Tag Archives: score 2009

NFL, University of Texas

Young, Vince “VY”

utud11 youngCards: UT Upper Deck 2011, UT Upper Deck 2011 Memorable Moments x3, UT Upper Deck 2011 ATA, Score 2009, Pacific 2009, Upper Deck 2009
Acquired: In Person 2013, GMC NFL Texas Event
See Also: Vince Young (2)

You pretty much have to live in Texas to understand the mystique of Vince Young. An electrifying player for the Longhorns who shattered USC’s chokehold on the National Championship, Young had this ability to come alive and just control games when it counted most.  Already a deadly scrambler Vince battled Chance Mock early on for playing time before taking the reins over fulltime for UT in 2004. VY utud11 young MM05rushed for 998 yards and 11 TDs that year, while throwing for 1,155 yards and 6 TDs. He’d earn Rose Bowl Player of the Game Honors for his heroics against Michigan. In his breathtaking 2005 season Young threw for 3,036 yards and 26 TDs. Again, he missed the 1,000 yard plateau rushing with 993 yards and 12 TDs, leading Texas to an 11-0 record. He’d be rightfully robbed of the Heisman honor, – that went to Reggie Bush, who later admitted to taking funds and favors from potential agents. Young in the meantime beat Bush and Leinart in the National Championship that year earning Rose Bowl player of the game honors, with 200 yards rushing and 267 yards passing. He’s one of a select few utud11 young MM05RR players to win 2 Rose Bowl Player of the Game Honors. His 30-2 record was the best in UT history (leaving the offense in capable hands of his protege Colt McCoy who broke his record). At the time of his departure Vince held many other offensive and combined offense National and Texas records.

VY declared for the draft after his Junior season. The 2006 draft was considered one of the richest of the Modern Era since 1986. With new head coach Gary Kubiak putting David Carr on an incredibly short leash, the city of Houston and the Young family hoped that the Texans would exercise the first pick of the draft on Vince. Although respectfullyutud11 young MM06 considered by the franchise, the team in the end chose North Carolina defensive end Mario Williams over Vince Young and Reggie Bush. The city erupted with anger at the pick, as New Orleans ran to the podium to snag Bush with the second choice, but the nightmare had just begun. With the 3rd pick of the NFL draft, the Tennessee Titans (that former team referred to as the HOUSTON Oilers) drafted Vince Young. It was the worst case scenario for the Houston Texans.

In the meantime, Young settled into his new role playing for the Titans. Immediately controversy brewed as the Titans traded starter Steve McNair to the Baltimore Ravens, while beneath the surface a mem youngrift over control began to fester between owner Bud Adams and head coach Jeff Fisher. Fisher didn’t want Young, but Adams made the call. Still Young steadied the ship, and improved the fares of the Titans, while the Texans appeared to be lost at sea.  He’d make the Texans pay for not drafting him and be named Rookie of the Year after breaking the NFL rookie QB rushing record with 552 yards, and leading the Titans to wins in two 14 point comebacks and a Pro Bowl appearance. Around Houston Adams was making new converts of the Houston masses, both new and old. Even in Austin where the Cowboys were losing grasp of an ever wavering fan base and the Texans were making little ground, the local affiliates ceased carrying Texans games to show Vinceutud11 young ATA in Tennessee. It was truly dark days for Texans fans.

In 2007 some of the tension began to mount between Fisher and Vince. Vince was benched during the preseason for breaching an undisclosed team rule. (It turned out later he slipped out of the team hotel and went to his house to sleep before the game.) A slow start statistically to his season, combined with nicks and tears along the way, it was even more surprising that Young led the upstart Titans into the playoffs that season. The team however would lose in the first round.

Early into 2008, VY injured his knee, which opened the door to journeyman QB Kerry Collins (who had the hot hand at the time) to take over. Rightfully so the Titans finished at 12-4 and Young was decidedly backing up Collins. This caused Vince much distress as fans were merciless with him. He briefly went missing as other rumors were also tossed around. Eventually he was found with the help of Coach Fisher, but things were about to go from bad to worse for Vince.

ud09 youngAs 2009 rolled around, Jeff Fisher was quoted as saying that, “Vince would have to earn the backup job.”  You see there was a knock on VY and UT players going all the way back to their Austin days, that they were coddled by the media and team there. Furthermore in college more teams customized their offense to the players’ skill sets, as opposed to the pros where it was the other way around,- especially for quarterbacks. Things however backfired on Fisher, and the Titans stumbled out of the gate. Before the team could blink they were 0-6. Facing tremendous pressure, Fisher finally put Young back in to play. VY immediately rattled off 5 wins in a row. He’d earn the Comeback Player of the Year Award from one sporting publication, but was largely overshadowed by both Tom Brady and Carnell Williams. VY again went to the Pro Bowl.

Vince and Fisher were again living as ‘The Odd Couple’. Fisher said horrible things behind VY’s back that’d get leaked somehow publicly, and Young would just go out and prove him wrong. The 2010 season finally proved to be the breaking point between the two. Hovering at about .500, Young threw his football pads into thesco09 young stands after a frustrating performance against the Washington Redskins, where he was yanked from the game with a broken thumb. After fighting with Fish in the locker room, -it was over and Young was benched for the remainder of the season. The Titans attempted to shop Young, but no team stepped up to trade for him, knowing that Tennessee would just have to jettison him. That they did, as the former Golden Boy from Texas with a 30-17 record for the Titans was kicked to the curb in early 2011.

VY floated around for a few months. Fans in Houston again briefly clamored for the Texans to sign him, but with the Texans riding high on their first division championship and Matt Schaub‘s play, there was no need to bring a former starter in to put pressure on Matt.  In mid July Young signed with the Philadelphia Eagles, who had been making savvy moves in free agency and through the draft. It seemed to be the perfect landing spot for him, as he’d be learning the ropes from quarterback guru and head coach Andy Reid, while supporting starting quarterback Michael Vick. VY then made some casual comments, which were then channeled into the mainstreampac09 young media. All of a sudden, Vince’s ‘Dream Team’ talk, made the Eagles bulletin board material for every team every week. The Eagles, stumbled, and Vick got injured. Young stepped in and led the team to a 1-2 record, but at the end of the season, he was not retained by the team.  The Eagles were rebuilding.

Young signed with the Buffalo Bills in 2012, but did not make the final cut. The Cardinals briefly considered signing him during the regular season, but due to fan clamor against the signing, VY was not pursued. VY sat out the whole 2012 season before getting his wish to play again. The Green Bay Packers signed him in 2013, but again he’d not make the final roster. While there are plenty of burnouts and free agents out there who somehow make squads every year, Vince rarely is called. VY though remains an internet rumor lightning rod for teams looking for a quarterback to spice up their lineups or as a team’s starting quarterback injury replacement. The Alouettes claimed his rights, but Vince only kicked the tires on joining the CFL, – a league I think he could excel and refine his skills in. It also wouldn’t surprise me if he’s approached by the Newyoung USFL for the Texas franchise, if that ever gets off the ground.

I was really, really surprised to see VY’s name at the GMC Texas NFL autograph signing. I was even more surprised to get there in line about an hour early and still be 8th or 9th in line, but as the event began and Vince walked in, the queue blew out of the tent. I had test driven 8 cars that day just so that I could get as many autographs from Vince that I could. I split the 8 into 4 and handed them to my fiancee so that the signing was a more acceptable number. Calling me ‘big man’, he signed everything for both of us, much to my glee. Vince also had never seen his Red River Shootout Upper Deck card which he really liked. Vince called his agent over and he acted like he was going to run with it. We talked for a moment about his Houston Astros hat, and about his love of the HOUSTON Oilers, that he grew up on. He also loved this insane looking photo that I took with him. VY seemed upbeat. I hope that things like this make him happy and give him some closure (if he needs it) on his experience in the NFL.

Vince also recently went back to UT to complete his degree. He’s been quoted as saying (and I paraphrase), “That going back and finishing up his degree at UT gave him an even better feeling than winning the National Championship.

G/Gs 60/50    Att  1304   Comp 755   Yds 8964    Pct 57.9     Td 46   Int 51    Rat 74.4
Rush 282     Yds 1459    Avg 5.2    Td 12     lg 44

 

 

NFL, NFLE

Delhomme, Jake

dor&s09 delhommesco09 delhommesp09 delhommeud09 delhomme

Cards: SP 2009, Upper Deck 2009, Score 2009, Donruss Rookies & Stars 2009
Acquired: TTM 2013, c/o Home
Sent: 4/2   Received: 4/20   (18 days)
Failure: C/o Home 2011, 2012

Jake Delhomme is another storied member of the WLAF/NFLE to make it good, again further proving to me that the league was succeeding in its mandate to create better talent for the NFL.  Names such as: Kurt Warner, Jon Kitna, Quinn Gray, and Kelly Holcomb joined Delhomme in the ‘developmental league’ to further their talents in the sport and then return stateside to take the league by storm.

Jake played for the University of Louisiana – Lafayette, from 1993 to 1996. There he’d etch his name into virtually all of the school’s passing record books finishing as the Ragin’ Cajuns all time leading passer in touchdowns and yards.  Delhomme did not get drafted, however the New Orleans Saints offered him a free agent contract and he joined their developmental squad in 1997.

Jake was assigned to the Amsterdam Admirals of the NFLE that next season where he was able to polish his skills a bit more. In his first season under center for the Admirals, Jake backed up future MVP Kurt Warner. His debut was unspectacular to say the least as Delhomme posted a 15.1 QB rating that season. Returning to the league for 1999, Delhomme put it all together in a solid effort. This time Jake was assigned to the Frankfurt Galaxy. He, alongside Pat Barnes provided a 2- headed monster quarterback option that the rest of the league couldn’t handle. Jake in fact finished second in the league with a 96.8 QB rating, throwing only 5 picks to 12 TDs. The Galaxy went on to win World Bowl VII 38-24. In the game, Jake finished 9 of 14 for 126 yards and a touchdown to Mario Bailey. Delhomme has always maintained that it was a team effort that resulted in the Galaxy’s World Bowl win. The bottom line is the stats didn’t lie, and both he and Pat Barnes’ numbers on the season were almost identical.

New Orleans liked him enough that year to bring him back again in 1999. The team was suffering badly with injuries to the quarterback position and a revolving door at the position appeared with Billy Joe Hobert, Billy Joe Tolliver, Danny Weurffel, and Jake sharing time at quarterback during the tumultuous season. With only Ricky Williams on offense, the team struggled mightily, but Jake got his first start against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 16. He didn’t disappoint as he led the team to only its 3rd win of the season 31-24. I remember the game vividly, as I had watched football only casually in those ‘dead years’ after the Oilers left Houston, and secretly rooted for the Saints since I hated the Cowboys with such vitriol. While Jake did not see significant playing time over the next few seasons, buried on the depth chart behind Aaron Brooks and Jeff Blake, he did manage to hang on through an offensive overhaul and a new coach. Finally in 2003 Jake finally got the break he was looking for.

Delhomme signed with the hapless Panthers, a team with a new coach going in a new direction after a 1-15 season. Feeling that he was the right quarterback, at the right price, since there would be no rookies available for the Panthers that they’d like, Coach John Fox took a shot at Jake to compete against aging Rodney Peete. Fox wouldn’t be disappointed, and by the end of the first game of the 2003 season, the Panthers would have their anointed starter at quarterback. Jake turned a new chapter in his NFL career and blossomed into a bona fide starter at the position stringing together an impressive resume of games and statistics, helping the Panthers out of the doldrums of the NFC South. Without question, he was the free agent signee of the year, leading the improbable Panthers all the way to the SuperBowl, putting together one of the best big game performances in history, only to fall short of the Patriots by a field goal. 2004 proved to be career highs for Jake in most passer categories, but the team stunk, -stung by the injury bug. This season was notable, as I was in the fantasy football playoffs, but all my starters were not playing, so I cut and benched them all, and signed Jake as my starting quarterback and rode my way to an improbable league championship under his wing. The Panthers again returned to playoff form in 2005, as Jake continued to rewrite the franchise’s record books. Injuries to his thumb kept him out of 3 games that season, and in 2006 an elbow injury basically wiped his season out. In 2008 Delhomme returned to form with a vengeance, guiding the Panthers to their best record in franchise history, but his interception numbers began creeping up on him, and after a disastrous playoff performance in which he threw 4 picks, fans were clamoring at the gates for the end of his tenure. The same story repeated itself for Jake in 2009, as he threw 18 interceptions to only 8 touchdowns. The writing was on the wall after the season, and the Panthers’ career leading passer was unceremoniously cut.

In the journeyman phase of Delhomme’s career he went to Cleveland in 2010, and tried to help restart the fortunes of the beleaguered franchise, but again, injuries beset Delhomme. This time he suffered a nagging high ankle sprain which plagued him all season. After his one season for the Browns, Jake was cut again.  It wasn’t until late in 2011 that Jake was signed, appearing on the radar of the Houston Texans. With injuries hitting the Texans at quarterback, 3rd stringer TJ Yates needed competent and experienced teachers and quarterbacks behind him. In came Jake Delhomme and Jeff Garcia. It’d be for the Texans, after Yates suffered a bruised shoulder in the season finale, that Jake got his final playing time, leading a heroic comeback for the Houston Texans against their arch rival Tennessee Titans. While the Titans ended up winning the game, the Texans made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, nonetheless. After the season and the Texans first playoff victory and loss, Jake has retired back to Louisiana.

I tried on multiple occasions to get Jake’s autograph and completely failed. The first time was an RTS from North Carolina, that led me to Ohio from a tip I was given. It never panned out, but after seeing that he had returned to his roots in Louisiana, I thought this was my best shot. Luckily I finally landed Jake on the third try on these 4 great cards. All of them showcase great design and an excellent action shot of him and oddly just happen to be all 2009 releases.

NFL G/Gs 103/96   Att 2932   Comp 1741   Yds 20975   Pct 59.4  Td 126   Int 101  Rat 81.3  |
Rush 175    Yds 328   Avg 1.9   Td 7   Lg 27

NFLE     Att 249      Comp 151     Yds 1657    Pct 60.1%     Td   12      Int  9     Rat  81.4  |
Rush 23     Yds 146     Avg 6.3     Td 0    Lg 20

NFL

Pitts, Chester (2)


Acquired: In Person, 6/10/11, 610 Houston Fan Fest III
See Also: Chester Pitts

Chester Pitts is considered the first ironman of the Houston Texans and has garnered the nickname “Mr. Texan” from fans. Outside of former kicker Kris Brown, Pitts had logged the most games played in a row on the team roster with 114 games started. He saw the beginnings of the franchise, as one of the team’s second round draft choice in 2002 after David Carr and Jabar Gaffney.  He’d play through the team’s tenure under Dom Capers and Charlie Casserly, and into the current Kubiak era- a total of seven solid seasons, before 2 games into his 8th he suffered a catastrophic injury and spent the rest of 2009 on IR. As it was a contract year, the team allowed him to bolt via free agency to the Seattle Seahawks for 2010.  Chester started 5 games for the Seahawks, and made the playoffs for the first time in his career.

I slid over to Chester’s line at Fan Fest, after striking out on Danieal Manning, whose line was closing. I waited maybe two minutes before I was up front and talked to him a little bit. When I asked him if he was still with Seattle he told me that he was pretty much retired now. Pitts was looking noticeably slimmer and later admitted he had lost about 30 pounds off of his playing weight. He’s now working as a financial advisor and is an advocate for better fiscal responsibility by former NFL players.

I had a card for Chester, but he had already signed it. No other manufacturer other than Score ever made one of Chester in his tenure as a Texan. Probably a slight on him because he played on such horrible lines. Still he was a solid blocker for his time with the team and I hope he gets the recognition he deserves for his time with the Texans organization.