If the Tennessee Titans could do it all over again, would they still take quarterback Vince Young with the No. 3 overall selection in the 2006 NFL Draft?
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon doesn’t think so. In fact, he has the Titans taking wide receiver Brandon Marshall instead in his 2006 NFL re-draft.
Yes, Young was the Offensive Rookie of the Year for the Tennessee Titans. But the former Texas star never won a playoff game over the course of five seasons in Tennessee. And even in that ’06 campaign, he threw more interceptions than touchdowns and barely completed half of his passes.
The Titans could get crafty here if they figure Young and/or Jay Cutler wouldn’t be re-drafted at all. We aren’t conducting a second-round re-draft, so let’s suppose that means the Titans keep Young. This way, they give the talented quarterback a star wide receiver in Central Florida product Brandon Marshall.
The six-time Pro Bowler leads the class in catches, receiving yards and touchdowns. He would have come in handy for a Tennessee team that relied too heavily on guys like Drew Bennett, Justin Gage and Roydell Williams at the time.
Drafting Marshall wouldn’t have been a bad move at all, as the former wide receiver turned in eight 1,000-yard seasons during his career, which would have been a revelation for a historically wideout-needy team like the Titans.
However, the only question I have is: who would have thrown him the football?
Pairing Young and Marshall was actually a possibility, as the wideout lasted until the fourth round before being taken — but of course, hindsight is always 20/20.
While Young certainly showed promise for the Titans early on with two Pro Bowl appearances and an AP Offensive Rookie of the Year Award in his first four years, his tenure in Nashville ultimately didn’t pan out for a variety of reasons.
After the 2010 season, Young moved on from the Titans to play for the Philadelphia Eagles, a team he played in six games (three starts) for.
Young would never play in another game following that year, as brief stints with the Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns proved unsuccessful, leading to him getting cut both times before seeing the field in a game.
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