No love for Brad Smith

If it weren’t for a spotlight hog like Vince Young, Brad Smith would have had the best quarterback performance in a bowl this year. OK, technically he had the best bowl game for a QB in 2005 since the Rose Bowl was last night. In short, Vince Young can declare for the NFL draft and start counting his dollars. Brad Smith won’t even be invited to the Senior Bowl. He’ll probably get invited to the Hula Bowl and other so-called All-Star games for guys from schools that Kansas State schedules for their out of conference games. In short, his pro career probably won’t be too long.

It’s too bad that the best player in Missouri history ended up with a career record of 25-23. The thing with Vince Young is that while his throwing motion is like the limp-wristed motion of Lamar from Revenge of the Nerds, he can throw it a mile. Also he’s 6 foot 5 and built like a linebacker. Brad Smith is 6’2, 210 pounds, and is probably a half-step slower. In the Great Blue North Report’s current QB rankings, Smith is 16th. Fourteen quarterbacks were selected in the 2005 draft. There might be some interest from the CFL. Smith probably has an upside like Seneca Wallace, who was a third-stringer for two years before moving up to the Seahawks’ backup role this year.

I will pretend that the Titans’ season finale never happened. And who’s going to tell me that it did? That was the most boring, listless Week 17 in NFL history. I can see why most fantasy leagues wrap up a week early. Guys like Aveion Cason and Bruce Perry saw significant snaps. These two aren’t even on rosters in my dynasty leagues, and you can keep 53 guys in those.

What do the Titans need to do? The number three overall pick in the draft should be interesting. Between the sideshow known as Pacman and mister number three, the Titans will dish out about $30 million in up-front bonuses. Overpaid linemen like Brad Hopkins and Benji Olsen are likely to get the boot. Youngsters like Michael Roos and Jacob Bell will have to fit in.

Where do the Titans not need help? They’re solid at TE, K, P, and the return game as long as Pacman continues playing that role. Either McNair or Volek is probably gone. If the Titans sign Travis Henry to his promised extension they should be fine at RB with Jarrett Payton and Damien Nash to fill out the roster. I’d give the rookie wideouts a season to jell before running out and picking up anything other than a veteran minimum free agent. Is Justin Hartwig the long-term answer at center? Is anyone going to offer Albert Haynesworth, aka Fat Albert, a big free-agent deal? What will the market be for free-agent Kyle Vanden Bosch? The offense only needs some fine-tuning, while the defense is in need of a near-complete overhaul.