Steve Young, former Brigham Young University and National Football League quarterback, spoke about his career and shared thoughts on Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and current Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers during an appearance Friday on the “Dan Patrick Show.”
During the interview, Young reflected on the idea of being enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He said that while playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he would not have believed it possible. “We had good players. We didn’t win, but I always said we weren’t losers,” Young said. “These guys that I played with were not losers. We just didn’t have the super structure to go get it done.” (…) “I think that I had a coach Jimmy Raye who turned to me a couple times and said ‘look you’re going to be good, so just hang in there. We’ve got to get some help but you’re going to be good.’ And I think I took that as a flare or a signal that like things were going to be OK. But Hall of Fame? Who says when their first year they’re losing, ‘I’m a Hall of Famer. This is going to be great. I’m killing it man. It’s going so good. I can’t wait to lose another 12 games’?” Young told Patrick.
Young also discussed his involvement in the Netflix docuseries “America’s Team: The Gambler and his Cowboys,” which was released earlier this week. On the program, he commented on Jerry Jones’ leadership style: “It’s weird that the Cowboys have struggled for so long. Yet, they’re still America’s team, and Jerry’s done a great job about that. He’s created this image,” he told Patrick.
He then addressed Jones’ direct approach within the organization: Jones “has not empowered anybody else to go in the locker room and threatened to fire anyone.” According to Young, this kind of authority is necessary for coaches: “That’s a big piece and any coach would tell you that. That’s a big piece of being able to get a great team together.”
Young further suggested changing how players earn their place with Dallas: “I’ve always said that the Cowboys should start with no stars on their helmet and then when they get to 10 wins, put a star on and then when you get to the playoffs or you get in the championship, you get another star,” he said.
On another topic during his conversation with Patrick, Young talked about Aaron Rodgers’ move to Pittsburgh after recovering from an Achilles injury last season with New York Jets: “He’s always been able to threaten the line of scrimmage and I think that’s part of his game. As he ages, you’re not going to threaten the line of scrimmage nearly as much with your legs, but I think he’s back to a place where he can now have confidence that his body is healed and well, and so I think he’s going to look late 30s right. I don’t think he’s going to look that old,” Young said.
He continued discussing Rodgers’ future performance: “There’s so many yards. There’s so many touchdowns out there for free for quarterbacks who threaten the line of scrimmage and especially in the big games. That’s where he’s going to have to decide, ‘Do I actually still do that?’” (…) “You look at the Super Bowl and championship games, they’re all won by guys threatening the line of scrimmage and making those big plays and creating that space.” He added about Rodgers’ prospects for this season: “I think he’ll have a very good season. I think the Steelers will be classically Steelers. They’ll play great defense and win games and close ones. He’ll have a better season than he’s had and then it’ll get into January and see if they can make some noise.”
