After dropping their first six games of the 2009 season, the Tennessee Titans were left for dead.
It quickly became clear that veteran quarterback Kerry Collins had no more magic left in his 36-year old arm after the abysmal start, yet it took head coach Jeff Fisher until Week 8 to insert fourth-year pro Vince Young into the starting lineup.
Although Young started 15 games for the Titans in 2007, he sustained an injury in the first game of the 2008 season and never regained his starting position. However, it was not just Young's sprained knee that kept him off of the field; his bruised psyche played a role. The Titans ended up beating the Jacksonville Jaguars 17-10 in the 2008 opener, but a mediocre performance earned Young more than a few boos from the Tennessee fans.
Over the next few days, Fisher claimed that Young's attitude had been worrisome, and the quarterback's psychologist said that Young had previously contemplated committing suicide. Young eventually denied the rumors, although to this day the reality of the situation remains unclear.
In light of this, Collins stepped in as the Titans' starting quarterback and led the team to an NFL-best 13-3 regular season record. Tennessee was awarded a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs but lost in the second round to the Baltimore Ravens.
The Titans re-signed Collins to a two-year contract in the offseason, so it came as no surprise when he opened the 2009 season as the team's starting quarterback. Meanwhile, Young's career looked to be in jeopardy as the former collegiate star started off his contract year on the bench. But since taking over in Week 8, Young may have saved both his career and the future of the Titans. The player who fans once called "inVinceable" has now led the Titans to five consecutive victories.
While it is unlikely that the Titans will qualify for the playoffs in 2009, the future looks bright once again in Music City. Young's career touchdown-to-interception ratio (26:34) may raise some question marks, but he is a proven winner. Dating back to the 2007 season, Young has won his last nine starts, and this past weekend's victory was far and away the most impressive of them all.
The Titans played host to the 2008 NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Cardinals' backup Matt Leinart received his first start of the year after Kurt Warner went down with an injury, setting up a repeat of the 2006 Rose Bowl, a game in which Young carried Texas to a dramatic 41-38 victory over Leinart's USC.
Despite numerous stumbling blocks — both were drafted in the first round and replaced by aging quarterbacks before facing off-the-field issues — the quarterbacks have persevered. Even if the two never play each other again, Sunday's game will leave another lasting image for quite some time.
The Rose Bowl rematch was a low-scoring affair in the first half, with Tennessee holding onto a slim 6-3 lead. Early in the third quarter, the Titans faced second-and-10 from their own 15-yard line when Young handed the ball off to electric running back Chris Johnson. Johnson ran to the left, burst through a hole and took off down the left sideline for an 85-yard score.
However, Leinart responded in kind. Down 13-10 after a kickoff return for a touchdown, he led the Cardinals on an 80-yard scoring drive, capped off by a six-yard run from second-year pro Tim Hightower. The touchdown gave the Cardinals a 17-13 lead, setting the stage for Young to work his magic.
After Young saw a 75-yard drive stopped short by wide receiver Kenny Britt's lost fumble, the Titans had another chance with 2:37 left — except this time, instead of starting on their own two-yard line, they had to start at their own one. On this day, Young was not to be denied, and the quarterback once viewed as damaged goods put together a drive for the ages.
The Titans faced three separate fourth downs as they attempted to move the ball down the field, but Young converted every one with a brilliant throw. Although the first two fourth-and-four conversions were extremely impressive, they failed to measured up to what Young accomplished on fourth-and-10 from the Arizona 10-yard line. With just six seconds remaining in the game, Young took the shotgun snap, avoided the rush by stepping up in the pocket and fired a bullet to a leaping Britt in the back of the end zone. Britt once again took a big hit on his way to the ground, but this time the rookie held onto the ball for a touchdown.
Young may not be the spitting image of a franchise quarterback, and he may never shatter the NFL record books with huge statistical performances, but he knows how to lead his team to a win. At the end of the day, that's all that matters, and on Sunday, Young once again proved that he deserves to be a starting quarterback in the NFL for years to come.
