Vince Young sat out football in 2012 after being cut by the Bills before the season (just a year removed from the "dream team" debacle), but he's on the comeback trail and spent Tuesday throwing for scouts at Texas pro day in Austin.
And Young, speaking Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com, said he thought he "did OK."
"Mostly it was just being here for the guys," he said. "That was my mindset -- and just showing the rest of the scouts that I'm still training and staying in shape."
Longhorns offensive coordinator Major Applewhite and NFL.com's Gil Brandt weren't quite as reserved in discussing Young's performance. Rosenthal writes Applewhite told him Young "has better body control, rhythm and anticipation than he used to." Brandt called Young "magnificent" and said the former Texas standout "put on a show."
Mack Brown also tweeted positive things about Young's performance because Mack Brown tweets stuff.
Vince had a great day throwing for the scouts today. Major helped coordinate his workout and all went well. twitter.com/UT_MackBrown/s…
— Mack Brown (@UT_MackBrown) March 26, 2013
All the hype in the world for Young's pro day probably won't matter (just like any pro day!) -- what matters is how his performance will translate to interest from NFL teams. Austin was a good spot to showcase his skills, what with guys like safety Kenny Vaccaro and wideout/track star Marquise Goodwin working out as well. (Young hit Goodwin for some bombs that apparently drew "ooohs and ahhhs" from the crowd.)
Young said there is, in fact, "some teams" that are interested.
"My agent is working on it," Young said. "All I know is we got some teams with interest, so that's the good part about it. Just hoping for that blessing and opportunity."
Young declined, however, to tell Rosenthal which specific teams he'd talked to. At least one team could make sense: the Raiders.
If Oakland ends up parting ways with Carson Palmer, Young could be a very interesting and cheap bridge to whatever the future is there. Terrelle Pryor might be ready, but no one's sure. If he's not, Young could step up.
There's no guarantee he's going to get back in the NFL. But he's only 29, and a strong pro day in front of scouts when there's no real answers at quarterback in free agency or the draft would go a long way toward helping him out. Young's hoping he pulled that off Tuesday.
