Freeman: Would you?

[HPF Bob]

I thought Freeman was overrated in the draft and have seen nothing since to change my mind. He wasn't that good at Kansas State. He hasn't been that good at Tampa Bay. He gets selected based on tools but to actually win in this league you need more than tools.

[Joshua]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

I thought Freeman was overrated in the draft and have seen nothing since to change my mind. He wasn't that good at Kansas State. He hasn't been that good at Tampa Bay. He gets selected based on tools but to actually win in this league you need more than tools.

I don't have a strong feeling on Freeman one way or the other, but he's had a couple decent years in Tampa. In 2010 (his 2nd year), he threw for over 3,400 yards with 25 TDs and only 6 picks. Last year, he threw for over 4,000 yards with 27 TDs and 17 picks. While not stellar, that's not garbage, and he was pretty comparable to Schaub last year (4,000 yards with 22 TDs and 12 picks). If you think Freeman deserves a spot on the trash heap, a very good argument could be made that Schaub belongs beside him.

[HPF Bob]

We bitch and moan about every pick Schaub throws and then when somebody who threw five more of them last year than he did is about to be dumped, we're in a hurry to give up draft picks to get him?

Schaub is good enough for us to win 75% of our games but we want somebody who'll make it 90% so we can beat teams like the Patriots, Ravens and Broncos (not to mention the Colts). Does Freeman look like that guy? Really?

I think I'd rather have a(nother) shutdown corner. Or a blitzing LB that gets a ton of sacks.

[Joshua]

I don't think anyone is clamoring for Freeman. His name was just thrown out there as a possibility since he appears to be available. While he hasn't been great, he has shown a few flashes, and this was while on a garbage team. If Kubiak is the QB guru that some think he is, he should be able to get more out of him, and a 25% improvement in his prior play would probably rank him ahead of Schaub.

With the rule changes for illegal contact, hitting defenseless receivers, hitting the QB, etc., the league is QB-driven like never before. It's my opinion that it's virtually impossible to run through the playoffs without a QB playing at an extremely high level. While DBs and LBs are nice, I would always prioritize finding a legit QB over everything else by a wide margin.

[popanot]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

We bitch and moan about every pick Schaub throws and then when somebody who threw five more of them last year than he did is about to be dumped, we're in a hurry to give up draft picks to get him?

Nobody said picks (plural). But yeah, I'd give up a #6 or maybe a #5 for him. I don't see the harm in that. We'll probably get a #5 or #6 back as compensation for Quinn leaving anyway.

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

Schaub is good enough for us to win 75% of our games but we want somebody who'll make it 90% so we can beat teams like the Patriots, Ravens and Broncos (not to mention the Colts). Does Freeman look like that guy?

Does Yates or Keenum? You might think so, but I highly doubt anyone in the NFL does. I'd even question if Kubiak and Smith do. If we could get Freeman on the cheap (low pick and reasonable contract value/years) and Kubiak can clean him up, the potential reward far exceeds the risk, IMO. Not saying I'd start him over Schaub this year, but I'd certainly open up competition next year and let the best man win. I wouldn't mind a bit paying Schaub to ride the pine and be the backup if he lost out.

[Joshua]

This is getting pretty far afield from the thread topic, but me and a buddy ran down the league yesterday and tried to guess which teams would trade for Schaub if the Texans decided to put him on the trade block. Even as a Schaub pessimist, I was surprised at how few teams I could make a credible claim for trading for him. By my count, I don't think there are more than 3 or 4 teams who would do so.

AFC South (Indy - no; Tenn - maybe but I doubt it; Jacksonville - maybe but I think they would rather tank and draft one)

AFC North (Pitt - no; Balt. - no; Clev - maybe but I think they would rather tank and draft one; Cincy - no)

AFC East (NE - no; Miami - no; NYJ - maybe but I doubt it; Buff. - no)

AFC West (Denver - no; KC - no; Oak - maybe but I doubt it; SD - maybe but this looks like basically a push)

NFC East (Dallas - no; NYG - no; Philly - no; Wash. - no)

NFC West (SF - no; Sea. - no; Ariz. - maybe; St. Louis - no)

NFC North (GB - no; Chic. - no; Minn. - probably; Det. - no)

NFC South (NOLA - no; Atlanta - no; Carolina - no; Tampa - probably)

[barrett]

Originally Posted by Joshua

This is getting pretty far afield from the thread topic, but me and a buddy ran down the league yesterday and tried to guess which teams would trade for Schaub if the Texans decided to put him on the trade block. Even as a Schaub pessimist, I was surprised at how few teams I could make a credible claim for trading for him. By my count, I don't think there are more than 3 or 4 teams who would do so.

AFC South (Indy - no; Tenn - maybe but I doubt it; Jacksonville - maybe but I think they would rather tank and draft one)

AFC North (Pitt - no; Balt. - no; Clev - maybe but I think they would rather tank and draft one; Cincy - no)

AFC East (NE - no; Miami - no; NYJ - maybe but I doubt it; Buff. - no)

AFC West (Denver - no; KC - no; Oak - maybe but I doubt it; SD - maybe but this looks like basically a push)

NFC East (Dallas - no; NYG - no; Philly - no; Wash. - no)

NFC West (SF - no; Sea. - no; Ariz. - maybe; St. Louis - no)

NFC North (GB - no; Chic. - no; Minn. - probably; Det. - no)

NFC South (NOLA - no; Atlanta - no; Carolina - no; Tampa - probably)

GMs and HCs get judged first off wins and losses and 2nd off their ability to obtain and develop a QB. Occasionally you can miss 1 time, but missing twice generally gets you fired. Because of this the teams that would be interested are not necessarily the teams where he would be an upgrade.

An interested team would need to view him as an upgrade AND have a coach who is approaching the end of his deal and needs to win now rather than 2-3 years from now. Although even in that setting some coaches try to get a rookie QB in there to convince ownership they should be given more time and patience since they are developing a rookie QB and nobody knows how that will turn out (clearly what Schiano is doing).

Aside from those situations, you would need a team to really invest in Schuab as their guy of the future and I cannot see any NFL team giving up draft picks to do that, even if he is better than what half the teams in the league have. Far more likely is Schaub ends up cut if we ever replace him.

[HPF Bob]

I'm not saying Yates and Keenum would put the Texans over the top only that they cost us nothing in terms of lost draft choices to find out. Yates does have better mobility than Schaub and (it seems in limited exposure) a stronger passing arm. What Yates lacks is experience. Keenum, to me, is a harder sell even though I rooted for him at UH. But he does seem like a valuable backup and the Texans must agree because they chose to keep him rather than expose him to waivers.