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| Randolph Charlotin. 23rd March, 2007 - 12:52 pm
 Imagine for a moment you are a NFL GM surfing the listings on CraigsList.Com. Like everyone else, you like to find a good deal. That's when a listing from Houston catches your eye:
For Sale: Used Carr. Owned for five years. Nothing wrong, we just got a newer model we like better. We'll take the best offer.
Like all GMs, you know what Houston is up to. But their recent move still surprises you, even if only slightly. There's been talk all off-season that Houston wanted to replace Carr. But you do wonder; why did Houston want to get rid of Carr so badly?
So you pull up the Carr-facts report. Looking at the numbers, Carr doesn't stand out. For the most part the completion percentage improved year by year. He never gained a lot of yardage year by year, so there isn't much wear and tear on Carr's throwing arm. It makes you think despite the mediocre numbers, Carr could still have years of production left.
Taking a closer look, the dents start to show. Carr has a lot of interceptions on his record. In fact, Carr threw more picks than touchdowns. Only twice did he have more TDs than Ints.
And look at that win percentage! My goodness, he was 21-53 in games he started and finished. And everyone knows a quarterback is ultimately judged by wins and loses.
So now you understand why Houston is down on their Carr. But at the same time, you're familiar with Houston and their brief history with Carr.
Houston did a poor job of taking care of Carr. For one, a quarterback typically is only as good as the parts around him. Houston failed in customizing a quality offense around Carr. There was never a consistent running game to take pressure away from the passing game. With the exception of wide receiver Andre Johnson, Carr didn't have reliable targets. Houston failed repeatedly to find a number-two receiver. As for a quality tight end to look for over the middle, the Texans never got close. Lastly, he was sacked an average of 50 times per season. There isn't any quarterback that could be productive under those conditions.
And despite how Houston abused Carr, he was remarkably durable. In 80 possible starts, Carr took the opening snap 75 times. Doing this while absorbing 249 sacks is practically amazing. Carr is Ford tough.
So if Carr lived through that pounding, makes you wonder if another quarterback could do any better under those circumstances.
We'll find out this year as the keys to the offense are handed over to Matt Schaub. Even though he lacks significant game experience (two starts, 0-2) and his total stats that are less than average, the Texans will put their future in Schaub's hands. If Houston fails Schaub like they failed Carr, Schaub will endure no pass protection while throwing to one reliable target with an unproductive running game that won?t take pressure off of Schaub.
This trade feels like Rob Johnson all over again. Remember Buffalo gave Jacksonville a first round pick after Johnson played solidly in one regular season game. He ultimately proved to be nothing more than a back-up, as he couldn't beat out Doug Flutie to be the starter for the Bills. Numerous injuries later, Johnson's best quality was as a capable clipboard holder wherever he went. Schaub hasn?t proven anything either in his short career. It?s hard to think Schaub will flame out like Johnson since the bar was set so low. But Matt is entering a daunting situation with questionable support.
As for Carr, yeah Houston didn't take proper care of their investment, but it is not like Carr is completely broken down and beyond repair. Maybe all he needs is a little work. Is it possible that a team can take Carr off of the Texans? hands, garage him with a new set of coaches for a year or two to strip away old learning and habits and rebuild Carr?s game? Heck, maybe after the repair work is done, Carr would run like new and turbo-charge the next offense he directs.
Houston is determined to move Carr. Maybe you'll give the Texans a call just to inquire about the price. One thing you know is a Carr sometimes has its best years after the first owner.
Randolph Charlotin can be reached at lordrc@netzero.net |
