Tennessee Titans' Vince Young Cited for Assault: Is Goodell's Plan Working?

Roger Goodell’s legacy as NFL commissioner will be the tough stance he has taken on player conduct, on—and especially off—the field.

Goodell’s mission started with Adam “Pacman” Jones and his constant late night altercations, mostly in and around adult night clubs, which Jones referred to as “scrip clubs.”

Jones seemed like a lost cause, failing to ever comply with Goodell’s countless requests that he stay away from clubs and out of trouble.

Next, Goodell’s focus was turned to Michael Vick and his dog-fighting scandal.

Vick suffered the consequences of his actions, from both the NFL and the Federal Criminal Justice system.

Vick’s return to the NFL last season appeared to be a success as he kept his mouth shut, assumed a back-up role in Philadelphia, and stayed out of trouble.

Off-season comments made by Vick this year may indicate that his days of keeping his mouth shut may be over.

Hopefully his days of off-field trouble are also behind him.

Goodell’s next project was Ben Roethlisberger and his multiple accusations of sexual assault on young females.

Roethlisberger has a history of off-field issues, not all criminal, but definitely all stupid.

He almost ended his career after crashing his motorcycle in 2006.

People close to Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers hoped that this incident would wake the young quarterback up and make him realize what he has to lose.

Apparently, it didn’t work.

Roethlisberger has continued to have off-field issues and will spend the first four-to-six weeks of the 2010 season on the sidelines due to a suspension by the NFL.

Today, Vince Young becomes Goodell’s latest problem.

He's another elite NFL player in the news for the wrong reasons.

Young was involved in an altercation—shockingly enough at a strip club—early Sunday morning, in which he was cited for a Class C assault, a crime that carries a penalty of up to $500.

Young apparently was harassed by a man identified as Creiton Kinchen to the point that the Titans quarterback lost control and pushed through a group of people to get to Kinchen.

Young claims that Kinchen insulted him and made a derogatory sign involving the University of Texas, which prompted the angry reaction.

This is not Young’s first off-field incident involving an emotional breakdown.

After being booed in the Titans home opener in 2008, Young became emotionally unraveled.

The next day, Young missed an appointment for an MRI and then failed to report to the team headquarters as expected.

After receiving a call from Young’s therapist, who told him that Young had mentioned suicide several times before driving away from his home with a gun, Head Coach Jeff Fisher called the Nashville police.

They searched for Young for more than four hours.

Young has always been emotional, especially when it comes to his personal performance.

Always a superstar, from high school to college, Young was never subjected to criticism until he reached the NFL level.

Emotions have gotten the best of him, causing him to lose control and now putting him back into the mind and watchful eye of Roger Goodell, who will undoubtedly have at least a conversation with Young about his conduct.

For his sake, Young needs to learn a lesson from Adam Jones, Michael Vick, and Ben Roethlisberger.

He needs to understand that his opportunity in the NFL won’t be around for long if he doesn’t control his emotions and focus on football.

As much as I applaud the efforts of Roger Goodell and his zero tolerance policy for NFL player conduct, one has to question the effectiveness of these policies.

Goodell has done everything he can to enforce his strict behavioral policies, yet elite, high-profile players are still making bad decisions.

Are some players today just completely uncontrollable?

It seems that way.

After watching Pacman Jones and Michael Vick lose almost everything they have, it’s surprising that any player would put themselves at risk.

Although these players are elite and notable, they are in the minority.

The 99 percent of players who stay out of trouble should be given credit.