Official Texans vs. Chiefs Game Thread, 09/13/2015

[nunusguy]

Originally Posted by barrett

You mean when this team entered the season with Hoyer as our starting QB you didn't question it?

I was very clear that I think O'Brien is biding his time, turning over the roster, and waiting for the QB he wants to come along. He feels no pressure to pick an actual QB because he has no job pressure. If you take a QB high in the draft the clock starts running and you get fired when that clock runs out. When you just punt the QB position, there is no clock and no risk to your job (assuming your owner allows you to throw away seasons without even a potential QB answer).

I think O'Brien is shrewd and doing what's best for himself by not going all in for a QB the last two years, when he apparently didn't like anything available in the draft or FA. Most teams try to force a QB just to pretend there is progress (JAX drafting Bortles last year). But our owner has no problem throwing away seasons as long as our fans keep showing up, so O'Brien gets to keep waiting for his perfect 10 to come along.

I think it is shameful for us to throw away seasons and waste JJ Watt's HOF career, but I don't blame Bill O'Brien, I am sure O'Brien was very clear up front when he was hired that he didn't like any of last year's draft class and might not like any of this year's. There is no way he is going into a season with no QB unless he knows his owner is ok with it.

I could maybe buy your theory about the owner giving O'Brien ample time to turn the franchise around if McNair was 50 or even 60 something, but McNair is an 80-year-old who's already had one battle with cancer. Somehow I think winning it all is a more pressing for Bob McNair right now.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by Keith

Couldn't get the network connection in stadium to tweet after the first snap.

lol, I may be kneejerk fan, but isn't "on pace guy" worse?

Yeah, pretty much all of it. Here's the checklist for O'Brien's dream QB:

1. Mallett's accuracy isn't great. 54.3% for his brief NFL career. Strong-armed, but he misfires at times.

2. As seen in one of the Hard Knocks episodes, OB really seems dumbfounded at Mallett's decision making sometimes. Probably with Hoyer's too, but we're just focused on Mal right now. As for off the field, do I even need to mention the alarm clock?

3. Mal's IQ gets questioned more than anything, probably unfairly so too much, but best said, this is not his strength.

I think Mallett is the best man on the roster right now, but clearly, two years in, O'Brien still doesn't have his QB. I wonder how much he regrets passing on Bortles for Clowney.

Are you saying you like Bortles?

[Keith]

Originally Posted by barrett

Are you saying you like Bortles?

Better than any other QB on the Texans roster? Yes. Sad but true. Same could be said of Bridgewater, Garoppolo, heck maybe even Mettenberger. And that's just from the 2014 class.

I would be curious to know what kind of QB Bortles would have been under O'Brien two years, spending much of 2014 on the bench behind Fitzy. Just look at the improvement a lesser QB like Tom Savage has shown.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by Keith

Better than any other QB on the Texans roster? Yes. Sad but true. Same could be said of Bridgewater, Garoppolo, heck maybe even Mettenberger. And that's just from the 2014 class.

I would be curious to know what kind of QB Bortles would have been under O'Brien two years, spending much of 2014 on the bench behind Fitzy. Just look at the improvement a lesser QB like Tom Savage has shown.

Bortles did not have much to work with, but he had the 3rd worst QBR among rookies since 2006, beating only Blaine Gabbert and Jimmy Clausen. He was by far the worst among the 2014 draft class. I'd take all the other guys you mentioned over our guys, but Bortles to me is the reason a small part of me is glad O'Brien didn't just take a QB to take one. We may be wasting years with no QB, but drafting a guy as high as Bortles means you are committed to at least 3-4 years with him no matter how bad he plays (like we were with Carr).

[Keith]

So two of those three are Jaguars rookies. Probably more than coincidence. And assuming Bortles would be a failure with O'Brien (and the relatively better supporting cast the Texans seem to offer over the Jags) seems less of a given to me. Arguably of that draft class, Bortles was asked to do the most with the least, so the rookie season QBR means a little less to me.

Like him or not, Bortles was the first QB selected, and while not a guarantee of success, the first round of the NFL Draft is the best place for finding franchise QBs. Don't agree with me? Then tell me your plan for solving the QB position on the Texans in 2016 if it doesn't involve using a high pick. Because if the Texans refuse to ignore the position in the draft - again - then they'll be back in the market for retreads and backups ...and future 7-9 to 9-7 seasons (or worse).

Talk about 3-4 wasted seasons... and a search for a new coaching staff. Granted, McNair has been a very patient owner to date, but this plan you are surmising where O'Brien is willing to wait out 3+ years of .500 football for the perfect QB to fall into his lap just isn't a good plan. Can't play the "long con" in the NFL like the Astros appear poised to do in MLB. There is no farm system in the Not For Long, and playoff success without at least an above average QB is generally an anomaly. That's why I wonder if he regrets passing on Bortles (or fill-in-the-name QB from the last two drafts he passed on). The QB strategies of 2014 and 2015 are costing him wins, and I can't see that settling well for a head coach.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by Keith

So two of those three are Jaguars rookies. Probably more than coincidence. And assuming Bortles would be a failure with O'Brien (and the relatively better supporting cast the Texans seem to offer over the Jags) seems less of a given to me. Arguably of that draft class, Bortles was asked to do the most with the least, so the rookie season QBR means a little less to me.

Like him or not, Bortles was the first QB selected, and while not a guarantee of success, the first round of the NFL Draft is the best place for finding franchise QBs. Don't agree with me? Then tell me your plan for solving the QB position on the Texans in 2016 if it doesn't involve using a high pick. Because if the Texans refuse to ignore the position in the draft - again - then they'll be back in the market for retreads and backups ...and future 7-9 to 9-7 seasons (or worse).

Talk about 3-4 wasted seasons... and a search for a new coaching staff. Granted, McNair has been a very patient owner to date, but this plan you are surmising where O'Brien is willing to wait out 3+ years of .500 football for the perfect QB to fall into his lap just isn't a good plan. Can't play the "long con" in the NFL like the Astros appear poised to do in MLB. There is no farm system in the Not For Long, and playoff success without at least an above average QB is generally an anomaly. That's why I wonder if he regrets passing on Bortles (or fill-in-the-name QB from the last two drafts he passed on). The QB strategies of 2014 and 2015 are costing him wins, and I can't see that settling well for a head coach.

I wish we had drafted a QB in O'Brien's first year. I wish we had drafted one in his 2nd year. I wish we treated QB like the most important position in the NFL. I just have no regrets we stayed away from Bortles. The biggest thing he has in common with Gabbert isn't that they were ruined by he Jags, it's that they both looked great in shorts and made huge draft board moves after all the football had already been played.

[popanot]

We will see next year. IMO, if OB/Smith do not draft a QB high or sign or trade for a proven veteran like Brees, than they are both on extremely thin ice. Either that, or Mallett has to suddenly turn into the next Philip Rivers. IMO, OB made what could be a fatal error by going with Hoyer. I think Mallett would have bought some more grace time, but Hoyer buys you nothing and makes you look worse if it fails. Anyway, you can only jack around for so long with this hot mess at QB before the fans and owner turn on you. And Savage is not the answer, folks. He now has two lost seasons and hasn't shown anything to indicate he's the one. If OB thought Savage even had a remote chance of leading this team or was/is planning on grooming him, he would've found a spot on the active roster for him or put him on IR to return. His injury wasn't season ending by any means.