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...try something different

T

tsip

Veteran
I'm at a loss to understand why we've had 2 HC's that absolutely refuse to start anyone (unless he's hurt) else at QB other than Carr. With all the questions and all the doubts, why would you not want to try another player to see what they can do?

Kubiak talks about competition and the 'best' player plays, yet he keeps starting a player that is not getting the job done-a player that he's had to simplify his game plan for-a player that---for some reason(s)---does not throw the ball down field.

On one side, we hear it's Carr's fault and on the other we hear it's the teams for not putting Carr in the best position to succeed---another Kubiak promise.

HELL-O, anybody home? JMO, but it is not fair to the fans (you know, us that are the Texans reason for being here) to not try another player at a position that has been under achieving since day one...

IMO, there are ways to find out if it's the player or the system...bottom line, we aren't going to win on a consistent basis until this problem gets solved....:brickwall :brickwall
 
Kubiak got the job by promising to make Carr into a player. Now that Sage is out, and Carr played a smart controlled game last week, you really think he is going to pull him for Van Pelt? I wanted to see Sage in NY vs. the Giants, but that's water under the bridge. At this point, there is no way Kubes will pull the plug on Carr for a 3rd string type player. That would be an admission of failure, ruin what little chance there is of a trade, and make them look foolish. Don't count on this one.
 
Making changes for the sake of "doing something" when you have a problem without bothering to understand the issues at hand is a classic management screwup that invariably makes things worse.

And before you say "it can't get any worse" - you're wrong. We could be 2-14 again, or even 0-16.
 
Am I the only person wo finds it amusing that this thread is titled "...try something different" and yet contains the same junk I've been reading for months?

tsip you should get a fine from the league for false advertising or something.
 
tsip said:
I'm at a loss to understand why we've had 2 HC's that absolutely refuse to start anyone (unless he's hurt) else at QB other than Carr. With all the questions and all the doubts, why would you not want to try another player to see what they can do?

Kubiak talks about competition and the 'best' player plays, yet he keeps starting a player that is not getting the job done-a player that he's had to simplify his game plan for-a player that---for some reason(s)---does not throw the ball down field.

On one side, we hear it's Carr's fault and on the other we hear it's the teams for not putting Carr in the best position to succeed---another Kubiak promise.

HELL-O, anybody home? JMO, but it is not fair to the fans (you know, us that are the Texans reason for being here) to not try another player at a position that has been under achieving since day one...

IMO, there are ways to find out if it's the player or the system...bottom line, we aren't going to win on a consistent basis until this problem gets solved....:brickwall :brickwall
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The first couple of bolded suggest to me that you know why he's still here in the starters role, you just want someone else for the sake of change. You even went so far as to say "unless he's hurt". Well, look at when he was hurt who started & how they did. Dave Ragone i don't even think is in the league anymore.........enough said. Tony Banks.......maybe won 1 game, so to put it all in context, maybe there isn't/hasn't been anyone better on rosters.

Plus i think even the staunchest Carr haters can at least agree that when he has time, he can get the job done.
 
It's strictly political. Bob McNair doesn't want Carr to challenged for his job. We've seen plenty of times with Banks and now Rosenfels what the offense could do with even a marginal NFL-caliber QB and it scares him.

As the owner has been quoted numberous times... we are going to do whatever it take to make David successful. Translation... winning football games doesn't matter. Protecting his favorite player is the only thing that matters.
 
We'll never fix our offensive line until we fix Carr.

We'll never fix Carr until we fix our offensive line.

Hopefully our offensive line will be able to allow us to run the ball against the good teams in the league next year.. & our defense can take away the passing game of the better teams...... as well as the run. Get us some short fields with some turnovers.

Heck, it would help out alot if we can play out of the shotgun...
 
I honestly believe Kubes is using this season to evaluate Carr. It is well know that Carr was horrible coached and possibly babied by the previous regime. Sure there was tons of tape for Kubes to watch. But he thought he could turn David around. If he feels he can't then seeing somoene next year or drafting someone to take his place sometime down the road are possibilities.

If he did start someone else I believe Van Pelt would be the only option. What good would that do? He was only brought in a few weeks ago and is probably does not know enough to manage an entire game. Oh wait, Owen Daniels played a little QB. Give him a shot, too.

What are you looking to accomplish with this. Are you looking to see if someone can do worse than DC?

J
 
Mr teX said:
The first couple of bolded suggest to me that you know why he's still here in the starters role, you just want someone else for the sake of change. You even went so far as to say "unless he's hurt". Well, look at when he was hurt who started & how they did. Dave Ragone i don't even think is in the league anymore.........enough said. Tony Banks.......maybe won 1 game, so to put it all in context, maybe there isn't/hasn't been anyone better on rosters.

Plus i think even the staunchest Carr haters can at least agree that when he has time, he can get the job done.
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It depends on what you mean by "get the job done". By getting rid of the ball prematurely with no rush? By throwing the ball down field? Or a 2-5 yard dump without going through his progressions? Or by staying out of the way of the rest of the team? Just curious:)
 
Hervoyel said:
Am I the only person wo finds it amusing that this thread is titled "...try something different" and yet contains the same junk I've been reading for months?

tsip you should get a fine from the league for false advertising or something.
Click to expand...

When I saw the title, I knew that there was not anything really different about to be discussed.
 
jdm12 said:
If he did start someone else I believe Van Pelt would be the only option. What good would that do? He was only brought in a few weeks ago and is probably does not know enough to manage an entire game.

J
Click to expand...

Bradlee spent all year with Kubiak last year....... and sat behind JakePlummer as they went to the AFC Championship game.

I'd be surprised if he couldn't "manage" a game. I'd bet he'd be calling audibles from the first snap.
 
MAN! DC thread #1,907,957,999.

Someone cant understand why we dont start the practice squad guy, or the guy who just walked in off the street for dc.

Why dont all the haters "try something different", clean your shorts like a big boy, and quit crying for JUST A WEEK, I BEG OF YOU! I wont go into any DC apologist excuses, but I know from here, the same four or five people are gonna drop all the "Cause Kubiak promised to fix David so he could get the job" crap, then some poor soul will say something defending Dave, and then those same four or five will talk of homers and battle red kool-aid and such.

Dont you guys get tired of typing the same redundant crap over and over???

Dave is what he is, everyone wants him to to be the big play guy, but he's not, he's a game manager type QB right now. And last weeks game showed that with a solid TEAM effort, he can lead us to wins.

you may now continue your "stupid homer, battle red Kool-aid" talk:listening
 
thunderkyss said:
Bradlee spent all year with Kubiak last year....... and sat behind JakePlummer as they went to the AFC Championship game.

I'd be surprised if he couldn't "manage" a game. I'd bet he'd be calling audibles from the first snap.
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Thanks for the correction Thunder. I completely forgot about that.

J
 
hey hey answer this..

After two head coaches why havent the offensive line play better? why havent we have a dominant running game?

Answer that
 
Elle said:
Midol? Anyone? Anyone?
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You want some Midol?

I don't have any to give you so sorry. I'm not sure how I'd get it to you over the internet anyway (maybe order it through Amazon.com?). I guess this thread is as good as any to ask though.
 
Got to play Carr this week as we still do not know what we have and moreover his trade value depends upon stringing two good games together in Texans wins. Does not happen often so fingers crossed.
 
caddy said:
Porky & tsip.. Here's an idea. Since you both think that being fans of the Texans, mean so much that you should have input in the way we play on Sundays. Here is your chance. Just go to Reliant Stadium for the " Fan Appreciation Day." Bring your " I want Sage signs " or " I have a better idea sign." Hope to see you on the coaching staff next year. :texan:
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I have an idea. How about mixing in a take on something other than member's posts regarding Carr?
 
Kaiser Toro said:
Got to play Carr this week as we still do not know what we have and moreover his trade value depends upon stringing two good games together in Texans wins. Does not happen often so fingers crossed.
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I absolutely expect a decent game out of Carr this week. I think the Texans will try to again run the ball like it's going out of style and then give him very easy to manage situations to throw in.

The good part is we should close the season out with a pair of wins. The bad part is that another solid if unspectacular effort on the part of Carr won't end the debate any. I don't think it will convince anyone out there to trade for him. I think minds are mostly made up about David at this point. I think nothing short of a monster game (or a truly terrible one) from him leaves the debate exactly where it is and the off-season rolls in with more of the same.

I'd welcome either performance if I thought it would settle the issue and let the Texans (and us) move on somewhat united. Unfortunately I want the win more than I want the David Carr Wars to be over so I support the Texans in (what I believe will be) their likely approach to this last game.
 
I don't think how Carr plays Sunday will have much effect on other teams' opinions of him. Most minds are made up - and not all negative.

I'm sure that their are a few coaches out there that think, "with our XXXX* Carr will be a productive quarterback". Coaches make moves based on expectations and "fixing" a player all the time. I think, should the Texans try to trade him, Carr will have strong interest from at least a few other teams.

XXXX = our line, our system, etc.
 
Runner said:
I don't think how Carr plays Sunday will have much effect on other teams' opinions of him. Most minds are made up - and not all negative.
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I disagree. There has not been much trending data in the last two years to support minds being made up in the positive. He needs to play well for his future here or elsewhere.
 
Kaiser Toro said:
I disagree. There has not been much trending data in the last two years to support minds being made up in the positive. He needs to play well for his future here or elsewhere.
Click to expand...

I don't think two games in a row make much of a trend at this point - I honestly think that it is too late for one datapoint to make a difference.
 
Runner said:
I honestly think that it is too late for one datapoint to make a difference.
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Honestly? ;)

At this point the Texans will take anything they can in the way of making a difference. I'm prepared to get excited about a win over the Browns and to start predicting a playoff spot in 2007 the moment the season ends.
 
Honestly.

I'm talking about one datapoint not making a difference in Carr's perceived value. A win over the Brown's could do wonders for team morale.
 
t_flare said:
hey hey answer this..

After two head coaches why havent the offensive line play better? why havent we have a dominant running game?

Answer that
Click to expand...

Not sure if that's in relation to tsip's question as to why there hasn't been another player to challenge / start in the QB role over the years. I've seen a few different Oline and RB's playing / starting for the texans over the years when the previous player did not perform to the coach's standards. (NOT saying in relation to Carr.) I think they are improving on Oline, personally - but obviously - since it's more than 1 player but a group acting in unison, that may take some time. 2nd "obviously" - gotta have the oline doing wonders in order for the RB (or QB) to show what they got.

Some above have noted can't start VanPelt or Sage recently - but I think tsip's question was more in the mold of "ever" (in the 5 seasons).

tsip said:
I'm at a loss to understand why we've had 2 HC's that absolutely refuse to start anyone (unless he's hurt) else at QB other than Carr. With all the questions and all the doubts, why would you not want to try another player to see what they can do?
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tsip - to answer your question, I think it's because the previous staff did not want to admit mistake with their very first draft selection (decision). NOT saying it was... but if they did drop or challenge Carr, that's what they would be admitting. Also, that the previous staff was a cluster and couldn't get much straight in the 4 years they worked together - see previous drafts, assistant coaches, player cuts, etc. As for the current staff, gotta see what your starters look like before you make major decisions after YEAR ONE for the future of the franchise. Bringing in their backups will just confuse the issue more and possibly make for a harder decision considering the starters. Back-ups can continue to be back-ups if they never start a game - as long as you have a few times to see them and they didn't mess up their chance, that's good enough for now.

This is the year of the evaluation. Kubiak and his staff will make the decisions this offseason based off what they saw (not game film of a previous inept staff) with the parts of their system they could bring to the team and which players appear to fit their future plans. Whatever players they deem worthwhile, I'll support until they give us (me) reason not to.

Heck, we gave C&C 4 years to totally jack this franchise up. With the draft we had at the beginning of this season and a chance to triple the wins from last year (2nd best record for franchise) for Kubiak and co. with ONE season and numerous injured players.... I'd say they have quite a bit of my "fan trust" at this point in time.

But hey, just my opinion.
 
HOU-TEX said:
It depends on what you mean by "get the job done". By getting rid of the ball prematurely with no rush? By throwing the ball down field? Or a 2-5 yard dump without going through his progressions? Or by staying out of the way of the rest of the team? Just curious:)
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by going through his progressions, by placing accurate passes & by throwing the ball down field. Nothing wrong with a dump people if nothing is there, some HOF Qb's made a living off of the short pass. There's a certain QB in the league right now who in 2001 threw for over 4000 yards had 26 TD's 23 ints Yet his team didn't even SNIFF the playoffs that year (6-10). MYSTERIOUSLY this was also the year he suffered the most sacks he's ever taken in a season a meager 29. Care to guess who this is?

my point is, do you see how bad an offensive line can make you look & a team look? get a grip people DC ain't EVER going to be Joe Montana, but he ain't Akili Smith either.
 
Hervoyel said:
Am I the only person wo finds it amusing that this thread is titled "...try something different" and yet contains the same junk I've been reading for months?

tsip you should get a fine from the league for false advertising or something.
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You took the words right out of my mouth.:ok:
 
Hervoyel said:
Am I the only person wo finds it amusing that this thread is titled "...try something different" and yet contains the same junk I've been reading for months?

tsip you should get a fine from the league for false advertising or something.
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Being a veteran, I would have thought you'd be one of the posters to get the 'gist' of this thread.

The given--Texans will end their 5th year not knowing (once again) if Carr can take us to the 'promise' land.

Why hasn't David been an effective QB in 5 yrs? One side says it's his supporting cast--at different times, this has included the OL, the TE's, the WR's, the RB's, the coaching, the schemes, the play calling--did I leave something out?

The other side says Carr simply is not capable of leading an NFL team....

We've tried everything EXCEPT starting another QB to see what kind of results they'd get---same as Carr, worse, or maybe better. "No, hell no we can't do that--we don't have all-pro QB's waiting in the wings....immediate disaster!!!"

We do have 2 back-ups that know Kubiak's system and before you 'crucify' me, consider this....

Before Drew Bledsoe was injured with the Pats, he'd been both an all-pro and a QB that had led his team to the Super Bowl. His back up when he 'seriously' got hurt with the Pats was a 7th round(??) draft pick from Michigan that had backed up Drew Henson (ring a bell?) named Tom Brady.

Once given the chance to start-as unhearled as he was out of college-Brady played so well (and still does) that Bledsoe was 'toast.' A 2 time SB MVP and multi-time all-pro, what would have happened to Tom Brady if Bledsoe had not gotten hurt? After all those yrs, Bledsoe is still in the league...

Why not start someone else in the last game of the season? Is the problem Carr or the system--will we ever know?

JMO, but I don't think the Texans will change a thing. Carr will still be here next year and he will still be starting...bottom line, I don't think the 'powers that be' care what the problem is at QB, as long as there is always a 'tweak or 2' they can do to try and justify a 'Franchise' 1st pick that failed---not because of himself--but because the team failed him...will we ever know--ala Tom Brady--if another QB could have done better with all 'things' the same?...not in our life time..

Tsip, JMO, was suggesting that it would be better to know...than to wonder down the road after more years wasted...could another starter have...oh,well, never mind.
 
I would love to see any other QB play with this team, just for comparison. All this talk about replacing Carr and we never even see another QB play behind that O-line, but have AJ, Moulds, Daniels, etc.
 
tsip said:
I'm at a loss to understand why we've had 2 HC's that absolutely refuse to start anyone (unless he's hurt) else at QB other than Carr. With all the questions and all the doubts, why would you not want to try another player to see what they can do?
Click to expand...

McNair.
 
TexansSeminole said:
McNair.
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Honestly, I think you're onto something here. IMO, McNair would gain 'face' by such a move rather than lose it.

All other things being equal, I believe Kubiak has very little 'input' on the Carr situation. However, when all is 'said and done' and Carr is gone--how he leaves will be on McNair.
 
tsip said:
I'm at a loss to understand why we've had 2 HC's that absolutely refuse to start anyone (unless he's hurt) else at QB other than Carr. With all the questions and all the doubts, why would you not want to try another player to see what they can do?
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I got duped! I saw the title and thought it was about Zima. Aaaah those were the days.

Zima, malt liquor for minors and can be found right next to the Boone's Farm Strawberry Hill.
 
NATHANHALE said:
Being a veteran, I would have thought you'd be one of the posters to get the 'gist' of this thread.
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I get the "gist" of it. How could I not get the gist of it? It's the most well trodden ground on this board. There's not one point in this thread that hasn't been beaten to death and there's not likely to be.

Well, ok. Elle suggested I need a Midol. That's new. Other than that it's same old, same old.
 
Kaiser Toro said:
Got to play Carr this week as we still do not know what we have and moreover his trade value depends upon stringing two good games together in Texans wins. Does not happen often so fingers crossed.
Click to expand...

I'm asking KT and Hervoyel being that they are veteran posters that I expect better from, and not anyone else -- do you guys honestly think we'd trade Carr right now?

(A) Who will give us anything worth trading Carr for?

(B) Why would we take on the dead cap to deal him?

(C) What QB out there this offseason is reasonably guaranteed to be better, let alone for a reasonable cost?

Just curious if you're seeing something here that I'm not. Forgive me if you've posted it elsewhere as I tend to stay out of the BP these days.
 
jerek said:
I'm asking KT and Hervoyel being that they are veteran posters that I expect better from, and not anyone else -- do you guys honestly think we'd trade Carr right now?

(A) Who will give us anything worth trading Carr for?

(B) Why would we take on the dead cap to deal him?

(C) What QB out there this offseason is reasonably guaranteed to be better, let alone for a reasonable cost?

Just curious if you're seeing something here that I'm not. Forgive me if you've posted it elsewhere as I tend to stay out of the BP these days.
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I think there are more teams out there that would like to have Carr than you think.

Your other two points are very valid. What is the point in dropping Carr at this point? Carr is not the sole problem. This team has more holes than swiss cheese.

Like Baltimore, Chicago, and even Tampa proved once upon a time, you can win Championships with the mediocorists of QB's when you have a stone wall for a Defense.
 
jerek said:
I'm asking KT and Hervoyel being that they are veteran posters that I expect better from, and not anyone else -- do you guys honestly think we'd trade Carr right now?

(A) Who will give us anything worth trading Carr for?

(B) Why would we take on the dead cap to deal him?

(C) What QB out there this offseason is reasonably guaranteed to be better, let alone for a reasonable cost?

Just curious if you're seeing something here that I'm not. Forgive me if you've posted it elsewhere as I tend to stay out of the BP these days.
Click to expand...


I do not believe that David Carr is in any danger of not being our starting QB in 2007. Regardless of whatever moves we make in the off-season he will enter the season as the starter and he will get every possible chance to do something with that opportunity.

A) I don't believe that anyone will trade for David Carr. I think that the majority of potential trade partners out there will feel that if Carr is available in a trade then that means the Texans are truly done with him and if left alone will release him. Why trade for someone you can sign freely.

B) We wouldn't realease him and create all of that dead money. Even if we sign someone like Plummer to come in as an insurance policy I think we'll hang on to Carr for the duration of his contract. Absolutely for the next year of it.

C) I truly think that Plummer would perform better than Carr and could come at a reasonable cost. It's not that I believe he'd be a vast improvement over Carr. I just think he'd have less baggage mentally than Carr. Not so much with the happy feet and getting that glazed look in his eyes after he gets sacked for the first time.

I've said I think things would be better if Carr changed addresses and I stand by that. For the record I don't think we're going to see it and I'm ok with that too. Mostly I thought things would go smoother with the Texans if they moved on from the "David Carr Era". He's damaged goods at best and a never-was at worst IMO. If this is all a case of the sacking knocking the franchise quarterback out of him then he'll take time to fix and may never be completely right again. The crowds aren't particularly inclined to give him and the Texans that time.

With the mood of the average Texan fan being the way it is along with the vocal and angry Vince Young portion of the fanbase I just think everyone involved would have an easier time of it if the Texans started over at QB.

At this point right now however I just don't care anymore what they do. Keep him, send him packing. It doesn't really matter. We'll do about the same next year with or without David Carr. There's nobody available that will make that much of a difference really.
 
I'm amazed that this conversation even still enters people's minds. David Carr will never lead this team to anything. I have expounded on this for the past month point by point. I am floored that Texan fans still hold out hope for this guy or accept losing. He isn't the whole problem but is a big problem. You can't win in the NFL without some sort of consistency.
 
HoustonFrog said:
I'm amazed that this conversation even still enters people's minds. David Carr will never lead this team to anything. I have expounded on this for the past month point by point. I am floored that Texan fans still hold out hope for this guy or accept losing. He isn't the whole problem but is a big problem. You can't win in the NFL without some sort of consistency.
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Kyle Orton helped the Chicago bears win 13 games, and the NFC North Championship last year.

Rex Grossman has guided the Chicago Bears to a possible 14-2, NFC North championship and Home field through out.

Brad Johnson won a super bowl with the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Trent Dilfer won a super bowl with the the Baltimore Ravens.

Jake Delhome guided his squad to a super bowl.

Ben Rothlisberger won a super bowl.

What do they all have in common? Solid Oline, depth at receiver, a run game and a dominating lights out Defense.

None of those QB's, including Ben "My face is my Helmet" Rothlisberger are anything more than average nothing special QB's.

I have a riddle for you.

What does Payton Manning and David Carr have in common?

They both have just as many Super Bowl rings.
 
Whelp, I don't know how many saw it last Sunday (no doubt some of you were inside Reliant), but in the David Carr TV interview before the game, he said "(the critics) have no idea of what is going on behind the scenes".

He said this with such confidence, (and perhaps I'm reading too much into it), that I think sometime during the week between the NE game and the Indy game, he was given a vote of reassurance ("Don't try to do too much, relax, don't read or listen to the media, we're behind you"). I say this because he was a completely different quarterback in the Indy game as compared to the NE game.....

Tomorrow's game against Cleveland should be interesting to watch just to see which David shows up......

I'll be rooting for a Texans victory and a good show from the quarterback...
 
TEXANRED said:
Like Baltimore, Chicago, and even Tampa proved once upon a time, you can win Championships with the mediocorists of QB's when you have a stone wall for a Defense.
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If this is the best reason you can think of for a team to want David...... You've pretty much just said the same thing all the haters have been saying.

Teams don't pay for the most mediocre of QBs..... they settle for them. They are guys that happen to be on their rosters when it's too late to upgrade the position.

That's why they are cut or delt the very next offseason after winning a SuperBowl. They did nothing to help the team to get to the big game, they did nothing to help their team win the big game.... the team wasn't hurt in the slightest by giving away the most important piece of the offense.


you don't build teams around this guy..... you build your team inspite of him.
 
thunderkyss said:
If this is the best reason you can think of for a team to want David...... You've pretty much just said the same thing all the haters have been saying.
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I was attempting to make the point that our priority this off season should be defense and not looking for a QB.

I see a lot of people wanting to cut Carr and then bring in Garcia or Plummer. Neither one of those guys are an upgrade over Carr. I don't see the future of the Texan organization at QB in the FA market. I can't for see us drafting a QB in a weak draft class. What good would that serve anyway? We would just be putting another body back there to get pounded.

I am not a hater, but I am disappointed and irritated.
 
TEXANRED said:
I was attempting to make the point that our priority this off season should be defense and not looking for a QB.

I see a lot of people wanting to cut Carr and then bring in Garcia or Plummer. Neither one of those guys are an upgrade over Carr. I don't see the future of the Texan organization at QB in the FA market. I can't for see us drafting a QB in a weak draft class. What good would that serve anyway? We would just be putting another body back there to get pounded.

I am not a hater, but I am disappointed and irritated.
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I beg to differ with Garcia ... he is an upgrade based on his body of work .
 
On this weekend, Bulger goes back to the cradle of QBs
Bernie Miklasz
10/22/2003


Rams quarterback Marc Bulger hails from western Pennsylvania, an area best known for steel mills, rivers, rolling hills, ethnic pride and an inherent toughness and integrity that makes working-class Pittsburgh one of America's most dependable and endearing cities.

We should appreciate the region for this reason alone: Donora, Pa., gave us Stan Musial, the greatest St. Louis Cardinal. But the same terrain is famous for producing an inordinate number of exceptional quarterbacks. Five Hall of Famers are native sons: John Unitas, Joe Montana, Joe Namath, Jim Kelly and George Blanda. And Dan Marino will become the sixth Hall of Famer as soon as he's eligible for induction.

The honor roll is lengthy. Example: In the illustrious history of Notre Dame football, 18 young men from western Pennsylvania have played quarterback for the Fighting Irish, including Jim Bulger, Marc's dad.

Willie Thrower, the first African-American to appear at quarterback in an NFL game - for the 1953 Chicago Bears - is from Western Pa. A secondary list of NFL quarterbacks from the district includes Terry Hanratty, Babe Parilli, Gus Frerotte, Charlie Batch and Mike McMahon.

"It's just like Canada with hockey players," Bulger said. "When you get your best athletes playing the sport, you're going to be turning a lot of good players out. And in western Pennsylvania everyone wants to be the quarterback."

Bulger returns home this weekend, leading the Rams into an important road test against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even though he wasn't groomed from the crib to be a quarterback - Bulger didn't even start playing QB until late in his high school career - he fits the model in several ways: (1) he has a quick release on his throws; (2) he's a tenacious competitor; (3) he possesses cool-headed leadership qualities.

Ironically, most of the top high school teams in western Pennsylvania win by pounding the defense with the running game. When the weather turns bitterly cold, you'd better be able to get physical. But that doesn't diminish the role of quarterbacks, who are the natural leaders. They are expected to honor the esteemed position by conducting themselves properly, thus setting a good example for teammates. They carry an aura.

The QBs are held to higher standards; because of the legacy, greatness is expected. Charisma is fine - Namath had it in abundance - but acting like a punk isn't tolerated.

"I don't know if it's because it's a blue-collar town, but if you do any showboating in any sport, you hear about it," Bulger said. "Maybe not from your own parents, but you hear about it from other parents."

That's why so many of the Western Pa. quarterbacks brought so much understated strength and dignity to the field. This is the way of the world, at least in this earnest corner of Pennsylvania. And this inner-steel personality is passed down through the generations.

"Our parents taught us that you have to work for the things you want, and that old-fashioned work ethic drives us," said Kelly, who led the Buffalo Bills to four AFC championships. "You can't fake it. You give the maximum effort to take advantage of your God-given abilities. And that's how you earn respect."

Bulger has a 10-2 record as an NFL starter. He's third in the NFL in completion percentage and ranks seventh in QB efficiency rating. He's trying to become the latest in a long line of distinguished quarterbacks who emerged from those rolling hills.

"Just to be mentioned even in the same breath as those guys is something special," Bulger said. "Just to carry on the tradition. But I have a long way to go."

Spoken like a true Pittsburgh boy. But this weekend, Bulger goes back home, to the cradle of quarterbacks. And he'll have a chance to measure up to the great ones.
 
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