Over the years, Kobe Bryant has become a de facto mentor to Vince Young. Young would write text messages to Bryant, something like, "Man, I wanna play so bad. What do I do?'' The answer would always come back from Bryant with something like this: "Stay focused. Work on your craft." As Young told SI's Peter King last week: "That's what I needed -- someone I respected, like him or Brett Favre, to tell me everybody goes through tough times. Adversity comes, work hard, work on your game, and you'll come out of it OK.'' Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/peter_king/11/22/Week11/1.html#ixzz0XhKeOuGk Get a free NFL Team Jacket and Tee with SI Subscription