I get banned from the city of Houston

by BigBlueShoe on Jun 26, 2007 10:26 AM EDT in Analysis Comment 4 comments

I'm fighting an ear infection (gross), which explains why I haven't blogged in the last few days. It's nice to be missed though.

Payton Menning apparently doesn't like Matt Schaub's smiling mug on our site. Come on now! What's not to love? That's the face of the future for Houston. And speaking of the Texas, it seems Texans fans were none to happy with my assessment of their QB situation as part of the AFC South Roundtable. Not only did Tim at BRB take exception, but so did Matt at Da Good, Da Bad, and DeMarco. Side note: Amazing that the Texans seem to have a stronger blogging base than the Baltimore Ravens or the San Diego Chargers.

Anyway, because of my assessment, Tim has informed me (via email) that I am now banned from the city of Houston. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I mean, Houston looks like such a beautiful city to visit:

Cough*Cough*Cough

DeMarco was the site that offered the most heated response. Matt, the writer there, reminds me a lot of... well, me. Matt attacked my opinion like a wounded lioness protecting her cubs. While I respect his opinion and his passion (and his utter desperation that Schaub please, please, please work out as the starting QB), I take exception to one comment:

A quick primer, Mr. Shoe. The way it works generally is that you make a statement--say "Carr is better than Schaub"--and then you back it up with some supporting evidence. Please note, however, that "supporting evidence" does not include conjecture and some first-hand, hyperbole-riddled "evidence" that is completely unverifiable.

Sorry Matt, but that ain't how it works. I don't have to prove jack-friggin'-squat. Matt Schaub is the one who has to prove something. Matt Schaub has to prove that he is better than David Carr, that he can do more with the tools given him than the rusty, bent set of junk the Texans dumped on Carr the four years he spent getting sacked there. Right now, Schaub is started a grand total of ONE GAME, a game in which he lost. And since that is the only "evidence" to Matt has to back up his claim that Schaub is better, it kind of suggests that Matt's inflated opinion of Schaub is based on "conjecture and some first-hand, hyperbole-riddled 'evidence' that is completely unverifiable." Which kind of makes Matt a hypocrite.

All that said, the sheer ferociousness of Texans fans on the subject of Schaub v. Carr tells me that they are afraid. If Carr succeeds in Carolina and Schaub flounders in Houston, it means the problem was always something other than Carr, which means a majority of Texans fans were wrong to bash him. And no one likes to be wrong.

Sorry Texans fans, but this time you are.

I don't know if David Carr will succeed with the Panthers, but I certainly will pull for him. In the years I watched him play in Houston, I never saw a whiny Ryan Leaf-like punk or an oft-injured bust ala Tim Couch. I saw a guy take an utter beating year in, year out, and never complain. I saw a guy get his bell ring game after game, year after year, and his GM and owner did NOTHING to help him. Yet despite the stupidity of his owner and GM, Carr never pointed a finger. He showed up to work, worked hard, and the payoff was a one-way ticket outta Dodge.

Bottom line: Carr was made the scapegoat. And I don't want to hear any crap about Gary Kubiak making wine out of water when it comes to QBs. Jake Plummer and Brian Griese sucked before they got to Kubiak, and they sucked during his coaching influence over them. Sure, they flash you with some pretty stats, but in the end the tandem of Plummer and Griese won a whopping total of ONE playoff game over a seven year period. Wow. So don't give me this garbage that is Carr couldn't improve with Kubiak he's a lost cause. Unlike Griese and Plummer in Denver, Carr had no running game, no reliable receivers, and no offensive line. Carr was given a raw deal in Houston by the club and the fans, and it certainly is not fair or right. I personally wish him luck, except when he plays the Colts.

All that said, keep an eye out for my follow-up to the AFC Roundtable where I will indeed speak well of Houston's defense. In the meantime, I'll cancel my vacation plans to beautiful Houston.

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Re: Carr

Five years, BBS. Carr spent five years plying his brand of atrocious football in our fair city.

The penthouse will be all the sweeter when you're coming from the outhouse--Battle Red Blog.

by Tim on Jun 26, 2007 10:38 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Few points

I actually agree with you on a few fronts here, but feel that in order to curb the disemination of misinformation, some things ought to be pointed out. To say that Carr never had a running game or any reliable receivers is just not true. He had a 1,000-yard rusher in 2003 and 2004, and would have had one in 2005, except that Davis got hurt after 11 games with 976 yards on the season. Andre Johnson is almost universally (obviously not in Indy) regarded as one of the elite receivers in the league and has been named to two pro bowls for the 2004-5 season and the 2006-7 season, racking up almost 4,000 yards in his first four seasons (missing three games in 2005-6). Most people in Houston agree that Carr is simply damaged goods, but that he had and still may have the potential to be a solid QB. His curl into a ball evasive tactics and his check down first, think later method of evaluating his options did not appear to be curable in his current situation. Maybe a lot of the positive press we've heard on Schaub is a bit of conjecture and abject optimism, but one thing he's not at this point is damaged goods. Pieces are falling into place around where he's going to be this year, and I can't understand why you'd think we don't have good reason to be hopeful.

Couple other things... it's DeMeco, not DeMarco... as in DeMeco Ryans, our defensive rookie of the year. And please don't sit in Indianapolis taking pot shots at the City of Houston as a vacation destination. A discussion of ammenities aside, it's not like Indy boasts the crisp, clean mountain air in comparison to Houston's huffin' on a tailpipe environs. For short and long-term particulates, Indy cracks the 50 worst in the U.S. (http://lungaction.org/reports/sota07_cities.html ... Houston nowhere to be found), while admitedly Houston struggles with smog. Of course a key ingredient in the generation of smog is sunlight, which I guess you folks in Indy don't have to deal with as much as we do in Bayou City.

Congrats on the Super Bowl and a truly succesful football franchise, but please don't let it go to your head and cause you to overlook facts and make contort the truth just to be able to have the contrarian viewpoint. There's too much of that in our ubiquitous national sports media outlets already.

by littlevisigoth on Jun 27, 2007 10:53 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

carr and schaub

i agree carr is damaged goods. no one can take the pounding he did and not be damaged. add to the fact that i am not sure his head coach was any use at building a franchise or developing a quarter back. i don't think he ever really had a shot and now he is too battered to do it (at least in houston). I take the same line with schaub as with vince young or any other young QB... put together a couple of good seasons before i can say you are the answer. yes he looked good in relief of Vick, but a guy by the name of rob johnson looked good in relief of Brunell, and look how well that worked out. Kubiak may be a good offensive coordinator, but he has done nothing to develop a young QB or denver wouldn't still be looking for elway's replacement...

by bluegirl on Jun 27, 2007 2:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

As for Kubiak....

He was the only coach to ever get through to Plummer, to get him to study football during the off-season instead of going beaver hunting or something, and simply ask John Elway what he meant to his career as his primary backup, then assistant coach.

Kubiak was also the buffer between Shanahan, who can be a bit rough around the edges, and some players that don't really take to his style.

The Broncos offense struggled for many reasons last year, and a big one was the loss of Kubiak. Griese hasn't had anything close to a good season since leaving, and Plummer's best years were spent under Kubiak.

I really don't have an opinion on Carr, and think the change in scenary will do him well, but Kubiak is a solid offensive mind and the stats don't lie.

The Colts will someday have to replace a QB legend, and whomever the Colts throw under center will be compared to Peyton, as will the guy after that, and the guy after that. It isn't easy, you'll see.

TSG -- www.thesportsguru.com --www.milehighreport.com

by John Bena (aka TheSportsGuru) on Jun 27, 2007 3:08 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs