Steve Young

Steve Young is a Hall of Fame quarterback who played for the San Francisco 49ers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League, and the Los Angeles Express of now defunct the United States Football League. He was born Jon Steven Young on October 11, 1961 in Salt Lake City, Utah as the great-great-great-grandson of Brigham Young. During his playing days he stood 6'2 tall, weighed 215 pounds, and wore jersey number 8. He originally was signed by the Express, however in the 1984 NFL supplemental draft, he was picked by the Buccaneers and played there for 3 years.

Young was known as a wild scrambler in his early years, and as time went on he developed a better sense of when to pass and went to run. He retired with 3 Super Bowl rings, all with the 49ers, however he played in only 1 of those games. In the one Super Bowl he did play in, he set a record that still stands to this day, tossing 6 touchdown passes. When he retired he held the league record for highest career passer rating, and was tied with Sammy Baugh as the only other QB to win 6 passing titles. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame on August 7, 2005 as a 49er. http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.aspx?player_id=252

Young agreed to attend the university that his family owned, BYU, in 1979. He struggled with the passing game at first, and sat behind record-setting quarterback Jim McMahon for several years before getting his chance to start. In 1983, his senior year, Young started every game. He passed for 3,902 yards, chucked 33 touchdowns, ran for 540 yards, and set a then NCAA record with a 71.3% completion rate. He finished second in the Heisman voting behind Nebraska running back Mike Rozier, and would be awarded the Davey O'Brien Award which is given to the top quarterback in the nation every year. The BYU Cougars would finish the year with a 11-1 record, and advance to the Holiday Bowl where they would defeat Missouri 21-17 on a game winning touchdown score by Young.http://www.byucougars.com/media_guides/football/2009/tradition/young.html

Young was signed for a record $40 million annuity for 10 years by the LA Express of the USFL, who would pay him $1 million every year over 40 years. There he played for two years until the team went bankrupt. During that time he became the first professional football player to ever pass for 300 yards and rush for 100 yards in the same game. Young still receives yearly payments from the league, and will continue to until 2027.

In 1985 Young was selected in the first round by the Buccaneers, and he would start 19 games for them over the next two seasons. His record as a starter was 3-16, and he would post less than stellar numbers, throwing for only 11 touchdowns compared to 21 interceptions.

Bill Walsh, the Head Coach of the 49ers, traded for Young in 1987 and he was slated to sit behind Super Bowl hero Joe Montana. In return the Buccaneers received a 2nd and 4th round draft pick. For the next three years Young would serve as Montana's backup, learning the offense and playing well in spot duty whenever Montana went down due to injury. The 49ers would win Super Bowl titles in 1988 and 1989, and Montana would win the League MVP award in 1989 and 1990.

In the 1991 pre-season, Montana would suffer a season ending injury that would force him to miss the entire season. Young would start 11 games that season, leading the league in passer rating. In 1992 Young would start the entire season, finishing with 3,456 passing yards, 537 rushing yards, and a league leading 25 touchdowns and 107 passer rating. He was awarded the NFL MVP award, and was selected to his first Pro Bowl. The 49ers would finish the year with a 14-2 record, and make it deep into the playoffs only to fall to the eventual Super Bowl champion Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship.

In 1993 the 49ers traded Joe Montana to the Kansas City Chiefs, and Young would again lead the league in touchdown passes and passer rating. He led the team to a 10-6 record, and a division crown. They would again advance to the NFC Championship, only to lose for the second straight time to the soon to be repeating Super Bowl champion Dallas Cowboys.

1994 was the defining year of Young's career. The season opener featured him connecting with his favorite target Jerry Rice three times for touchdowns, en route to Rice setting a new NFL record for touchdowns scored. By seasons end, Young had set another 49ers record with 35 touchdown passes, and he had eclipsed Joe Montana's old record for single season passer rating, setting the bar at 112.8. The 49ers would finish with a 13-3 record, and would go on to face the Cowboys in the NFC Championship for the third straight year. This time the 49ers would emerge victorious, slaying their old rival by a score of 38-28. In Super Bowl XXIX against the San Diego Chargers, Young would set an NFL record passing for 6 touchdown passes, and the 49ers would go on to win a then unprecedented 5th Super Bowl championship, beating the Chargers by a score of 49-26. Young would be named the game MVP, and ultimately the league MVP for the entire year.

From 1995 to 1999, Young would win two more passing titles, and would lead his team to the Playoffs every year. On Monday Night Football against the Arizona Cardinals, Aeneas Williams left his feet in an attempt to hit Young, and their helmets collided knocking Young unconscious. This was the last of many concussions Young would suffer, knocking him out for the remainder of the season. After the season he would officially retire.http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/Y/YounSt00.htm