If Steve McNair can pass a physical, the Tennessee Titans will trade him to the Baltimore Ravens.
The Titans, of course, locked McNair out of their training facility this offseason due to a contract dispute. McNair was on the books for an enormous salary cap figure this year but refused to renegotiate his deal.
Was McNair delusional? Not even close. Sure, I guess it’s possible that the 2003 co-MVP thought he’d get to stick around and cash in. More likely, though, he saw an easy way out of town and took it.
Things change quickly in the NFL, but the Titans probably won’t be competitive for a few years. Surely McNair knew this. Now he gets to bail on them without taking a PR hit.
The Titans, on the other hand, are ready to turn the team over to Vince Young. Is it the right decision, or should young quarterbacks take a few years to learn before they see the field? I don’t think there’s a one-size-fits-all right answer to that question. Yes, Carson Palmer benefited from waiting behind Jon Kitna, but Peyton Manning started from day one on an awful squad and quickly became a star. Besides, if sitting is all a young player needs, Jarious Jackson’s decade on the Broncos’ practice squad should have turned him into a Hall of Famer.
If a quarterback’s good enough to make it in the NFL, he’ll probably be fine whether he sits or plays his first year. I think Vince Young’ll be great, though I don’t expect a ton from him as a rookie.
As for the Ravens, taking a rival’s franchise cornerstone for a third or fourth-round pick is worth it just out of spite, but McNair can still play, too. He’ll at least beat out Kyle Boller, you know what I’m saying?
Having horrific quarterbacks has cost the Ravens for years, but the team still has a number of name players, none of whom, in a rare twist, served any jail time this year. Check out their depth chart.
That roster has been screaming out for a quarterback for years now, and the Ravens have finally found one. Watching the Ravens, Steelers and Bengals fight for the division title this year should be great, though I have to go with the Steelers right now. What do you think?
2 comments:
Ha, the Ravens. Are you a big Brian Billick fan?
Hey, McNair went to the Pro Bowl last year! And he was only the sixth quarterback picked from the AFC...
Anyway, there are still a ton of question marks around Baltimore, like Jamal Lewis for starters.
As for Cincy, you're asking a lot for Carson to return. If I were him I'd give up on walking and just see if I could get that leg amputated. I'm not even kidding. Man, that was gross.
Post a Comment