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QB Matt Schaub, Ravens: starter to backup to starter again (1 Viewer)

Faust

MVP
Oakland Raiders' Matt Schaub broken beyond repair?

Published: April 11, 2014 at 11:53 a.m.

Updated: April 11, 2014 at 09:30 p.m.

By Chris Wesseling

Around the League Writer

(click on the linked article to see the related video clips and tables)

Matt Schaub's first pass of last season was intercepted, as was his last pass of the season. In between, he established an NFL record by tossing a pick six in four consecutive games.

Blindly embracing the notion that 2013 was an outlier in an otherwise stellar career, the Oakland Raiders have trumpeted Schaub as a franchise-saving quarterback on par with the future Hall of Famers of his generation.

New teammate Maurice Jones-Drew suddenly has visions of Super Bowls dancing in his head. NFL Media's Kurt Warner believes Schaub is a "steal" as a "top-flight starter" in the NFL.

For all of that pomp and circumstance surrounding Schaub's Bay Area arrival, the Raiders' contractual commitment of only one guaranteed year belies the outward confidence.

What are the chances that the general manager who swung and missed on Matt Flynn and Tyler Wilson last season has knocked one out of the park with the Schaub acquisition?

Let's take a deeper look at the latest in the conga line of quarterbacks trotted out by the Raiders since Rich Gannon's MVP season over a decade ago.

What Schaub was in his prime

Slipping to the third round of the 2004 NFL Draft, Schaub was never viewed as a major arm talent. His Texans career was bolstered by Gary Kubiak's play-action offense with a zone-run foundation and solid protection.

Like all but the best NFL quarterbacks, Schaub had to be "manipulated" by a passing scheme and play-calling tailored to his strengths.

It's unfair to simplify Schaub as a glorified game manager during his glory days. Although he rarely tested defenses outside the hash marks, Schaub stuck throws into tight spaces over the middle, mastered the play-action fake, made smart decisions, showed consistent accuracy and even displayed a modicum of mobility.

Buoyed by bootlegs and a strong rushing attack, Schaub was particularly excellent on first downs. Prior to the 2013 season, Schaub earned a pair of Pro Bowl nods -- including a Pro Bowl MVP -- and was annually among the league leaders in yards per attempt, completion percentage and passer rating.

If there was a knock on Schaub, it was that he often struggled in the red zone and had never proven to be a crunch-time performer.

What Schaub is at this stage of his career

Although there were late 2012 whispers that a hidden injury might be the root cause of Schaub's precipitous decline, the game film reveals no smoking gun.

There might just be a canary in the coal mine, though, dating back to Thanksgiving of the 2012 season.

His struggles began shortly after uncorking a whopping 103 passes in back-to-back overtime victories over a five-day span in November. Schaub soon began playing without confidence in his arm or in his pass protection.

Check out the two underthrown play-action bombs in the video to the right. After Vontae Davis intercepted a dying quail intended for James Casey in Week 17, that weapon left Schaub's arsenal rarely to be seen again.

No longer standing in against the pass rush, Schaub started bailing in the pocket while falling into the habit of checking down horizontally as opposed to testing defenses vertically.

Entering his first career playoff game against the Bengals in early January, Schaub acknowledged to sideline reporter Alex Flanagan that he had been pressing, thinking too much and afraid to make a mistake. "His goal today is just to cut it loose," Flanagan summarized.

That theoretically renewed, aggressive Schaub never materialized.

Reminiscent of an obviously injured Carson Palmer in his last years with the Bengals, the postseason version of Schaub proved incapable of consistently moving his offense outside of garbage time against slackening defenses.

Amid Super Bowl expectations, Schaub led the Texans to a come-from-behind victory at San Diego in the 2013 season opener that overshadowed his inability to throw convincingly beyond 20 yards.

The chickens finally came home to roost over the next month. Schaub was facing defenses armed with film study that showed evidence of a quarterback unwilling to throw beyond sticks.

With cornerbacks sitting on his checkdowns and out routes, Schaub set the ignominious NFL record for pick sixes in consecutive games.

ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski was moved to label Schaub a "broken quarterback" who was "seeing ghosts" in the pocket.

Turning on the lone successful QB in franchise history, fans began harassing Schaub at his home. Shortly thereafter, the Texans "faithful" even cheered an ugly ankle injury that left Schaub writhing in pain.

The consequent benching in favor of third-stringer Case Keenum exposed the ultimate juxtaposition of a brash, young gunslinger versus a feckless, diminished washout.

In Kubiak's roll-out scheme, Schaub's effectiveness on trademark play-action passes fell off a cliff.

For comparison purposes, Keenum averaged 9.9 yards per attempt and a 100.7 passer rating on play-action passes versus 5.8 and 69.4 for Schaub, per Pro Football Focus.

The final nail in Schaub's Houston coffin was driven home when he engaged in a mid-November screaming match with favorite receiver Andre Johnson.

Four months later, Schaub was shipped to Oakland in exchange for a future special teamer.

What the Raiders can expect from Schaub

For the first time in his career as an NFL starter, Schaub will be operating outside the cozy confines of Kubiak's offense that emphasized the quarterback's strengths and limited his weaknesses.

Adding to the difficulty factor: a reconstructed offensive line that has never played together, a running-back tandem that has combined to average an ineffectual 3.5 yards per carry over the past two seasons and a receiving corps that lacks a go-to target of Andre Johnson's caliber.

More than ever before, the deck is stacked against Schaub.

It's perhaps no coincidence that Warner doesn't view 2013 as the end of the line for the new Raiders leader.

Among established, franchise-caliber quarterbacks of the past two decades, Warner is the exception to the rule that there is no coming back from an in-season benching for performance reasons.

Schaub turns 33 years old before the start of the 2014 season. By that age, the majority of similarly talented quarterbacks had tasted their last NFL success.

When Bill Belichick unceremoniously dumped Bernie Kosar in 1993, the coach cited production and a "diminishing of his physical skills."

Owner Art Modell's explanation of the loss of a Cleveland legend provided even more illumination.

"He has taken so much punishment," Modell explained, "more than any quarterback I've ever known in this league."

Quarterbacks can only absorb so many hits, undergo so many surgeries, come out on the losing end of so many thrillers before their bodies break down. They become gun-shy, afraid to pull the trigger.

One of the most battered field generals of the past decade, Schaub has accumulated serious foot, ankle, knee, shoulder, rib and head injuries. He even lost a piece of his ear on a devastating hit in 2012.

Successful pro quarterbacks don't turn stale over time. The fall is sudden and steep.

Like a punchdrunk boxer who still sees openings but can no longer exploit the sucker for a left hook, shellshocked signal-callers ultimately suffer from that split-second when they stop pulling the trigger on an open window.

When the end came for Elvis Presley, Forrest Gump explained, "Well, he sung too many songs, had himself a heart attack or something."

When the final bell sounds for the quarterback, he gets benched, traded and degraded.

In the latest edition of the "Around The League Podcast," the guys continue the offseason Roster Reset series by breaking down the NFC West and AFC South.
 
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Matt Schaub excited to have more control with RaidersBy Kevin Patra

Around the League writer

Matt Schaub has a new ZIP code, a new jersey, a new offense and some new responsibilities with the Oakland Raiders.

"It's exciting. It's just like going to a new place and getting a fresh start," the quarterback told Jerry McDonald of the Bay Area News Group. "To come to an offense where the coach is looking to give you more freedom, and looking to give you more control of things.

"I had that in some aspects in Houston, but there are things I'm being asked to do here that I didn't have control of in Houston. I would have loved to, but we just weren't in control of it."

One responsibility Schaub didn't have in Gary Kubiak's offense during his seven seasons with the Houston Texans was the ability to make his own checks and calls at the line. The 32-year-old quarterback hints that he might finally have those duties.

"To now be in that position, and being the quarterback, that's such a great place to be because you can get everyone on the same page," Schaub said. "You can get into a great play, a better play that you had called. ... It's a work in progress, but I'm ecstatic to have that situation because it's something I've wanted to try and get to."

Schaub has newfound freedom in Oakland, but the question will be how long he'll keep it.

The latest "Around The League Podcast" breaks down all the big news and begins the search for the new Team of ATL.
 
Matt Schaub believes he could have ‘Philip Rivers-style’ rebirth with Oakland Raiders

Bryan Rose

Just a season ago, it seemed as if San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers was all but entering the twilight of his career.

But just as quickly as Rivers’ career seemed to stonewall, the former North Carolina State product returned to his former Pro Bowl caliber glory and lead the Chargers into the postseason.

That’s a path newly minted Oakland Raiders starting quarterback Matt Schaub wants to recreate in Northern California as the former Houston Texans quarterback has been hinting that he could be in the midst of a ‘Philip Rivers’ style rebirth.
So what’s different for Schaub now that he’s out of Texas? Well, it seems to be an offensive freedom mixed with a combination of solid offensive weapons, though it’s not as if the Texans trapped Schaub in a box with talentless players.

Regardless, the signal caller seems to have a new found appreciation for his starting gig in Oakland and seems poised to make the most of it.

Along with the return of running back Darren McFadden, the Raiders have added Maurice Jones-Drew to the backfield. James Jones, formerly of the Green Bay Packers, will anchor the wide receiver corps, which has been transformed from mild obscurity to one of the deeper collections in the league.

The offensive line may still need a little patchwork, but otherwise Schaub seems to have all the right pieces aligned for a career resurgence.
 
Highly unlikely Derek Carr replaces Matt Schaub in '14?By Kevin Patra

Around the League writer

The Oakland Raiders' starting quarterback job will be a highly discussed position battle during the offseason.

With Matt Schaub coming off a horrendous season with the Houston Texans, second-round pick Derek Carr should be given every opportunity to succeed. However, the Raiders might not be so inclined to toss Carr into the fire.

Veteran reporter Jim Trotter, while "cleaning out" his notebook -- which we assume is akin to when Eminem once cleaned out his closet -- noted that it would take something "catastrophic" for Carr to start this season.

The ESPN scribe reported that Raiders coach Dennis Allen is "firmly committed" to Schaub as his quarterback.

Of course, a team being committed to a quarterback in May is like a philanderer being committed to his wife while visiting a convent.

Not only is there plenty of time for Allen to become uncommitted to the veteran quarterback, but Schaub already displayed last season the uncanny ability to go catastrophic all on his own.

Around The League's Chris Wesseling dove deep on Schaub, pointing out the quarterback is essentially broken beyond repair.

Coupling that with the fact that in the last two seasons, all six of the quarterbacks drafted in the first or early second round of the NFL draft have gone on to start their team's opener, it's easy to see why Carr could get pushed to the front of the pecking order.

Trotter's report, however, does underscore a theme in Oakland this offseason, mainly that Allen and general manager Reggie McKenzie have insisted on adding veteran leadership in the locker room and on the field. Both men are fighting for their jobs, and it would seem they prefer to go down fighting alongside men with proven NFL ability rather than a field full of fledgling projects.

The latest "Around The League Podcast" breaks down the latest news and shares takeaways from rookie camps.
 
Rotoworld:

Speaking after Tuesday's OTAs session, Raiders coach Dennis Allen called Matt Schaub a "top-10 quarterback."
There's talking up your players, and then there's calling someone benched for Case Keenum a "top-10 quarterback." According to reporter Vittorio Tafur, Schaub was "adequate" in Tuesday's practice, but tossed a pick six to DE Justin Tuck. Schaub is a player in severe decline. There's little reason to expect that to change in Oakland.

Source: Steve Corkran on Twitter
 
Rotoworld:

There's talking up your players, and then there's calling someone benched for Case Keenum a "top-10 quarterback." According to reporter Vittorio Tafur, Schaub was "adequate" in Tuesday's practice, but tossed a pick six to DE Justin Tuck. Schaub is a player in severe decline. There's little reason to expect that to change in Oakland.
WTF?!?! I think Schaub should get his eyes checked. Maybe he is color blind.

I don't have a lot of hope that Schaub is the long term answer.

 
NAME POS YRs G CMP ATT PYD Y/A PTD INT FANT PT1 Aaron Rodgers qb 2005--2012 85 1753 2666 21669 8.13 171 46 1972.42 Roethlisberger qb 2004--2012 128 2372 3760 29838 7.94 190 108 2331.33 Tony Romo qb 2005--2012 115 2097 3240 25737 7.94 177 91 1985.74 Peyton Manning qb 2004--2012 128 2954 4411 34610 7.85 269 99 2770.25 Tom Brady qb 2004--2012 129 2843 4415 34573 7.83 265 85 2828.96 Philip Rivers qb 2004--2012 117 2268 3564 27892 7.83 189 93 2109.47 Matt Schaub qb 2004--2012 118 1816 2823 21943 7.77 120 70 1563.88 Drew Brees qb 2004--2012 142 3498 5243 40311 7.69 295 134 3148.59 Kurt Warner qb 2004--2009 72 1548 2385 17893 7.50 107 63 1280.110 Donovan McNabb qb 2004--2011 97 1963 3257 24225 7.44 147 68 1925.5Highest YPA since 2004.

The game manager label seems fair (barely 1 TD per game) but he was a good QB.

 
Wow. Thats a good bar bet.

This qb has 26 more touchdowns than anyone else in the nfl since 2004.

I think I could drink free for life here in new england. Everyone and their mother would answer manning or brady.

 
Rotoworld:

CSN Bay Area believes Matt Schaub will start the entire 2014 season "if all goes according to plan."

The Raiders want to give Derek Carr a year to develop behind Schaub, and don't think he's ready to compete. Schaub will need to be an effective game manager to keep the starting job, but it would be shocking if he made all 16 starts. The odds remain high that Carr replaces Schaub at some point this season.

Source: CSN Bay Area

Jul 19 - 4:47 PM
 
Wow. Thats a good bar bet.

This qb has 26 more touchdowns than anyone else in the nfl since 2004.

I think I could drink free for life here in new england. Everyone and their mother would answer manning or brady.
Manning and Brady missed an entire year to injury so if you think about it, it does make perfect sense.

 
Schaub is a classy human being, but Kubiak covered up his weaknesses for years. Those who actually watched the games and not just the stat lines knows that Schaub had some severe negatives. Once he lost the mental side of it, he was done.

 
Yeah, but there was a lot of talk about how teams had figured out Kubiak's vanilla route concepts/combos and were jumping all over the Texan's pass sets last year. I'm not much on Shaub, but I think he's getting killed unfairly.

Plus, one pick six at practice with a new troupe of receivers is nothing. You can't just look at outcomes on picks.

Shaub's not a killer, but he's not a corpse, either. I'm pulling for him a bit because of how he got treated last year. Lazy journalists making cheap, easy jokes.

 
Wow. Thats a good bar bet.

This qb has 26 more touchdowns than anyone else in the nfl since 2004.

I think I could drink free for life here in new england. Everyone and their mother would answer manning or brady.
You better hurry if you want to make that bet. Not sure why, but the numbers posted earlier in the thread excluded 2013. Brees' TD lead over Manning dropped from 26 down to 10. Another year similar to last year and Manning could pass Brees.

 
Yeah, but there was a lot of talk about how teams had figured out Kubiak's vanilla route concepts/combos and were jumping all over the Texan's pass sets last year. I'm not much on Shaub, but I think he's getting killed unfairly.

Plus, one pick six at practice with a new troupe of receivers is nothing. You can't just look at outcomes on picks.

Shaub's not a killer, but he's not a corpse, either. I'm pulling for him a bit because of how he got treated last year. Lazy journalists making cheap, easy jokes.
Agree.

 
Yeah, but there was a lot of talk about how teams had figured out Kubiak's vanilla route concepts/combos and were jumping all over the Texan's pass sets last year. I'm not much on Shaub, but I think he's getting killed unfairly.

Plus, one pick six at practice with a new troupe of receivers is nothing. You can't just look at outcomes on picks.

Shaub's not a killer, but he's not a corpse, either. I'm pulling for him a bit because of how he got treated last year. Lazy journalists making cheap, easy jokes.
He was terrible last year, historically bad. He deserved the way he was "treated". He's not going to be good this year either.

 
Decision-making vital for Matt Schaub:

http://espn.go.com/blog/oakland-raiders/post/_/id/5511/decision-making-remains-vital-for-matt-schaub

Excerpt:

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- As the Oakland Raiders prepare for the regular season, a key for starting quarterback Matt Schaub is continuing to work on his decision making, offensive coordinator Greg Olson said Tuesday.

"I wasn't around Matt Schaub in Houston. From what I see on tape, I think he's similar to what he has been and what he is. Kind of like they say, he is what he is. I haven't seen significant loss of arm strength in the time that he's been here," Olson said. "To me, the biggest thing with Matt is the decision making. After the last season, is he making the right decisions? ... I think his confidence is up. We haven't seen, throughout training camp, a bunch of ill-fated decisions so that's been a plus."

Schaub was replaced last season in Houston after a rash of interceptions. Schaub will start and perhaps play in the third quarter Friday night at Green Bay. The starting quarterback often plays little if any in the final preseason game, so this may be the last rehearsal for Schaub before their Sept. 7 opener at the New York Jets.
 
Fork please.

He looked finished last year for my texans. He has no arm left. It was an above-average run, Matt. Thanks for 2009-Halfof2012.

 
Rotoworld:

Matt Schaub has been benched.
This was an easy prediction a half-year ago. Schaub went Full-Delhomme over his final 16 games with Houston, posting a 13:19 TD-to-INT ratio with a mind-blowing five pick-sixes. Apparently, the only people on the planet who didn't realize he was finished work in the Raiders' front office -- which also traded for Matt Flynn last offseason. Oakland will move forward with second-round pick Derek Carr as its starter. All of Schaub's $8 million base salary for 2014 is guaranteed, so he remains a roster lock.

Sep 1 - 10:20 PM
 
Rotoworld:

Matt Schaub has been benched.
This was an easy prediction a half-year ago. Schaub went Full-Delhomme over his final 16 games with Houston, posting a 13:19 TD-to-INT ratio with a mind-blowing five pick-sixes. Apparently, the only people on the planet who didn't realize he was finished work in the Raiders' front office -- which also traded for Matt Flynn last offseason. Oakland will move forward with second-round pick Derek Carr as its starter. All of Schaub's $8 million base salary for 2014 is guaranteed, so he remains a roster lock.

Sep 1 - 10:20 PM
Full-Delhomme - pretty funny.

 
Rotoworld:

Raiders released QB Matt Schaub.

The move clears $5.5 million in salary cap space. Just one of many pro-personnel blunders by GM Reggie McKenzie, Schaub's confidence and arm strength were both clearly shot when McKenzie traded for him in 2014. He was easily beaten out by rookie Derek Carr and will now be replaced by the winner of a camp battle between Christian Ponder and Matt McGloin. Schaub was one of the league's more underrated quarterbacks for much of his time in Houston, but he has nothing left to offer on the field going on age 34. Perhaps he'll resurface with old pal Gary Kubiak, holding the clipboard for Peyton Manning in Denver.

Related: Raiders

Mar 16 - 4:49 PM
 
Not surprised by his release, but I'm a little surprised given all the money the Raiders have to spend that he wasn't retained as a money sink. Terrible value of course that way, but just seems like Oakland has to throw some money at undeserving guys anyways. I could be totally wrong and maybe they've already spent a lot of cash.

 
Rotoworld:

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports free agent Matt Schaub is drawing interest from the Jets, Ravens and Falcons.
That's "amongst others." Per Schefter, Schaub may find a new home before the end of the week. Schaub is no longer a starting-caliber quarterback, and would arguably be a shaky backup. The Ravens want to upgrade behind Joe Flacco, while the Falcons have long lacked a legit No. 2 behind Matt Ryan. Schaub would be a distant No. 3 for the Jets.

Related: Jets, Falcons, Ravens

Source: Adam Schefter on Twitter
Mar 30 - 1:19 PM
 
Schaub is officially a Raven, for what it's worth: http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/ravens-insider/bal-ravens-expected-to-sign-quarterback-matt-schaub-sources-say-20150331-story.html

Ravens sign Matt Schaub as backup quarterback

The Ravens have signed Matt Schaub to be their backup quarterback.

The Ravens finalized a one-year contract with veteran quarterback Matt Schaub as their new backup Tuesday after talks progressed quickly during his visit to team headquarters.

The deal is worth up to $3 million with a $1 million base salary, a $1 million signing bonus and another $1 million in playtime incentives, according to league sources.

Schaub will back up starter Joe Flacco, one of the most durable quarterbacks in the NFL. Flacco has never missed a start in his seven-year NFL career, a streak of 112 consecutive starts.

The Ravens were Schaub's only free-agent visit.

Schaub, 33, also drew strong interest from the Atlanta Falcons, the team that drafted him. The Dallas Cowboys and Tennessee Titans expressed initial interest, but not to the level the Ravens did.

Schaub is the most experienced and expensive backup that the Ravens have had on the roster since former St. Louis Rams Pro Bowl quarterback Marc Bulger backed up Flacco under a one-year, $3.8 million contract. Bulger wound up not throwing any passes for the Ravens during the regular season that year before retiring.
In related news: Upon hearing of the signing, the Maryland Lottery Commission immediately voted to change the name of its "Multi-Match" lottery drawing back to the old "Pick-6".
 

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