And again, I can still go into the Rockuts forum and find fans screaming that Yao is the next Wilt or that T-Mac needs to be traded, etc. I try not to pay too much attention to the homer posts because people are just that…homers. My take is VY had a very good first year for a rookie QB and he has regressed in his 2nd year. The main difference is that he isn’t making the game changing/winning plays and he is turning the ball over a lot. That wasn’t the case last year. I still think he is ahead of the curve because most 2nd yr QB’s would be doing the same thing, especially with anemic wideouts. To answer your question, at what point do QB’s typically start to “get it”? Is that yr 3, yr 4? And I’m not making excuses for him…he has sucked as of late (and his team has been losing as well). I’m not expecting him to be the games best QB in his rookie season but I think he is in the top half so far.
He may have improved this year vis-a-vis what he did last year (which in all honesty wasn't that hard to do) but I find all this talk of him being "Pro Bowl" material to be extremely premature. Now, I suspect that this is due mostly to the VY factor since MW gets constantly compared to Young. Since VY went to the 2007 Pro Bowl, then it would be vindication (of sorts) for the Texans if MW goes to the 2008 PB. Look around this board where nearly every small improvement by Mario is hailed and used as evidence that the Texans did not flub by picking him numero uno. He actually (finally) starts making some plays in the last few games and suddenly there's talk of him making the Pro Bowl. I just think that folks have too much emotion invested in what Mario does or doesn't do because they don't want this to turn out to be (yet) another miss on a high draft pick by the Texans and I can certainly understand that. As a result, there's not much objectivity when discussions turn to MW because those on opposite sides of the issue are so intrenched in their respective positions. Just look at all of VY bashing going on in this thread and you'll see a clear pattern of argument that is intended to build up Mario at the expense of Vince even though their respective situations are completely different and neither player needs the other to suck so they can be good. But that is just the way things go around here these days.
He is second in the league (or AFC) in sacks by a DE and fourth overall (only two behind leader). That's a pro-bowl caliber year no matter how much you want to deny it.
Looking purely at stats this year, he is pro bowl material. And don't forget, last year, he was playing injured. I just hope they don't put him on the cover of Madden next year.
I suspect people just want their own player to do well. No, they point to his plays and say he's doing well. You're almost exclusively the only one who continues to point to the draft (save quotes from the National Media and folks riling up VYOFs). Please, for the love of all that's gridiron, learn about DEs. You talk about the emotion of others, yet you're in the thick of nearly every argument. I'll agree that there's some bias, but I believe you're sitting in some bias as well. You deny Mario's solid play all season long, then when he gets some of the numbers you complain about, which should validate him, you dismiss it with language like "finally makes some plays."
i have a feeling that no matter what numbers MW ends up with, you're never going to give him credit. the guy is on the verge of double digit sacks, and doesn't deserve to be "pro bowl" material? pfffff...please. he's more deserving of a pro bowl this year (especially if he gets a couple more sacks before the end of the season) than VY was last year.
Deny it? Me??? Never! He just picked up another sack. If he does make the Pro Bowl, then it'll give a lot of long suffering Houston football fans something nice for a change. God knows, they can use it...
Mario with another sack! He's having at least a solid season and should be in contention for a Pro-Bowl spot.
Nothing wrong with that at all... That's your take and I can respect your opinion. But you're misleading yourself if you choose to ignore the VY bashing being offered as support of what Mario is doing now. The evidence of what I'm talking about is everywhere on this forum including this thread. The two players are inexplicably linked together like it or not due to what happened in the 2006 draft. OK, that's cool but what I am not on board with is the line of argument that one has to suck in order for the other to be good. Last year when VY was riding high, the shots went Mario's way. This year with Vince struggling, it's the other way around. Next year... You see, this is what I was referring to earlier. You appear to want to hear only positions that match your own. Now I could have retorted that I've seen way more football than you and I knew what a DE looked like BEFORE you were born. Instead, I'll try reason one more time: If, God forbid, someone exercises free will and (gasp!) actually has a different opinion from yours, you can't (or won't) accept their right to do so. If you don't want to hear or cannot accept opinions and positions that differ from your own, then what are you doing on a discussion forum? Looking for affirmation of your position? You lost me here. Do I appear to be emotional based on my replies? Well, he was the first player taken in the 2006 draft. It is not asking too much for him to make a few plays. Sorry but expectations like that go with the territory when you're the no. 1 pick. Like I said in earlier posts, I'm waiting to see what he's like next year. If we're still having this same type of discussion then about him, then something will have gone very wrong.
Whether I give him credit or not is not an issue with me because I just don't care about the Pro Bowl. Never have. Sorry. If he does get to go to Honolulu, then good for him. I will still have to deal with all of the cowsheep at work with their visions of Manifest Destiny... MSN, this is EXACTLY what I was talking about...
jeez man, we don't think Mario Williams is doing great jsut b/c Vince Young is sucking (that's just a bonus). he's doing great, b/c he's producing real results. just like we don't think it's ok for the Texans to suck, just b/c DAvid CArr sucks. but we've said that IN EVERY THREAD, yet you can't grasp that. can you at least acknowledge MW is meeting the expectations of a number 1 pick this year?
I am now a believer and will eat all the crow you can put on a plate. I thought Mario was a bust and that the Texans were idiots for not taking VY or Bush. Boy was I wrong. Mario is a BEAST now and deserves a pro bowl bid. 2nd in the NFL in sacks with 3 more tonight!
