warranted. But they just win games.
Even the most narcissistic Tebow hater knows the Buffalo Bills would win more games with him at quarterback than with Jeff Tuel - an undrafted rookie who won 2 career games in college. Vince Young would play better for the Jacksonville Jaguars than Blaine Gabbert.
Let's go through a list of terrible quarterbacks who are on NFL rosters - withholding the two in the last paragraph.
 |
| Young seemed destined for greatness |
It absolutely blows my mind that these players are getting paid six or seven figures to hold a clipboard and have considerably less talent and ability than Tebow and Young. When the NFL season starts on Thursday, you will see a lot of terrible quarterback play from terrible teams that would greatly improve themselves if they had a solid quarterback.
That read option you see Colin Kaepernick and RGIII running? That was made popular by Tebow and Young. People realized it could work in the NFL because both the Broncos and Titans had it in their playbooks on different levels.
Now Tebow will be known best for being the most talked about on Sportscenter for no good reason. Young will be known for blowing all of his money at T.G.I. Friday's and the Cheesecake Factory. Which is just a shame on so many different levels.
But let's not forget the Tim Tebow that won two national championships and was the first underclassman to ever win the Heisman.
And let's not forget the Vince Young who beat what was supposed to be the best college football team ever.
I hope each get another shot in the NFL. They both deserve to at least be on a roster because they make their teams better. Chances are, though, they're done. Nobody wants the Tebow circus. Young is starting to get a little bit old, especially for a running quarterback.
Both will continue to live on as college football legends. But their NFL lives? Tebow will be remembered for not being given a chance. Young will be remembered for being a wasted talent.
Now, they're just the latest stories of what could have, should have, and would have been.
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