I get banned from the city of Houston

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:

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.