Statistical analysis aside, Chase Young has proven to be worth every bit of the hype determined by his draft status as the second overall pick in 2020.
Young has been so dominant, he almost single-handedly took over the game in Washington's 23-15 win over the 49ers last Sunday, with his fumble return for a touchdown serving as the go-ahead score that put Washington up 13-7 in the second quarter, a lead they would not relinquish.
Jason Bishop of The Sports Junkies recently spoke to an unnamed source — who previously worked for the organization — who says, watching from afar, he can tell Young is Washington's best player, perhaps even better, since the late Sean Taylor.
"I was talking to somebody last night who used to be with the organization. I don't want to say his name," Bishop said during an interview with Washington Post columnist Barry Svrluga. "But he said that Chase Young is the best football player — maybe even better — than Sean Taylor was. Now, Sean Taylor was an unbelievable player."
While he played a different position, Taylor as a safety was built like a linebacker and possessed blinding speed, a combination so rare it made him a walking highlight reel, leaving opposing receivers cowering in fear, knowing if they were met by Taylor across the middle of the field, it could very well end their day and/or season early. If not for his life being tragically taken in 2007, Taylor was well on his way to a Hall of Fame career.
That is to say no one involved in the discussion makes this comparison lightly.
"That's rarified air you're talking about there," chimed Eric Bickel.
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"Yep. And Chase Young obviously in his rookie year," Bishop continued. "But he said he's the best football player since Sean Taylor in this city."
"That rings true to me, doesn't it?" Svrluga agreed. "I mean just in a... they play completely different positions, but they have some similarities. Just in watching that game on Sunday, I found myself, like, your eye is just drawn to him like the way that it was drawn to Taylor, when he was lurking in the defensive backfield and coming up, and you know he's gonna make a play. And that's the way Young is."
"I mean, you see the sack and you see the forced fumble and all that kind of stuff," Svrluga continued. "But the reason that he's kind of mesmerizing are almost as much those times when, okay, he's rushing the quarterback, he doesn't get there, he immediately pivots and — you know those plays where like they dump it to a back in the flat, and then he's making the tackle running down the line of scrimmage, kind of coming from behind.
"It's like he's never out of the play because of a combination of his motor and his just freakish athletic ability. Yeah, pick any Washington Football player from this century who's more intriguing and yeah, who's a better player than this guy. Maybe not right this very minute, but, boy, you can sure project his career pretty easily."
"And you write about him — and I totally agree with this — you say try and take your eyes off of him. You can't," said Bishop. "He's just one of these players that comes around — I don't know if it's once every 10 years, 20 years, whatever. He's being compared to [Jadeveon] Clowney. But he's so big and athletic and freakish, and he's such an impact player, you're right. He's an edge rusher but you can't take your eye off of him."