Negatives: Needs total refinement of his throwing motion … Has a very low release that allows defensive linemen to deflect the pass at the line of scrimmage … Lacks ideal field awareness and struggles to read complicated coverages … Does a poor job of making progression reads, failing to look off his primary targets … Has a "run first" mentality when his protection breaks down, but does a poor job of protecting the ball on the run, resulting in 29 fumbles in 37 games … Can fire the ball into tight areas, but when he attempts to go long, his passes hang up in the air, allowing the defense to settle under the ball to make the interception … Looks awkward with his footwork driving back from center and looks more comfortable working out of the shotgun … Must do a better job of anticipating the receivers' breaks on his deep tosses (too many times the receiver has to adjust to make the catch) … Anyone that saw his up-and-down performances in the 2005 Ohio State and Texas A&M games can see that he does not have ideal decision-masking skills (will look like Bambi staring at the headlights of a truck at times).
Young is one of the finest athletes in the collegiate game. He has excellent quickness, agility, balance and body control rolling out of the pocket. He has a tall, angular physique with good upper body muscle development, tight abdomen, fluid hips and thick thighs and calves.
His change of direction agility and foot speed is outstanding for his position. He is an instinctive runner, but has struggled with the mental aspect of reading defenses in passing situations, resulting in 28 interceptions as a starter. He relies a lot on his foot speed and strength to gain positive yardage when flushed out of the pocket. Despite lofty statistics, you can see that the "light is not on" all the time when it comes to making proper reads and reacting quickly to schemes and coverages (see 2005 Ohio State and Texas A&M games and 2004 Oklahoma and Missouri contests).
Was EJ Manuel that bad to have Neckbeard start over him?
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