no, you're right; it's certiainly a logical, sound conclusion. my point is that we're seeing maybe the tip of the tip of ice berg - preseason performance and/or 20 minutes of a blow-out loss - and drawing conclusions when... 75-80%(?) of the competition, real or otherwise, happens beyond our level of access. was carr handed the starting job, or did he earn it with vigorous offseason workouts? who outperformed who in mini-camp? training camp? in daily practices? did sage struggle to pick up the playbook? do the receivers prefer one QB's throws to another? etc., etc. i'm sure the mandate was to push carr; but are we sure that came at the expense of the results?
Oh definitely - we have no idea how Sage did in practice and such. I have no issues with Carr starting out the season and all of that. I just felt (and I don't speak for the others you were discussing this with) that after mid-season, when his performance clearly wasn't improving, it was time to try something different. It wasn't with the purpose that Carr should be permanently benched, but that we need to get some data on how the team performs with someone else as QB in real-game situations because we have so little of it (the half against Tennessee that keeps getting mentioned). It was worth exploring to find out if that was a fluke or not. But to start the season, I had no issues with Carr starting given the options we had.
He's the best of what's left that's for sure but that's not the same thing as being the BEST option available. The best option this year would be to try to trade up and get a Brady Quinn if your people can (now) be trusted in their evaluations. But, for whatever reasons you want to name, they (Texans) have suddenly gone on the "we won't trade any draft picks to move up in the draft" bandwagon. Now I find it interesting that they've picked now to get religion but that's just because I'm deeply suspicious of their motives. To me, this is nothing but a feeble attempt at damage control over their botching the top of last year's draft. Now before I get a load of angry emails about Mario Williams, allow me to point out that my position has always been that while I considered Mario a legitimate first round pick, I simply did not feel he should have been the very first player chosen last year. That is no slam at Mario but rather at the thought process employed by Kubiak & Co in making this decision. Indeed, this is even more strange to me considering how well the rest of their draft went down. All of which leads us to...your assertion that this is all an attempt to assage the fan anger out there and that Carr was never in danger of going anywhere from the git-go. I have to confess that I now buy into that argument.
Oh, for the love of pigskin. That has to be it; the whole facts that they didn't do it last year either, such practices by the past regime have flushed this roster down the lieu, and there are a still a ridiculous number of gaping holes on both sides of the ball couldn't possibly have anything to do with it. No, it's just spin and damage control to placate a bunch of BBS and talk radio moaners who want David Carr's head on a platter. Sorry fellas, but I don't buy it.
or... they recognize the value of keeping picks in order to help replenish a depleted roster, especially given their cap space.
Yeah, it's almost as if there was some kind of huge turnover in the front office within the last year or something. But I'm sure it has more to do with some kind of deep, dark conspiracy to placate the VOFs.
Well consider this then msn: At season's end, you start "seeing" and "hearing" all these stories about David Carr being "available" via trade for the right price. Now the Texans are deliberately circumspect when pressed about exactly it would take to actually move Carr. The next thing we "hear" is that they want to get "value" for Carr value being high draft picks or whatever they (Texans) define as value. Next when no line forms at the door to the Texans' offices with teams ready to bid for David, they are faced with the reality that no real trade market exists for Carr. So with no attractive prospects in this year's draft and a pathetically thin FA QB crop, they know that they have to bring Carr back because they have no other real choice. So now we start "seeing" and "hearing" that Carr might not be moved after all. The reason? No potential trading partner out there willing to offer "value" for David. The point that Ric made is that this was all some sort of PR ruse because they (Texans) knew that no real trade market existed for David and that he was never playing anywhere else but here in 2007. Now they can look into the TV cameras, smile and say that they got no "reasonable" offers for David that they could consider to be serious enough to move Carr (Hey, give us credit, we tried...). And yes, the spin machine is running full time at Reliant right now because they know all about the holes you described and they also know that the honeymoon is over for this team in Houston.
Your words not mine. This has nothing to do with the VYOFs. It's more about perceptions that anything else. Face it: they know that they have pretty much lost the VYIG crowd. What they have to do is try to hold onto those football fans that are still non-committal or riding the fence. They have to still market this team somehow and attract patrons who are willing to fork over real $$$ to watch a bad football team. Vince Young is only relevant in that scenario on two occasions: Houston at Tennessee & Tennessee at Houston. Why does every discussion around here always come back to Vince Young?
Ha Ha Ha that's a good one...you almost had me believing that these guys actually have a plan for getting themselves out of this mess. I would be more willing to entertain that belief if they hadn't botched the David Carr situation so thoroughly.
I think they fully intended to trade Carr (and perhaps they still do). But I think their expectations for what they would get in return were a little higher than what ended up being offered to them. But I do think, unlike you, that they genuinely did want to explore moving him. And that they still do. I honestly think Kubiak realized at some point last season that Carr was NOT the QB of the future for this team. I think Sage would have played more if he hadn't got hurt. Do I have any hard evidence to back this up? Nope. Just my opinion. I don't think it was some kind of PR stunt. I think there WERE offers for him, just like they implied. I just think the offer(s) were less than they expected, so they pulled back. I don't have any links to back this up. Again...just my flea bitten opinion. On a personal note, I think they did the right thing by not trading Carr just to trade him, thereby not getting low balled in the process. Does that mean I will be happy to have Carr back next year? No. Does that make me a Carr lover? Hell, no. All I'm saying is that, unless there is a better option out there for us, we shouldn't trade him just to trade him. In conclusion, I think that the Texans have decided to try and build a better team around Carr and use him as a serviceable QB for anothe year or two or until someone else better comes along. Which ever comes first.
Here's why I don't totally think they know what they're doing: because when you make a decision to dump your QB and go a different direction, you don't let the difference of wanting a 3rd round pick but only getting a 4th round pick (or something like that) keep you from doing it. you make a decision on carr and what direction you want to go with the QB spot...and THEN you try to get as much as you can for him IF you decide to trade him. that may still be happening. but our other options are becoming limited, for sure. but if it is as you say...that they thought they MIGHT go in a different direction at QB depending on what draft pick they got offered for DC...then, in my opinion, that doesn't speak real well of Texans' management at this point. and if the decision has already been made to keep DC, color me disappointed.
nor do i; "stunt" implies something entirely different. i prefer "damage control." i don't believe they ever had any intention of moving carr; but they knew that would not sit well with a rapidly decreasing fan base. so they charge into the offseason with guns blazing: carr's inconsistent!!; carr needs to get better!!... translation: we've heard you, texan fan, and are now, at last, acknowledging your disappointment/frustration with carr. weeks later (it might have been sooner; perhaps later), they're getting "offers," offers that remain mysteries to this day - who were the teams? what were they offering? john mcclain doesn't know. richard justice doesn't know. peter king? john clayton? adam schefter? no. no. no. translation: we're trying to trade him; really, we are - we're getting offers and everything. but it has to be the right deal and it takes two to tango... hey, you can't blame us for trying. i mean, really - how hard it it deal a QB? the other two QBs from that 02 first round have been dealt, so they know the market. there are five teams that REALLY need a QB [det, min, oak, cle, mia] and several others [chi, maybe jax, possibly kc, maybe car] who might be looking to upgrade. and the draft has 2 legit QB prospects. it is a sellers market..... and he's still here.
How weird would it be for the very first player the Texans draft, the future and face of the franchise and the guy that was to lead the team to success, to be used as a stop-gap QB at a time in his career when he should be in his prime?
