Ryan Fitzpatrick named Houston Texans' starting QB

[MidnightVoice]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000359262/article/ryan-fitzpatrick-named-houston-texans-starting-qb

Someone has to start under center for the Houston Texans. Why not Ryan Fitzpatrick?

Coach Bill O'Brien announced Tuesday that the veteran quarterback has won the team's No. 1 role.

"He's a guy that earned the job," said O'Brien following Houston's mandatory minicamp session.

Anointing Fitzpatrick ends speculation that he would be forced to compete with the likes of Case Keenum, T.J. Yates and rookie Tom Savage come July. The Texans have hinted that one of those passers might be released sooner than later.

And yoy think we have problems? :D

[BuffaloWingEater]

he will be very serviceable, flutter some throws, and some really bad int's at poor times.

[DynaPaul]

Poor Houston. Should have kept Schaub.

[Skooby]

Enjoy our trash.

[ghz in pittsburgh]

That's just odd. Fitz is the kind of QB usually looks bad at camp because arm strength etc. but looks good in games when his intelligence shows the difference adapting to changing environment.

[swiper]

I have a hard time ragging on Fitz. He gave it his all on every game. He just wasn't good enough. But I'd still rather be stuck with him than what we have now.

[Generalissimus Gibby]

They will have a very good september, a mediocre october, and will be out of the playoff hunt by early December.

[better days]

he will be very serviceable, flutter some throws, and some really bad int's at poor times.

Fitz should be just good enough for the Texans to be mediocre, giving them a mediocre draft position next year.

[Parzival]

He's a stop gap. Here, he was supposed to be the answer.

[stuckincincy]

They will have a very good september, a mediocre october, and will be out of the playoff hunt by early December.

May well be - they seem to be rebuilding:

http://espn.go.com/blog/houston-texans/post/_/id/4549/texans-are-letting-go-of-not-losing-players

Drafting Clowney and G Xavier Su'o-Filo should help, as well as LB Brian Cushing and CJ Jon Joseph returning.

[TacklingDummy]

Great, there's a loss for the Bills.

Take it to the bank.

[pmoon6]

Enjoy our trash.Calling a guy that worked his ass of to earn an NFL starting QB's job and spending quite a few years in the league "trash" is a bit much.

That's what people that can't do themselves resort to. They criticize because they have little other choice. Impotent wankers with small lives and even smaller talent and ability.

[trapezeus]

it's the model the bills wanted last year...and they would have employed with fitz if we didn't have a senile old man in buddy nix talking on the phone.

you let fitz play 4 games and see where you are. hopefully that gives the young ones more time to put it together.

we had to let fitz go, got kolb and he died on a bathmat (or something like that). So ej went in day 1. i can promise you, we'd all be a lot more excited if ej missed the first 5-6 games learning and came in the back end showing what he could do. perhaps some of the injuries are avoided.

that being said, fitz isn't going to help them win this year, and i think the team is fine with that.

[Night Train]

They are gutting and starting over like an expansion team. This is like Bill Polian getting a Vet in Frank Reich to QB Carolina in 1995 while looking for the next guy ( Kerry Collins, who took them to the NFC Championship game the very next year ).

They will run a lot and get some stability with a limited but smart QB. It's been done many times and O'Brien seems to be doing things right in year 1.

[Bill Cody]

championship

[Forward_Lateral]

Good for him, I hope he makes the Probowl. Just not vs the Bills

[pmoon6]

championshipWith their running game and what I think will be a really good defense, that is a possibility.

[Bill Cody]

With their running game and what I think will be a really good defense, that is a possibility.

no

[pmoon6]

noAre you really Jimmy The Greek reincarnated?

[better days]

it's the model the bills wanted last year...and they would have employed with fitz if we didn't have a senile old man in buddy nix talking on the phone.

you let fitz play 4 games and see where you are. hopefully that gives the young ones more time to put it together.

we had to let fitz go, got kolb and he died on a bathmat (or something like that). So ej went in day 1. i can promise you, we'd all be a lot more excited if ej missed the first 5-6 games learning and came in the back end showing what he could do. perhaps some of the injuries are avoided.

that being said, fitz isn't going to help them win this year, and i think the team is fine with that.

There was another GM on the other end of that call.

I don't see how Nix can be blamed for that prank.

Fitz was going to get cut anyway because his contract was much too expensive.

[trapezeus]

There was another GM on the other end of that call.

I don't see how Nix can be blamed for that prank.

Fitz was going to get cut anyway because his contract was much too expensive.

he was the ideal candidate to let someone learn and transition into coaching, possibly.

[SpikedLemonade]

There was another GM on the other end of that call.

I don't see how Nix can be blamed for that prank.

Fitz was going to get cut anyway because his contract was much too expensive.

Defending your Uncle Buddy again I see.

[justasportsfan]

Good for Fitz. Hope he enjoys it while it lasts.

[better days]

Defending your Uncle Buddy again I see.

Well, you can't dispute anything I said about him.

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he was the ideal candidate to let someone learn and transition into coaching, possibly.

Agreed, but not at the cost of his contract.

[pmoon6]

Well, you can't dispute anything I said about him.

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Agreed, but not at the cost of his contract.Spike can't dispute anything. His mind is simple.

I wonder if her threw a party when Ralph passed on?

[SpikedLemonade]

I wonder if he threw a party when Ralph passed on?

Didn't you get the invite?

[trapezeus]

Agreed, but not at the cost of his contract.

The cost of his contract was up front. they had a cheap veteran at that point.they could have and it would hvae been fine. they have been under the cap for how many years?

[Bill Cody]

Are you really Jimmy The Greek reincarnated?

I like Fitz. Fitz is a great story and I root for him. He tried hard here and he gets the max out of the talent he has. But he is NOT the QB on a championship team. And no I don't need to be Jimmy the Greek or have a crystal ball to know that, just have an average sized brain and a pair of eyeballs.

[GingerP]

The cost of his contract was up front. they had a cheap veteran at that point.they could have and it would hvae been fine. they have been under the cap for how many years?

They did pay him well up front, but his contract wasn't that cheap. If they kept him for 2013 he was due to earn a $4.25M salary and additional $3M roster bonus. $7.25M isn't top QB money, but it is a lot to pay for a guy who you knew had no part in the team's future.

By comparison, Houston is paying him $4M this year as part of a 2-year $7.5M contract. Tennessee signed him for 2-years/$6.5M after the Bills cut him. If they could have re-done his deal to that level he might have been worth keeping, but he was way overpaid by the Bills.

[trapezeus]

They did pay him well up front, but his contract wasn't that cheap. If they kept him for 2013 he was due to earn a $4.25M salary and additional $3M roster bonus. $7.25M isn't top QB money, but it is a lot to pay for a guy who you knew had no part in the team's future.

By comparison, Houston is paying him $4M this year as part of a 2-year $7.5M contract. Tennessee signed him for 2-years/$6.5M after the Bills cut him. If they could have re-done his deal to that level he might have been worth keeping, but he was way overpaid by the Bills.

fair enough, but buddy blew it by dissing him fairly publically, you think a QB is going to renegotiate his contract when its publically known that the team doesn't want him?

i'm not even passionate about it, but the bills front office did a stupid thing and were forced into making a decision they didn't need to make. Fitz won a game or two last year. Kolb, their replacement, got hurt walking off the field in training camp and never played a game. did they make the wrong decision on a veteran presence on the team? it would definitely appear that way.

[feldspar]

fair enough, but buddy blew it by dissing him fairly publically, you think a QB is going to renegotiate his contract when its publically known that the team doesn't want him?

i'm not even passionate about it, but the bills front office did a stupid thing and were forced into making a decision they didn't need to make. Fitz won a game or two last year. Kolb, their replacement, got hurt walking off the field in training camp and never played a game. did they make the wrong decision on a veteran presence on the team? it would definitely appear that way.

Fitzpatrick was 3-6 as a starter last year. He also played the majority of the Titans/Jaguars game, which the Titans also lost.

With Fitzpatrick as a starter, the Titans beat Oakland, Jacksonville, and Houston...the combined records of those teams was 10-38.

I don't think Buddy ever "dissed him." It was just pretty clear that the Bills had to go in a different direction with their starting QB, and Fitzpatrick was making too much money for the role he might have filled. That's about all he said, and everyone knew this already. Dunno how it would have affected the locker-room with Fitz projected to take an eventual backseat, either.

Fitz just ain't that good...I don't think he would have done better than Thad Lewis did last year. It makes me laugh to hear some Titans fans talk about how smart Fitzpatrick is and all that hype...he went to Harvard, don't you know.

[EDS]

Well, you can't dispute anything I said about him.

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Agreed, but not at the cost of his contract.

Who gave Fitz that contract?

[ghz in pittsburgh]

Who gave Fitz that contract?

Judging by what we know now from that phone conversation, it is Gailey. Nix, to my knowledge, never had very high praise of Fitz, even in his high time. "Getting it done" is probably the best he said about him.

But he caved to his hand picked (although 3rd or 4th on the list) coach. So all in all, Nix's worst move is Gailey.

[trapezeus]

i'm not saying i want fitz back...but i didn't want kolb at all. and i am confused why veteran depth is still not important when they have a qb who may be injury prone and they have a decent defense from last year that they hope they are building on.

Nix's tenure was very weak. he cleaned up some of hte brandon mess, but he didn't get abetter record and he didn't create stability. we've also elected to not sign some of his best pics. so it all comes back to the total dysfunctionality of a long tenured executive branch within the bills. and until that changes, we will always just be hoping.

[better days]

fair enough, but buddy blew it by dissing him fairly publically, you think a QB is going to renegotiate his contract when its publically known that the team doesn't want him?

i'm not even passionate about it, but the bills front office did a stupid thing and were forced into making a decision they didn't need to make. Fitz won a game or two last year. Kolb, their replacement, got hurt walking off the field in training camp and never played a game. did they make the wrong decision on a veteran presence on the team? it would definitely appear that way.

Nix thought he was having a PRIVATE conversation with another NFL GM.

The conversation was ILLEGALLY recorded & made public.

Not Nix's fault at all.

[pmoon6]

Didn't you get the invite?No, but I haven't checked my e-mail lately.

Besides, I suspect you're a serial killer in real life and I don't want parts of me to grace your table with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.

[pmoon6]

Fitzpatrick was 3-6 as a starter last year. He also played the majority of the Titans/Jaguars game, which the Titans also lost.

With Fitzpatrick as a starter, the Titans beat Oakland, Jacksonville, and Houston...the combined records of those teams was 10-38.

I don't think Buddy ever "dissed him." It was just pretty clear that the Bills had to go in a different direction with their starting QB, and Fitzpatrick was making too much money for the role he might have filled. That's about all he said, and everyone knew this already. Dunno how it would have affected the locker-room with Fitz projected to take an eventual backseat, either.

Fitz just ain't that good...I don't think he would have done better than Thad Lewis did last year. It makes me laugh to hear some Titans fans talk about how smart Fitzpatrick is and all that hype...he went to Harvard, don't you know.Won/Lost is a team stat, not a QBs'

[cookie G]

I have a hard time ragging on Fitz. He gave it his all on every game. He just wasn't good enough. But I'd still rather be stuck with him than what we have now.

Me too. He's the only Bills' QB since Bledsoe that produced anything close to resembling a passing game. And he did it despite Buddy's criminal neglect of the offense.

Damned...that's a long time to have a passing game so bad.

[cookie G]

Judging by what we know now from that phone conversation, it is Gailey. Nix, to my knowledge, never had very high praise of Fitz, even in his high time. "Getting it done" is probably the best he said about him.

But he caved to his hand picked (although 3rd or 4th on the list) coach. So all in all, Nix's worst move is Gailey.

And yet despite not having any high praise for Fitz, Buddy did absolutely nothing to improve the position.

Without Fitz, the Nix era teams would have been lucky to win 2 games per year. A halfway decent offense was the only reason they won any games at all, and it produced limitedly despite Buddy, rather than because of him.

Wow...he sucked,

[better days]

And yet despite not having any high praise for Fitz, Buddy did absolutely nothing to improve the position.

Without Fitz, the Nix era teams would have been lucky to win 2 games per year. A halfway decent offense was the only reason they won any games at all, and it produced limitedly despite Buddy, rather than because of him.

Wow...he sucked,

Without Fitz, the Bills would have had a different QB.

No telling how many games they would have won.

They may have bottomed out & drafted Andrew Luck.

[better days]

Won/Lost is a team stat, not a QBs'

Well, the QB has the biggest impact of any player in regards to wins & losses.

Does anyone think otherwise? That is the problem with Fitz, he is just good enough to keep his team from having a top draft pick.

But he is not good enough to take a team to the playoffs.

[albertjenney]

Well, the QB has the biggest impact of any player in regards to wins & losses.

Does anyone think otherwise? That is the problem with Fitz, he is just good enough to keep his team from having a top draft pick.

But he is not good enough to take a team to the playoffs.
Without Fitz, the Bills would have had a different QB.

[feldspar]

Won/Lost is a team stat, not a QBs'

I'm well aware of that.

But the Titans were basically 3-7 with Fitz playing, and they were 4-2 without him.

I've seen the guy start about 60 games, so I think I've got a pretty good feel about who he is as a player. I like him, but he's just not a starting caliber quarterback.

It's a quarterback driven league, as they say, and they aren't kidding.

[stuckincincy]

And yet despite not having any high praise for Fitz, Buddy did absolutely nothing to improve the position.

Without Fitz, the Nix era teams would have been lucky to win 2 games per year. A halfway decent offense was the only reason they won any games at all, and it produced limitedly despite Buddy, rather than because of him.

Wow...he sucked,

I think Fitz did the best he could. I put in my 2 cents here when BUF signed him, and he turned out similar to his 13 games with CIN in 2008. A bit better, actually.

Why BUF hasn't been able to nail down the QB spot since Kelly retired is mystifying. It's like they somehow caught a disease from the Browns...

[starrymessenger]

I hate Fitz.
He was always just good enuf to make you think you were headed for that luxury penthouse in the sky, just to wind up, every time, in the same cheap hotel room with the finger on the floor.

[Cleve]

I LOL'd when I read this. Let's take a career backup, journeyman ham and egger QB who'll turn 32 this fall, and who has never had a winning season as a starting QB, and whom the Titans themselves didn't even want to keep AS backup, and anoint him the starting QB. Brilliant genuises running the Texans.

It was dumb when Buffalo made him the starter all those years ago - how much more stupid is this, especially since the Texans have the benefit of seeing how awful he was at both Buffalo and Tennessee? Maybe they want to intentionally tank for draft picks?

[BertSquirtgum]

I feel sorry for Texan fans. They are going to witness 3-4 games lost by a Fitzputrid game ending interception.

[pmoon6]

As mediocre a NFL starter as Fitzy is, he still has achieved more in his short lifetime than any of you will until your death. He's also undoubtedly smarter and has more intestinal fortitude than any of you can dream of.

That's the downside of living vicariously through sports. Your team and their players can disappoint and even be at the bottom of their profession. They still are 5 times the men you are.

[feldspar]

As mediocre a NFL starter as Fitzy is, he still has achieved more in his short lifetime than any of you will until your death. He's also undoubtedly smarter and has more intestinal fortitude than any of you can dream of.

That's the downside of living vicariously through sports. Your team and their players can disappoint and even be at the bottom of their profession. They still are 5 times the men you are.

I'm not sure how you measure things like this.

I do admire the man himself, and that's probably enough.

However, taking criticism is the nature of the beast and comes with the territory. Who are you to say that "he's better than us all" or whatever the ****? Why compare?

[swiper]

http://news.msn.com/us/man-diagnosed-with-rare-pneumonic-plague-in-colorado?ocid=ansnews11

[feldspar]

Let's just say that Fitzy is better than Fletch and leave it at that.

[BertSquirtgum]

As mediocre a NFL starter as Fitzy is, he still has achieved more in his short lifetime than any of you will until your death. He's also undoubtedly smarter and has more intestinal fortitude than any of you can dream of.

That's the downside of living vicariously through sports. Your team and their players can disappoint and even be at the bottom of their profession. They still are 5 times the men you are.

Just because you want to have a sex change and have Ryan's babies doesn't mean you need to stick up for him whenever people are speaking the truth about him.

[pmoon6]

Just because you want to have a sex change and have Ryan's babies doesn't mean you need to stick up for him whenever people are speaking the truth about him.I already had a sex change.

I was Lucille, now Louie.

[Cleve]

Wow, did Fitzpatrick stink up the field in that pre-season opener. For some astonishing reason, O'Brien, a supposed QB 'guru', kept Blitzpatrick on the field for the entire first half. His 30 minute stats - 6 for 14, only 55 yards, 2 interceptions and a 14.6 rating.



I was astonished the Texans picked him as their starting QB. This guy is coach and GM kryptonite. Every where he's started, the coach has gone out the door with him. Wonder if O'Brien will survive him? LOL He has NEVER had the talent or ability to be a starting QB - he's a ham & egger journeyman backup. Ridiculous that anyone thinks he's starting caliber.

[trapezeus]

Wow, did Fitzpatrick stink up the field in that pre-season opener. For some astonishing reason, O'Brien, a supposed QB 'guru', kept Blitzpatrick on the field for the entire first half. His 30 minute stats - 6 for 14, only 55 yards, 2 interceptions and a 14.6 rating.



I was astonished the Texans picked him as their starting QB. This guy is coach and GM kryptonite. Every where he's started, the coach has gone out the door with him. Wonder if O'Brien will survive him? LOL He has NEVER had the talent or ability to be a starting QB - he's a ham & egger journeyman backup. Ridiculous that anyone thinks he's starting caliber.

at least his rating is in line with his jersey number.

but i think the hope for houston is that mediocre qb play should be enough to be competitive and that their new qb will learn enough by week 6 to let them transition smoothly while remaining competitive.

never thought of fitz like that. kyrptonite. but you are right, everyone has gone with him when he's left. he seems like a good guy, but qb'ing a team for a full season, just isn't his thing.