Of all the teams that are currently slated to draft in the top 10 on Thursday, the Tennessee Titans might be the biggest enigma of them all.

Spend some time scouring the internet for mock drafts and you’ll find that the majority of them have the Titans taking a defensive lineman with the eighth overall pick. There are a handful of draft observers that have the Titans taking Auburn’s Nick Fairley, who remind some of former Tennessee defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth.

But when you consider the Titans’ list of needs, defensive tackle isn’t among them. Guard is a potential need, as is inside linebacker and cornerback. Outside linebacker is also a bigger need than defensive tackle, and one could make the argument that safety is as well.

Oh, and the Titans may want to think about doing something at quarterback, which is easily the team’s biggest hole heading into Thursday night.

Vince Young’s name may still be on the Titans’ roster, but at this point it’s just a formality. Young’s days in Tennessee are numbered, as confirmed by new head coach Mike Munchak over the weekend. Seeing as how Kerry Collins is set to become a free agent once the labor issue is resolved, there’s a ton of uncertainty for the Titans surrounding the most important position on the field.

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Matt Bowen of the National Football Post writes that quarterback-needy teams aren’t discussing Vince Young as a potential option for next season.

From the scouts and coaches I talk to in the NFL, he isn’t looked at an as option, an upgrade in the current landscape of the QB position in the league. There are questions that surround his game, starting with leadership skills. Can you see him as the leader of your locker room, your huddle? How will he handle adversity on—and off—the field? Can he take hard coaching? Realistic questions after the situations we saw down in Tennessee.

Plus, there are general concerns about his game on the field. Some in the league see a QB that has taken steps backwards in terms of the position. Footwork, mechanics, etc. Areas that haven’t improved. And anytime you hear the words “worth ethic” with an NFL QB in a negative manner, you start to wonder who is going to take a chance on this guy.

Considering the CBA mess, it’s not surprising that we’re not hearing more Young rumors. Then again, none of what Bowen wrote is surprising. Teams have to be scared about bringing this guy in, especially as a starter. He clearly has maturity issues and whether or not you believe Jeff Fisher was mostly at fault for Young’s downfall in Tennessee, you have to admit that VY didn’t help matters with his poor attitude.

That said, I wonder if someone like the Bills would be interested in bringing Young in to compete with Ryan Fitzpatrick. I’d personally rather have Fitzpatrick under center than Young, but Chan Gailey has a track record of working with mobile quarterbacks and maybe Young can reinvent himself in a low-key city like Buffalo.

As it stands right now, not even the Dos Equis guy could convince Mike Reinfeldt to keep Vince Young. The Titans’ GM confirmed on Friday that he plans to trade or release the 27-year-old quarterback this offseason, which signals the inevitable end of Young’s tenure in Tennessee.

According to Rotoworld (via Terry McCormick of TitanInsider), two undisclosed teams have joined Minnesota as potential destinations for Young. The Redskins, Bills, Dolphins, Cardinals, 49ers, Raiders, Panthers and Jaguars could all be interested in a quarterback this offseason, but at this point who knows where Young will wind up?

What we do know is that the Titans will have a tough time trading him. Teams know that Tennessee wants to release him, so why not wait until then to acquire him? The Titans are hoping that some team will put a trade package together (even if it’s a couple of PEZ dispensers and a pack of double-A batteries), but that’s highly doubtful considering he’s owed $8.5 million in base salary next season.

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Bud Adams’ organization is a complete mess right now. For the past couple of years, his head coach has been feuding with his once-prized quarterback and despite owning a league-best 13-3 record in 2008, the team hasn’t won a playoff game in six years.

Call it a firing or a mutual separation – whatever it was, it was time for Jeff Fisher to go. And if Adams is smart, Vince Young will soon be heading out the door, too. Everyone expected Adams to choose between the two but the right decision in the end is to start fresh by ridding himself of both of them.

The Fisher v. Young feud was a major distraction last year. Even running back Chris Johnson (the true face of the franchise) admitted so after the season. Who was most at fault for allowing things to get that bad? Everyone, from Adams to Fisher to Young, everyone played a role in creating the mess that this team is currently in.

Young hasn’t shown the ability to lead and his work ethic stinks. Despite what his supporters believe, he won’t fetch much in a trade because the league is well aware of his maturity issues. Fisher is a throw back coach who usually got the most out of his players, but he’s won five playoff games in 16 years with three of those wins coming in 1999 when he took the Titans to the Super Bowl. In 16 seasons with Tennessee, he never once developed a true No. 1 receiver or had a quarterback who threw for 3,400 yards or 25 touchdowns, which are pretty standard numbers these days for good starters. Granted, he’s supposed to be a defensive-minded coach, but his defenses have finished 27th, 19th, 32nd, 5th, 7th, 28th and 26th since 2004.

It was time for the Titans to go in another direction. Everyone saw what happened last year in Carolina when John Fox rode out the final year of his deal: he had little to no interest in helping a team develop its young players when he wasn’t going to be around to watch them grow up. Maybe things would have been different with Fisher in Tennessee but if the Titans’ front office knew they wanted to eventually make a change, why wait? Part mutually so that both sides could have a clean break.

And that’s exactly what they did. The Titans have a long way to go to right the ship but at least they’ve started the process by parting ways with Fisher. Next up is Young and then this team can really make some headway.

Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees and…Vince Young?

From ESPN.com:

Young says in an interview with ESPN’s Marcellus Wiley on Wednesday night that he will work to let his next team know he’s an elite quarterback who just wants to win games and be the best. Asked if he could work as a backup, Young laughed.

“I’m going to go into the organization, the team, and compete. That’s all I can do, and let them make their own decision after that,” Young said. “Definitely I am a starting quarterback, an elite quarterback in the NFL. I want to go ahead and start. But like it always is, the coaches have the last word.”

I get that Young was just trying to exude confidence in his abilities. After all, what is he going to say? That he sucks? That he has maturity issues and might be incapable of leading a NFL franchise?

That said, if he truly believes that he’s an elite NFL quarterback, then the guy is in serious need of a reality check. I could be way off in my assessment, but something tells me that he feels that he’s been wronged by Jeff Fisher and that is head coach has held him back. Maybe to some degree, he’s right. But the main reason Young is an on-again, off-again starter is because he’s a highly unstable leader. He may own a winning record but that doesn’t make him a winner.

You would never see quarterbacks like Brady, Manning, Brees, Donovan McNabb or Aaron Rodgers throw their shoulder pads into the stands while walking off the field in a hissy. None of those players would need a teammate to track them down as they headed out of the stadium in an attempt to console them after a poor performance either.

That’s because guys like Brady, Manning, Brees, McNabb and Rodgers are leaders. They set the example because they know that’s what is demanded of them. Young hasn’t grasped that yet, which is why he says that he’s an elite quarterback instead of knowing it.

Young can be a terrific player at times and I hope some day he puts it all together. But as of right now, he’s got a long way to go in order to consider himself elite.

Vince Young will not be a member of the Tennessee Titans next season, as owner Bud Adams has “chosen” Jeff Fisher over his once-beloved quarterback.

The Titans can’t cut Young until February 7 when waivers start for next season and they can’t trade him until early March (when the new season officially begins). But that doesn’t mean we can’t speculate about his future.

So let’s speculate the crap out of this thing. Below are some potential landing spots for VY.

Miami: For some reason, I see Young as being a Miami guy. That doesn’t make a bit of sense seeing as how he’s from Texas. But I keep getting the image of him on South Beach, sipping one of those colorful drinks with the umbrella hanging out. (Wow, I think the long football season is starting to get to me.) Chad Henne is a dead man walking in Miami, as former (Ricky Williams) and current (Brandon Marshall) teammates continue to throw him under the bus for the Dolphins’ failures this season. With Tony Sparano likely heading out the door with him, Miami’s next head coach will look to add a quarterback in the offseason. Seeing as how we don’t know who the next coach for the Dolphins will be, we don’t know if Young would be a fit. But this marriage makes sense based on need.

Arizona: I’m sure Ken Whisenhunt will want to see more out of John Skelton next summer in order to better evaluate his potential. But if he hasn’t seen enough of Derek Anderson to know the guy can’t play, then Whisenhunt isn’t long for the NFL. I don’t see Young being a fit for Whisenhunt’s offense, but the Cards are desperate and still scrambling to fill Kurt Warner’s shoes.

Buffalo: Ryan Fitzpatrick is more than serviceable but the Bills could bring in Young to provide competition. Any kind of talent that Buffalo can add to the roster would be a good thing.

Oakland: When there’s a high-profile free agent about to become available, I think it’s almost automatic that you have to list the Raiders as a potential suitor. You know Al Davis just put Texas’ Rose Bowl win over USC into his VCR (what, you think the Crypt Keeper has a Blu-ray player?) and is drooling over Young right now. Jason Campbell who? I need Vince, baby!

San Francisco: Same as Miami: We don’t know who the head coach will be so we don’t know if Young would be a fit. But there’s no doubt the Niners have a need at quarterback.

Houston: Young is from Houston and the Texans could use a backup for Matt Schaub, but I’m sure VY wants a crack at being a starter. Still, it makes sense.

Dallas: Same thing as above with Houston, although Young definitely isn’t a fit for Jason Garrett’s offense.

The overwhelming consensus among fans and the media is that Titans owner Bud Adams will choose between head coach Jeff Fisher or quarterback Vince Young.

One will stay, one will go.

My question is: Why not let them both walk?

Young may have a winning record as a starter but that doesn’t mean he’s a winning quarterback. This latest incident in which he threw his shoulder pads into the stands after one of Tennessee’s games this year once again proves that he lacks maturity. While there’s no doubt the guy has talent, he refuses to put in the work necessary to become a great player. Michael Vick had the same issue in Atlanta before he was hauled off to prison for two years and realized he actually had to work for what he wanted. Meanwhile, JaMarcus Russell never honed his craft and now he’s out of the league.

If Adams sides with Young, it would be a foolish decision. Word has it that even his trusted executives have told him to move on from the former third overall pick. Maybe Young would change his ways if Fisher was let go, but does Adams really want a player that will only work hard if he likes his authority figures? What kind of message is that sending to the rest of the team?

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Sad news out of Tennessee on Wednesday as coach Jeff Fisher announced that offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger has been diagnosed with cancer and will undergo chemotherapy.

From ESPN.com:

“Mike is very sick. And Mike is going to be, potentially as early as today, undergoing chemotherapy for cancer treatment. I don’t know whether or not he’ll be back (Thursday) or whether he’ll be here inside the facility or whether or not he’ll be able to participate in coaching this game.”

“We are going to continue with the game plan. I will make sure this game will get called and the offense will be prepared. I just want everybody to keep Mike and his family in their prayers.”

“He’s been sick — very sick — for three weeks. We just got the news this morning.

“I don’t want to go into detail anymore than that. I think we owe it to Mike to allow him to enjoy some privacy with his family.”

Fisher went on to say that the “Vince Young stuff is behind us.” When serious news like this come up about, all other issues seem inconsequential. My heart goes out to Heimerdinger and his family.

The first step in ensuring that quarterback Vince Young never takes another snap in Tennessee has just been taken.

Titans’ coach Jeff Fisher told the media on Monday that the team will place Young on injured reserve. Young tore a tendon in his thumb in an overtime loss to the Redskins on Sunday and afterwards Fisher said that the quarterback wouldn’t retain his job whether he needed surgery or not. Rusty Smith, who replaced Young on Sunday, will remain the starter and Chris Simms was signed as his backup.

Owner Bud Adams is still a VY fan but it’s apparent that Fisher is not. The two of them got into a “verbal confrontation” following the loss to Washington and Young apparently berated Fisher under his breath as the coach was trying to address the team in the locker room. Young also reportedly tossed his shoulder pads into the stands at LP Field.

Adams has since stated that Young will definitely be a Titan in 2011, but that remains to be seen. He’s due a roster bonus of $4.25 million and if Fisher has no plans to start the 27-year-old next year, then the Titans could be forced to trade or waive him in the offseason. It doesn’t make sense to pay that much money (he’s also owed over $8 million in base salary next year) to a backup that’ll never see the field.

Placing Young on I.R. is only the tip of the iceberg.

It appears as though Vince Young’s time in Tennessee is running out.

According to reports, Young got into a “verbal confrontation” with coach Jeff Fisher following the Titans’ overtime loss to the Redskins on Sunday. Per Jim Wyatt of the Nashville Tennessean, Young told Fisher, “I’m not running out on teammates, I’m running out on you.” Young also was apparently “throwing out expletives under his breath” in the locker room while Fisher was speaking to the rest of the team.

Speculation has started to grow that Young won’t take another snap with the Titans, and not just this year – ever. He tore a tendon in his thumb during the loss to Washington and was replaced by Rusty Smith. Following the game, Fisher said that Young wouldn’t retain the starting quarterback job whether Young needed surgery to repair his thumb or not.

Considering Young is owed $8.5 million in 2011, plus a $4.25 million roster bonus, chances are the Titans will place him on injured reserve this season and then revisit the situation at the end of the year. One would have to imagine that they’ll first try to trade him, but they’ll probably wind up releasing him in the end.

And that’s probably a wise move. I’m only going on what I read, so keep that in mind. But it’s apparent that Young is lacking in maturity and it’s probably safe to say that he doesn’t know the first thing about being a leader. He may have a lot of physical skill, but that only goes so far in the NFL – especially for quarterbacks.

Maybe a change of scenery will do wonders for him. He’s still young and again, he’s talented. But either way, his days are numbered in Tennessee.