Kevin Glenn had one thought when he heard that the Saskatchewan Roughriders had signed Vince Young.
“Free publicity,” Glenn said with a grin Tuesday while meeting with reporters at the Queensbury Centre during CFL Week festivities.
Glenn, who signed as a free agent with the Roughriders on Jan. 23, is preparing for his 17th season as a CFL quarterback. The presumption was that Glenn was the frontrunner to be Saskatchewan’s No. 1 pivot in the 2017 season, what with Darian Durant’s trade to the Montreal Alouettes.
That may still be the case, even though the Roughriders signed Young on March 9.
A former Heisman Trophy finalist, Young was the third overall pick in the 2006 NFL draft and was a two-time Pro Bowl selection during his career.
But the 33-year-old QB hasn’t played in an NFL game since 2011 and hasn’t been part of a team since 2014 — the same year he retired from the NFL.
After deciding to return to pro football, Young signed with the Roughriders. That prompted Glenn to look at the bigger picture.
“With the amount of media coverage and the way social media is right now, people in the U.S. are going to feed off this,” Glenn said. “Like I tell people, ‘We might have every Rider game on ESPN, not just TSN, playing down in the U.S.’ It’ll be more publicity for the team, for the organization and for the league too.”
As for the impact on Glenn himself? Well, he welcomes the challenge that Young presents.
“Competition always makes everybody better — and this is nothing new to me,” Glenn said. “I may have tweeted something out: ‘Do you remember who I was on the team with in Winnipeg? Two guys (quarterbacks Tee Martin and Spergon Wynn) who got drafted before (New England Patriots star Tom) Brady.’
“This is what football is about. Sometimes people look at it with different views and different aspects, but me, I just say, ‘It’s football. This is what happens.’ ’’
Glenn’s lengthy CFL career has featured stops with eight teams. He has started ahead of established quarterbacks and has backed up others.
His plan in his third go-round with Saskatchewan is to do what must be done to win the No. 1 job ahead of Young, Bryan Bennett, Brandon Bridge, G.J. Kinne and anyone else the Roughriders sign before training camp.
“We’ve all got to still go out and compete,” Glenn said. “It doesn’t matter; (Young) is another name.
“I’m not taking anything away from Vince Young the person. I don’t even know him. But we’re all football players trying to compete for a job.”
Glenn was impressed that Young decided to make his comeback in the CFL after a lengthy hiatus. The knowledge possessed by the former University of Texas Longhorns and Tennessee Titans starter could help in the Roughriders’ meeting rooms, even if he doesn’t have any experience in the CFL.
Young obviously must get acclimated to the league’s rules, its nuances and the size of its field. Being on the field will help him learn, but having a veteran like Glenn around also will be huge for Young’s progression.
Not surprisingly, Glenn said he would offer Young as much advice as he could.
“I’m always that type of guy,” Glenn said. “Sometimes players and coaches like me on their team. People are like, ‘Why have you had that type of career?’ It’s not just because of my play, but also the type of person that I am.
“Coaches want the type of people in their locker room who are going to help everybody in the locker room. We’re all one team. We’re all fighting for the same goal. If I’m not playing, I’m going to help the guy who is playing in order for us to be successful because I want us to win.”
Roughriders receiver Rob Bagg remembers watching Young help Texas beat the USC Trojans in the 2006 Rose Bowl — that year’s NCAA title game.
To Bagg, Young’s performances in that contest and in the early stages of his NFL career constitute “iconic moments that make some individuals different.”
The veteran receiver knows that Young is watching film and preparing himself mentally and physically in hopes of learning the CFL game. If he succeeds, Bagg believes Young can contribute a lot to the Roughriders.
“I’m optimistic for him; I’m rooting for him,” Bagg said. “Whether he’s the starter or he’s backing up, I feel like he could still have a really good role because he has been in a lot of places and won a lot of games and a lot of trophies.
“There are some guys I would define as a winner and I feel like he’s done that at various points of his career. There will certainly be things to learn from him and I look forward to working with him.”
