This Stinks of Rob Johnson

by user Tmizzle

I just commented on an article about the Texans, and we got around to talking about Matt Schaub. I may have slammed him a little bit there, but I'm not high on this.

Let's see if this sounds familiar:

Young backup does well in fill-in role.

Young backup traded for high price to gain starting job with different team.

Young backup goes on to set Buffalo Bills' record for most sacks per pass attempt.

That's right, sports fans, it's the Rob Johnson story!

The Schaub situation with the Texans is eerily similar to Johnson's.

Rob Johnson started 1 game (ONE GAME) with Jacksonville in 1997, filling in for Mark Brunell, and had a very good game (I don't have the stats handy, but it must have been amazing). The Bills were searching for an answer to the hero of Orchard Park, Jim Kelly, and they had both Doug Flutie and Rob Johnson vying for the starting job.

Money always wins out, and the guy with one career start and a $25 million contract got the job.

He does have a Super Bowl ring, which is good news for Schaub 10 years from now when he's backing up Jamarcus Russell for the Super Bowl LI champion Santa Clara 49ers. (Sorry, I can't picture Oakland winning a Super Bowl anytime in the next 20 years. I just can't do it.)

So congratulations, Matt Schaub. You have a lot to live up to. The ghost of Rob Johnson is watching over you.

JoshkrossDraft Pick

457 days ago

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Bill Conaty's butt? (look him up)

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Tmil42Draft Pick

457 days ago

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Ouch. That's going to leave a mark.

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CoreyisarealboyMajor Leaguer

457 days ago

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I don't know why we're ripping on Schaub here. Compared to Rob Johnson and David Carr, this kid will probably end up looking like Joe freakin' Montana.

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Tmil42Draft Pick

457 days ago

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How do we know, though? The Texans gave up a first-round pick for a guy with 2 career starts. Not sure about their thought process there.

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CoreyisarealboyMajor Leaguer

457 days ago

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And they're also the team that passed on Reggie Bush. We should've seen this coming.

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Tmil42Draft Pick

457 days ago

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We should be relieved they didn't trade their entire draft for Schaub, like Ditka did for the Saints for Ricky Williams.

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DrpatriotAll-American

457 days ago

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The Texans gave up two seconds, not a first.

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Tmil42Draft Pick

457 days ago

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Sorry, my mistake. The Falcons got the 2007 and 2008 2nd-round picks from the Texans, and they flipped first rounders this year. Thanks for catching that.

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JuTMSY4Legend

456 days ago

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Yeah...i think getting shaub was smart...if anything carr and the texans needed the switch...and gettign a decent QB (a la shaub) makes sense...but the falcons overvalued him...and for good reason...the texans paid waaaaayyy too much...

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JuTMSY4Legend

456 days ago

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Don't forget...in that ricky williams draft a few teams passed on ricky...Browns w/ Couch (ha)...eagles with McNabb (Oooohhh), the Bungles with akili Smith (double ha)...and all those teams, i'm sure, had similar saints offers... What does this tell you about the value of a franchise QB?

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MegECass110AAA-er

457 days ago

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Schaub also has the one amazing game that opens eyes: October 9th, 2005 against the Patriots. 298 yards, 3 TDs, no picks, 112 QB rating. That one game had me slobbering; not really, but it made me think he could be really good one day given the starting job.

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Tmil42Draft Pick

457 days ago

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Exactly. He's had one good game, and now he's the franchise quarterback for an NFL team. That's part of the reason I wrote this. The parallels between the two are staggering.

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Silencer76AAA-er

457 days ago

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Just for the record, and being a Buffalo fan, I hate Rob Johnson, but his stats for that one start in 97 for Jacksonville was in week one against the Baltimore Ravens. He was 20 of 24 for 294 yards and two scores. Also added 4 runs for 31 yards and a third touchdown. Amazing how that one game parlayed into so much cash, and so much disappointment.

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LetstalknflWaterboy

456 days ago

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The thing that puzzles me about the Schaub trade, is that he's potentially the same quarterback as David Carr, only a little less physically gifted. He's got the same decision-making issues, and he also holds the ball too long (just like Carr). He definitely has potential to be great in this league, but he needs a line, and the Texans have just ignored that area for years. If I was in charge of the Texans, I would've been all over Luke Petitgout and Derrick Dockery this off-season. Additionally, I'd have made a big attempt toward drafting Tony Ugoh, Ryan Kalil, or even a guy like Marshal Yanda. They likely could've traded out of that number ten slot and recouped a second rounder to take the best available O-Lineman (likely Kalil), and possibly get an extra third to pick up a guy like Yanda. They did bring in Jordan Black and Seth McKinney, but they hardly represent a commitment up front. Also... Remember that while guys like Rob Johnson and A.J. Feeley found no success moving on after limited experience, there are also many who've succeeded. Rich Gannon, Jake Delhomme, Mark Brunell, Matt Hasselbeck, and Jay Fiedler all have had success in similar situations.

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JuTMSY4Legend

456 days ago

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Finally, someone mentioned the other guys that are...mmm the exact same...you don't need a great QB to have a good team...

But what did all those guys up there have in common...either a good running game or a passing attack that wasn't necessarly contigent on being a physically gifted QB (otherwise known as the west coast offense)

LSNFL also mentioned 3 super bowl QBs and one championship game QB (granted, all losers)

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CheezerMajor Leaguer

456 days ago

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Disclaimer: I don't follow the Falcons, so I've never acutally seen Schaub play.

So. . .why do we question giving this kind of money to a career back-up with a couple of good games under his belt but we think nothing of spending huge money on unproven rookies? At least we know he can learn an NFL playbook and handle the pressure of a game day situation. Also, something to note is that the Texans had already tried the method of drafting a QB and we all know how well that worked out for them. Time to try something else.

Carr may be so gun shy now that he may be ruined for life.

My understanding is Schaub is thought by many to be good enough to start in the NFL. Unfortunately, he has spent his career on the same team as a huge monetary investment, Mr. Vick. There is no way he's going to start on that team. Hence the reason he has always been a back-up.

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Anonymous Fanatic #1

417 days ago

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The Texans couldn't trade Carr because nobody wanted him,then nobody wanted him as a starter. If you are going to compare Rob Johnson to anyone it's David Carr.

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