Young Gives Titans Hope

Young Gives Titans Hope

By Tim Sullivan
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

This isn't exactly a newsflash, but the Titans aren't going anywhere. At 4-7, including a dreadful 1-6 mark in the AFC, Tennessee is clearly in the role of spoiler from here on out.

But it's obvious that role suits them.

Just ask the Eagles. Then ask the Giants.

With little to play for other than to show the league a preview of the Vince Young Era, the Titans have seriously hindered the chances of two elite NFC East teams in the past two weeks. In a game where Donovan McNabb suffered a season-ending knee injury, Tennessee rolled, 31-13. Then, the unimaginable happened, as the Titans erased a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter to outlast New York, 24-21.

Not bad for a rebuilding team with a rookie quarterback, heh?

"It’s a sneak peek of what’s going to happen, not with just me, but with this team in general," Young said. "My receivers making key catches and things like that, it just goes from there. It’s a sneak peak of how our future can be if we just continue to play hard and keep working to get to the point we want to be."

Clearly, it starts with Young. Less than a year after leading Texas to a national championship -- a hangover the struggling Longhorns surely have not gotten over, by the way -- Young has injected new life into this mediocre franchise. In 10 games, he has 1,323 passing and 294 rushing yards.

But forget the numbers. It's his moves, his mobility, his moxie that has Nashville buzzing.

"He uses his legs and he uses his arm," Titans coach Jeff Fisher said. "That’s why we drafted him."

And he's doing so without an abundance of skill around him. Think about it. His favorite receiver is tight end Bo Scaife, who began the season at No. 3 on the depth chart.

"His play does affect us on defense, because when he does good, it brings fire to the defense to go out there and want to do good as well," Titans cornerback Reynaldo Hill said. "It seems to make us more explosive when our offense is clicking."

Of course, they need it to keep clicking today as they play host to mighty Colts. Indianapolis (10-1) is -7.5 on

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