FRAGMENTED QUARTERBACK

Gosh, I don't often hit the target, but it would appear my Blog last Wednesday forecasted the burn-out of Vince Young (Titan QB.) I don't take much comfort in seeing the fragmentation of a young, talented man, but that's what has happened.

Vince was angry and depressed because of his performance against the Jaguars Sunday. He also encountered the "boo-birds" after throwing his 2nd interception. He left the field and Jeff Fisher had an extremely difficult time coaxing him back on the field. Jeff has attempted to mitigate the scenario as witnessed by fans and team mates, but it happened. Vince finally did go back on the field, while his team patiently waited for him. Within 5 minutes, he went down and has apparently suffered a mild/moderate knee sprain.

The next day he was supposed to have an MRI, but he blew it off. Monday night, he left his home without his cell phone and his family had no idea where he was going. After being called by Vince's mother, Jeff called the police and they put out an APB on him. He was located and it appears he was merely sharing wings with a friend and watching Monday Night Football. He was confused why there was such angst going on, but his family indicated he is in a very fragile emotional state and they were extremely concerned.

It's obvious Vince has some problems. I don't think we can judge how serious they are and we can only hope that he will get the kind of help he needs. One thing sure, the Titans don't need another soap opera such as the one with Pacman. Whatever happens, we need compassion for Vince, but there is an urgency required that doesn't need Titan management pretending once again that there's nothing wrong!

Soooooooooo, Kerry Collins will take over the QB duties for the future weeks, with Chris Sims signed to be his back-up. Collins has a lot of empathy for Vince since he, too, went through quite a roller coaster during his early years in the NFL. What we really need is for Steve McNair to step up and help become a steady monitor to Vince, i.e., if Vince will listen. Hey, maybe we could even get Steve to suit up one more time!

Pro Football Gangsta's a la "Pacman"

1. The difference between the "hi hop" and the "gangsta" culture would appear that in the later, there is absolutely no respect for authority or law. "Gangsta's" probably relate to "hip hop", but just because you enjoy "hip hop" doesn't mean you would relate to "gangsta" protocol.

However, the one thread that runs between these two is their denigration of women, i.e., the lyrics on hip hop songs and actions by gangsta's are against women. If one accepts this kind of music into their life, there will be some accommodation to the philosophy no matter how subtle it may be.

2. Everyone talks about cutting Adam Jones, but the fear is the Titans won't find anyone to replicate his field performance if he goes to another team in the AFC, it could hurt the Titans in game winning situations.

My thought is, particularly if the alleged gambling with bookies is proven, the NFL should ban him from football. No suspension, fines, etc., just ban him from football forever. And, furthermore, the Titans should be relieved of any further expense because of breach of contract. (Of course that's assuming the contracts in the NFL have a clause forbidding known contact with gamblers. We know the trouble with "assumption.")

3. Call me cynical maybe because I was raised in the Chicago area, but with the dismissal of all charges against Adam Smith in nine arrests, why wouldn't you think the "fix" was in? How can one person who frequently finds himself in deep doo-doo always walk away free of charge. Cha-Ching, someone's getting a pay off.