Vince Young or Matt Leinhart

[Reality]

and why?

Vince Young declared Sunday.

Houston Texans say they are stiking with Bush #1.  I wanna see where and when other USC rb Lendale White goes.  I might tinker with Bush and make him more of a flanker and kick returner.  As tailback if he is used in a passing offense.  
 

[SPURSX3]

Do you REALLY think Leinhart will go before Young???


The Houston is SHOULD draft Young and trade Carr for some O-Line Help...but no, they want to Keep Carr and get Bush so they can TWO good players getting the Snot knocked out of them.  


Young will go before Leinhart in the draft, no knocking Leinhart or anything, but Young has the skill, the height, the frame, the speed, to be a real difference maker.  At 6-5 he can see whats coming his way, so while he may still sacked on a team in the draft, he could probably se whats coming and avoid it more so than Leinhart could.  Thats just my opinion.  

[Guest_Randy]

I LOVED this quote . . .

Gil Brandt, longtime Cowboys personnel director and current NFL.com draft analyst, called Young a likely top five pick but said he thought Young should have stayed at Texas another year.

"He is very, very similar to Randall Cunningham," Brandt said. "Had he waited, he probably would've been a better player. All quarterbacks get better with the more experience they get. Going from college football to the NFL is about like going from eighth grade to being a graduate student at MIT."

Although Young has been criticized by analysts for his quirky sidearm throwing motion, Brandt said the most important factor is Young's winning record.

Young can be a solid NFL quarterback someday but you aren't EVER going to see a secondary as bad as USC's.  And Young's sidearm throw is going to mean a LOT of deflections in the NFL.

[westkoast]

Do you REALLY think Leinhart will go before Young???


The Houston is SHOULD draft Young and trade Carr for some O-Line Help...but no, they want to Keep Carr and get Bush so they can TWO good players getting the Snot knocked out of them.  


Young will go before Leinhart in the draft, no knocking Leinhart or anything, but Young has the skill, the height, the frame, the speed, to be a real difference maker.  At 6-5 he can see whats coming his way, so while he may still sacked on a team in the draft, he could probably se whats coming and avoid it more so than Leinhart could.  Thats just my opinion.

I don't see how Matt Leinhart would go above Young after what Vince was able to do last week in a high pressure game.  Aside from him being great all year I think that score or lose the championship drive said alot about his ability to handle pressure....something that is magnified in the pro setting.

If anything Bush will go before Leinhart because any team that NEEDS a QB is going with Young.  I don't think the next pick is going to pass up Reggie Bush.

[Reality]

At 6-5 he can see whats coming his way, so while he may still sacked on a team in the draft, he could probably se whats coming and avoid it more so than Leinhart could.  Thats just my opinion.

Leinart is 6'5" also.  It's Youngs mobility that is better.

Yes concur Hou should take Young.  However starting rookies is risky biz in the NFL.  Rothlesburger is one of the few it's worked out for, and oh how it has for Pitt.
Modern day NFL it seems two QBs on the roster is a must, not if but when the backup will come in.  Why moron MmmmartyBall Shotenheimer let Brees get hurt in an absolute meaningless Chargers season finale is, well MMmmarty.

[JoMal]

Not sure why there is any criticism of Leinart going on here. He led his team to five touchdowns in the Rose Bowl, threw for 98 more yards then Young did on 1 less completion, and threw the only touchdown pass of the day. The NFL, while always intrigued by players such as Vince Young, tend to be more interested in the classic type quarterback who can be developed into the standard issue NFL signal caller.

Young will need to relearn how to throw the football overhand before he fits that mold, and his excellent mobility shown in college will put him on the IR early in his career once he faces the faster and stronger NFL tacklers out in the open field.  

Houston has indicated they are more interested in Bush then a quarterback, and with Reggie looking like a sure bet in the NFL, that pick is a no brainer for them. It should get interesting after that, though. What I have heard is that New Orleans wants Leinart, and the Titans are interested in Young to replace the oft-injured Steve McNair, but not to start him next year - probably the following year.  

[Derek Bodner]

Young may have higher draft stock now, Leinart is the better quarterback.  Young's going to have work to do before he translates to the NFL.  All you hope is that he adapts.  Because one a quarterback's 40 time is going to go from a 4.3 to a 4.5 due to the wear and tear on his body.  Then he's shot if he hasn't developed himself.

[jn]

Negative fan reaction will prevent this, but what if the Texans traded the #1 for more picks and spent them on defense and the O line?  Can anyone really say David Carr is the problem or Dom Davis should be on the bench when the O line is, in the words of Homer S. "the suckiest bunch of sucks that ever sucked?"  Just some food for thought.

To be honest I think criticism of Leinart may be a case of him suffering for the sins of guys like Danny Wurerful and Gino Torretta.  

[SPURSX3]

I LOVED this quote . . .

Gil Brandt, longtime Cowboys personnel director and current NFL.com draft analyst, called Young a likely top five pick but said he thought Young should have stayed at Texas another year.

"He is very, very similar to Randall Cunningham," Brandt said. "Had he waited, he probably would've been a better player. All quarterbacks get better with the more experience they get. Going from college football to the NFL is about like going from eighth grade to being a graduate student at MIT."

Although Young has been criticized by analysts for his quirky sidearm throwing motion, Brandt said the most important factor is Young's winning record.

Young can be a solid NFL quarterback someday but you aren't EVER going to see a secondary as bad as USC's.  And Young's sidearm throw is going to mean a LOT of deflections in the NFL.

No way Randy, Young needs to go to the NFL, IMO, one more year at UT, while great for the program, could damage Youngs value.  There is NO WAY Young could go any higher in value than this season, if anything his value could possibly drop by staying, look at Leinhart.  Even if Young could win the Heisman this season, so what?  His value cannot go any higher than this season.  I would not take the chance, which is what his agent probably told him too, go into the draft now.

[Reality]

Coaching/Team he goes to will be the key.  Assuming Young is willing to be coached, and all indications are he will be.

While true Michael Vicks running can and has gotten him hurt, it was a cheapshot helmet spear after he wound up and threw long that hurt him the worst.  

WOW is not only making sense regarding Fabs today, but his mentioning John Elways picking his spots to run as opposed to running all the time is right on.

A good coach will utilitize Youngs ability to pass and run.

Leinart I am not counting out at all.  Agree he was 29-40 vs Texas and an almost 35 straight wins and 3 titles.  He is also good at alluding the rush, floating around.  Once again, team system and coach will be vital.

[Guest_Randy]

I LOVED this quote . . .

Gil Brandt, longtime Cowboys personnel director and current NFL.com draft analyst, called Young a likely top five pick but said he thought Young should have stayed at Texas another year.

"He is very, very similar to Randall Cunningham," Brandt said. "Had he waited, he probably would've been a better player. All quarterbacks get better with the more experience they get. Going from college football to the NFL is about like going from eighth grade to being a graduate student at MIT."

Although Young has been criticized by analysts for his quirky sidearm throwing motion, Brandt said the most important factor is Young's winning record.

Young can be a solid NFL quarterback someday but you aren't EVER going to see a secondary as bad as USC's.  And Young's sidearm throw is going to mean a LOT of deflections in the NFL.

No way Randy, Young needs to go to the NFL, IMO, one more year at UT, while great for the program, could damage Youngs value.  There is NO WAY Young could go any higher in value than this season, if anything his value could possibly drop by staying, look at Leinhart.  Even if Young could win the Heisman this season, so what?  His value cannot go any higher than this season.  I would not take the chance, which is what his agent probably told him too, go into the draft now.

SpursX3

You are looking at this from Young's perspective -- and I don't have a problem with that -- BUT Young had better hope that he is drafted by a team who doesn't need a quarterback immediately because:  1) he is going to find out QUICKLY that running in the NFL is a LOT different than running in college.  He has been bigger than most of the guys tackling him in college -- that's NOT going to be the case in the NFL.  He is also going to learn that quarterbacks in the NFL have a BIG bullseye on them anytime they cross the line of scrimage -- there are some guys in the secondary in NFL that LOVE to see how far back they can knock a quarterback.  2) he is going to have to change the way he throws the ball in the NFL -- that sidearm stuff isn't going to get past the line of scrimmage very often in the NFL.  

Young has a lot of potential -- and I think that Young's BEST asset, at this point, is his decision making -- esp. under pressure.  However, he needs some time to work into a starting position -- if he has to start right away it could ruin his future, IMO.

[WayOutWest]

No way Randy, Young needs to go to the NFL, IMO, one more year at UT, while great for the program, could damage Youngs value.  There is NO WAY Young could go any higher in value than this season, if anything his value could possibly drop by staying, look at Leinhart.  Even if Young could win the Heisman this season, so what?  His value cannot go any higher than this season.  I would not take the chance, which is what his agent probably told him too, go into the draft now.

Completely agreed.  No way Young gets this dream scenario of defeating a historic team like USC.  His value cannot get any higher, if he were to stay he would be expected to be great so the only thing he could do is damage his stock.

[westkoast]

Coaching/Team he goes to will be the key.  Assuming Young is willing to be coached, and all indications are he will be.

While true Michael Vicks running can and has gotten him hurt, it was a cheapshot helmet spear after he wound up and threw long that hurt him the worst. 

WOW is not only making sense regarding Fabs today, but his mentioning John Elways picking his spots to run as opposed to running all the time is right on.

A good coach will utilitize Youngs ability to pass and run.

Leinart I am not counting out at all.  Agree he was 29-40 vs Texas and an almost 35 straight wins and 3 titles.  He is also good at alluding the rush, floating around.  Once again, team system and coach will be vital.

Leinhart has also had the luxury of Pete Caroll comming in and using some of his NFL coaching methods with USC.  If any college coach is good at getting his players ready for the next level Pete is the man (not to say others dont do this well or anything).  I think Caroll is going to be the perfect person to help both Bush and Leinhart make a much smoother transition into the pro game.  Not sure if TX's coach can do the same for Vince Young.

Only way Young's value drops is if he gets hurt.  Other than that him staying another year would have upped his value, especially since they could have a repeat season of what they did this year.  I said the same thing last year when Leinhart decided to stay at USC for this year and now I am singing a new tune.  IMO it did alot for Matt, not only did he get another year of expierence under his belt but he proved he is a sure bet as far as consitency goes.  

[Guest_Randy]

IMO, a GM would be a LOT smarter by choosing Leinart than Young.  Young has more POTENTIAL -- but Leinart could play immediately -- Young is going to struggle tremendously if he has to start next year for a club.  That sidearm stuff just CAN'T be his primary weapon.  There are some times that it can be an important weapon but not for throwing over the line of scrimmage.  

It's a tough call -- if you don't need a quarterback immediately, Young is a better choice (getting him someone who can mentor him).  But if you need a quarterback immediately (like the Texans do), I'd choose Leinart.  But in Texas, you AREN'T going to be able to make that choice -- they are going to draft Young JUST because of his ability to draw fans and sell tickets.  They will hope that he can survive long enough to learn the NFL game!

[Reality]

That sidearm stuff just CAN'T be his primary weapon.  There are some times that it can be an important weapon but not for throwing over the line of scrimmage.  

 

Kenny Stabler sure did have a tough time in the SuperBowl.