NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -No dropped snaps. Just a nice, long pass downfield from Vince Young to receiver Courtney Roby that brought cheers from the fans.
The Tennessee Titans opened training camp with Young showing everyone how much he has improved from a year ago when he struggled taking the snap from center in his first practice as a rookie.
Now the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, everyone knows what Young can do with his feet after setting a rookie record for quarterbacks by running for 552 yards in 2006. How he improves with his arm in the passing game is what everyone is watching closely now.
And the pass to Roby, which went at least 50 yards with the receiver adjusting to make a difficult catch, was a good start Friday.
"He is making big plays down the field," coach Jeff Fisher said.
"He and Courtney Roby were on the same page, reading the defense perfectly and they made a big play. I remind myself how much further along he is right now than he was at this time last year and that's very encouraging."
The Titans didn't have top pick Michael Griffin on the field, but he was the only one of their 10 draft picks who didn't take part in the first practice. General manager Mike Reinfeldt delivered the news to Fisher as he talked to reporters that Griffin had agreed to a five-year deal and should practice Saturday.
Veteran receiver Eric Moulds also was on the field Friday. The Titans are continuing to improve the roster with Reinfeldt saying they want to bring defensive end Simeon Rice, released Thursday night by Tampa Bay, in for a physical next week.
The Titans had only 26 sacks last season and need a veteran to ease the pressure on end Kyle Vanden Bosch. The Buccaneers said Rice failed his physical because of a lingering shoulder injury that ended his 2006 season.
"Team doctors look at different injuries in different ways," Reinfeldt said. "We'd like to know firsthand exactly what his condition is, so that's why we'll go through the process."
For the moment, the focus is on Young and what he does for an encore after helping the Titans go 8-8 and fall just short of the playoffs.
Young threw for 12 of his 19 touchdowns in 2006, but the Titans finished 30th in the NFL last year in passing yards per game. Young lost his top receiver Drew Bennett to St. Louis in free agency.
But he brought his young receivers to Houston for a week of work this offseason. Moulds said he is looking forward to working with Young.
"Hopefully, I can give him something that'll help him get better and also at the same time, they've got young receivers to get a lot better," Moulds said.
Young said he wants to work on improving every facet of his play and said the pass completion to Roby was a perfect example of what they need.
"Everybody knows what Roby can do. He's got great speed, runs great routes," Young said. "If I have my read route and I get the ball out on time, we know what Roby can do. I get the ball into these guys' hands, the receivers we have, these guys are going to make a lot of good plays for us."
Adding Moulds brings some much-needed experience. Roby, Roydell Williams and Brandon Jones are draft picks from 2005 going into their third NFL seasons.
Roby, who has 23 career catches for 317 yards, said they've worked hard to build their chemistry. He called the catch a good start.
"It's a good one to get up under my belt. It's time to move forward," he said.
