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Kubes expresses regret for passing on Benson

Texecutioner

Texecutioner

Hall of Fame
Texans coach Gary Kubiak expressed regret for passing on Bengals RB Cedric Benson in free agency this past offseason.
"We had our chance with Cedric in free agency. It just didn't work out," said Kubiak. "You know, hindsight is 20-20. We've got to play with the people we've got." Kubiak's comments aren't exactly a ringing endorsement of Steve Slaton, who has lost three fumbles and averaged just 2.0 yards on 26 carries.


http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playernews.aspx?sport=NFL


I'll be the first to admit that I was wrong when it came to Benson and whether or not the Texans should sign the guy last season. He ended up playing pretty well for the Bengals last year and it's carrying on to this season. Good for Benson and I hope he keeps it up and stays out of trouble.
 
Texecutioner said:
Texans coach Gary Kubiak expressed regret for passing on Bengals RB Cedric Benson in free agency this past offseason.
"We had our chance with Cedric in free agency. It just didn't work out," said Kubiak. "You know, hindsight is 20-20. We've got to play with the people we've got." Kubiak's comments aren't exactly a ringing endorsement of Steve Slaton, who has lost three fumbles and averaged just 2.0 yards on 26 carries.


http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playernews.aspx?sport=NFL


I'll be the first to admit that I was wrong when it came to Benson and whether or not the Texans should sign the guy last season. He ended up playing pretty well for the Bengals last year and it's carrying on to this season. Good for Benson and I hope he keeps it up and stays out of trouble.
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The bold is key. He's on my fantasy team, so I like that he is doing well. I'm still not sold on the Cedric Benson experiment.
 
It's just my opinion, but I think Kubiak wanted Benson here. Unfortunately, Benson got his Boy Scout uniform dirty, so it did not seem like an appealing acquisition to the FO folks.
 
Cedric wanted to play for the Texans.
He was offered decent #2 money. The Bengals offered him a better price and the guarantee of the starting role. Can't say I blame him.
 
Ckw5814 said:
The bold is key. He's on my fantasy team, so I like that he is doing well. I'm still not sold on the Cedric Benson experiment.
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Well he's running harder than he ever ran in Chicago right now and is currently one of the best bruising RB's in the league right now. Will that last? I think it will this season as long as he stays healthy, but with him getting 29 carries in one game there is a good chance that he ends up getting hurt. He's off to a very good start though, and is really pounding the rock.
 
I disagree with Kubes, I'm happy we didn't throw money at Benson, save that money for Owen Demeco and Walter. Chris Brown gives us what Benson would've.
 
m5kwatts said:
I disagree with Kubes, I'm happy we didn't throw money at Benson, save that money for Owen Demeco and Walter. Chris Brown gives us what Benson would've.
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You realize in one game Benson out rushed the Texans for the season so far? In fact he almost doubled it.

Yeah because the Texans couldn't afford the 2 year 7 million dollar deal the Bengals put on the table.
 
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This has been taken totally out of context, anyone that listened to Kubiak's Monday presser knows that. Barry Warner came out of left field with this in a question (more like a statement) to Gary. Gary also said he was pleased with what they have at RB. Neg rep to Rotoworld.
 
I do not see where Kubiak expresses any regret about not having made Benson a huge offer in his statement above. That is not clearly what he was saying at all.

Personally, I wanted the Texans to get Benson last summer. But not at the expense of breaking the bank. The Texans have done a good job of managing their salary cap up until now. Should they have thrown that out the window for Cedric Benson? I do not think so. And I do not get the impression that Kubiak is suggesting otherwise here.
 
m5kwatts said:
I disagree with Kubes, I'm happy we didn't throw money at Benson, save that money for Owen Demeco and Walter. Chris Brown gives us what Benson would've.
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It wasn't that big of a contract. Hell, I think we're paying our no. 3 QB almost as much!

And what makes you think that Rick Smith is going to wrap up contracts for Daniels, Ryans, or Walter any time soon? (Besides, half the forum says two out of three of these guys are "easily replaceable"...not that forum opinion means anything.)
 
Goldensilence said:
You realize in one game Benson out rushed the Texans for the season so far? In fact he almost doubled it.

Yeah because the Texans couldn't afford the 2 year 7 million dollar deal the Bengals put on the table.
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3.5 mil is a high cap number for a backup at any position let alone runningback, and I bet you that number goes up in the 2nd year of the deal. If it meant not being able to pay a Walter Owen or Demeco, or Pitts and Dunta for that matter, then I would be strongly against it. We have our own guys to take care of and with a limited cap number it won't be easy.
 
Double Barrel said:
It wasn't that big of a contract. Hell, I think we're paying our no. 3 QB almost as much!

And what makes you think that Rick Smith is going to wrap up contracts for Daniels, Ryans, or Walter any time soon? (Besides, half the forum says two out of three of these guys are "easily replaceable"...not that forum opinion means anything.)
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I didn't give the Dan-O contract did I lol? I'm just saying we didn't roll out the red carpet for him and match the Bengals deal because we know there's other guys to take care of down the road. Is CB at 3.5 mil really that much of an upgrade to Chris Brown or Moats at much lesser deals?
 
m5kwatts said:
3.5 mil is a high cap number for a backup at any position let alone runningback, and I bet you that number goes up in the 2nd year of the deal. If it meant not being able to pay a Walter Owen or Demeco, or Pitts and Dunta for that matter, then I would be strongly against it. We have our own guys to take care of and with a limited cap number it won't be easy.
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I don't disagree with you, but with our very inconsistent RB position, he might not have been a backup for long. Slaton is not showing signs of 2008 greatness, and we know Brown could go down on any given play given his history.

But yeah, obviously we need to keep Walters, Daniels, and Ryans if we want the consistency that good, solid players can bring to a team year after year.

I don't know what Benson's second year numbers are, but the Texans are 10 million+ under the cap right now. And isn't next year an uncapped year? So Benson's 2010 number might not have mattered to a franchise making as much money as this one is right now.
 
m5kwatts said:
3.5 mil is a high cap number for a backup at any position let alone runningback, and I bet you that number goes up in the 2nd year of the deal. If it meant not being able to pay a Walter Owen or Demeco, or Pitts and Dunta for that matter, then I would be strongly against it. We have our own guys to take care of and with a limited cap number it won't be easy.
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Nice revisionist history. Slaton didn't emerge as the starter until what game 4? In the mean time last year I think a Benson/ Slaton backfield would've pushed us a lot more then then a Slaton and whatever you can get from Ryan Moats combo (Not that I have anything against Ryan).

Let me put it this way. Last year in the 12 games he appeared in he rushed for 747 yards and two TDs. Not that those are stellar numbers but...how many yards did Chris Brown rush for last year?

I don't think a 2 year deal for 7 million would've been bad. I don't know how it was structured, but let's say even at worst case scenario, 3.5 mil a year wouldn't have killed us. We're also not in cap hell right NOW.
 
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Goldensilence said:
Nice revisionist history. Slaton didn't emerge as the starter until what game 4? In the mean time last year I think a Benson/ Slaton backfield would've pushed us a lot more then then a Slaton and whatever you can get from Ryan Moats combo (Not that I have anything against Ryan).

Let me put it this way. Last year in the 12 games he appeared in he rushed for 747 yards and two TDs. Not that those are stellar numbers but...how many yards did Chris Brown rush for last year?

I don't think a 2 year deal for 7 million would've been bad. I don't know how it was structured, but let's say even at worst case scenario, 3.5 mil a year wouldn't have killed us. We're also not in cap hell right NOW.
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Slaton's first start came in our 2nd game (week 3) against the Titans. He was basically the bright spot for the day.
 
hard to say how benson does here. don't know if it's slaton or the o-line. what if slaton was in cincy? would he be having success? would have like benson, if cincy offered more money than good for him.
 
DAMN IT!!! I knew they were making a mistake letting him get away. And they weren't that far apart either.

Good grief. Why so stingy?
 
Anybody know what we paid Ahman Green per game? That seems more of a waste than signing a young, healthy player.

==========

Here's the thing. The $3.5M shouldn't even have been an issue. Benson could have been signed on the cheap last season. He tried out in the middle of the year and wanted to play for the Texans.

In that situation you can often get a street free agent for the minimum. They could have signed him for the remainder of last year and this year, non-guaranteed. Even if they sweetened the deal some he'd have been a bargain.

The risk was that he didn't work out. If so, they cut him at no cost and leave a void this year. Just where they are now.

The Texans made a big mistake by not taking an inexpensive risk in a young, talented player with something to prove. It's too bad for the team that they can invest a lot more money in an injury prone player like Green but can't pull the trigger on a deal like Benson's.

The above isn't hindsight; it was discussed when Benson tried out last season.
 
Don't overlook the fact that the guy is kind of a moron. My brother lived in the same apartment complex as him in Austin and said after his boating incident last year all he did was sit at home drinking smoking and living off his UT glory. I can show you pictures from his facebook of him doing keg stands. He has a very poor work ethic and is not a Texan type of player (and was running last year to cash in). Before that he was a 3 yards per carry back with bust written all over him.
 
m5kwatts said:
Don't overlook the fact that the guy is kind of a moron. My brother lived in the same apartment complex as him in Austin and said after his boating incident last year all he did was sit at home drinking smoking and living off his UT glory. I can show you pictures from his facebook of him doing keg stands. He has a very poor work ethic and is not a Texan type of player (and was running last year to cash in). Before that he was a 3 yards per carry back with bust written all over him.
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He seemed like he had turned a corner this past offseason.

Sometimes you have to take a chance on a guy, especially when it doesn't cost you a draft pick OR a lot of money.
 
m5kwatts said:
Don't overlook the fact that the guy is kind of a moron. My brother lived in the same apartment complex as him in Austin and said after his boating incident last year all he did was sit at home drinking smoking and living off his UT glory. I can show you pictures from his facebook of him doing keg stands. He has a very poor work ethic and is not a Texan type of player (and was running last year to cash in). Before that he was a 3 yards per carry back with bust written all over him.
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That's where the "something to prove" and "non-guaranteed" parts fit in from my post.

The other thing that seems not "Texan type" about him is that he's a healthy running back that gains yards. Those are rare on this team.
 
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TexansFanatic said:
He seemed like he had turned a corner this past offseason.

Sometimes you have to take a chance on a guy, especially when it doesn't cost you a draft pick OR a lot of money.
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He might've turned a corner this offseason but as of last year at this same time when he was out of the league he wasn't exactly burning to get back in. He wasn't even working out let alone doing any football drills. It just shows a lack of drive and desire that you don't want on your football team and you certainly don't want it spreading around to younger more impressionable players. The Texans probably saw an out of shape back last year when he tried out and it didn't surprise me when they passed on signing him then.
 
Jackie Chiles said:
This has been taken totally out of context, anyone that listened to Kubiak's Monday presser knows that. Barry Warner came out of left field with this in a question (more like a statement) to Gary. Gary also said he was pleased with what they have at RB. Neg rep to Rotoworld.
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Post of the thread, go watch the presser on HT.com (if it's there) from Monday and see it in context, it wasn't quite the way it's being taken in this thread.
 
Kubes is a very cerebral coach. I like that. He knows how to get a player's attention without verbally bashing him in the media. Kubes knew exactly what he was doing by making those sort of remarks. He's trying to get under Slaton's skin. He can't be happy with the way Stevie is running the ball right now, especially the fumbles. OFFENSIVE MINDED COACHES HATE IT WHEN THEIR RBs FUMBLE THE FOOTBALL!!! Stevie has looked tentative and slow this season. Kubes is just sending him a wake-up call. Let's see how he responds to this.
 
Hardcore Texan said:
This has been taken totally out of context, anyone that listened to Kubiak's Monday presser knows that. Barry Warner came out of left field with this in a question (more like a statement) to Gary. Gary also said he was pleased with what they have at RB. Neg rep to Rotoworld.
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Post of the thread, go watch the presser on HT.com (if it's there) from Monday and see it in context, it wasn't quite the way it's being taken in this thread.
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I don't care if he regrets it now or not. I hope he learned something about low risk/medium reward scenarios.
 
Wow....is the season over already? Here I was getting all worked up for a Jags game and we're talking about Ricky Williams Jr. finally pulling his head out of his ass and acting his age instead of his SAT score? Benson was a bad apple and more of a desperation move by us and the Bengals. The Bengals were just more desperate than we were. Hindsight and all that crap.
 
m5kwatts said:
Don't overlook the fact that the guy is kind of a moron. My brother lived in the same apartment complex as him in Austin and said after his boating incident last year all he did was sit at home drinking smoking and living off his UT glory. I can show you pictures from his facebook of him doing keg stands. He has a very poor work ethic and is not a Texan type of player (and was running last year to cash in). Before that he was a 3 yards per carry back with bust written all over him.
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Truth comes out. The guy isn't a Bob McNair cub scout.

Right so it's ok to let TJ tub around and collect 1st round money. It's ok to pay top dollar for a great locker guy who is invisible on the field, Anthony Weaver. It's on to pay brittle-man Ahman Green his retirement fund.

Oh man though pay a guy a a small contract with big upside in hopes he might turn it around in hopes to cash in. Man what a novel idea!
 
Goldensilence said:
Truth comes out. The guy isn't a Bob McNair cub scout.

Right so it's ok to let TJ tub around and collect 1st round money. It's ok to pay top dollar for a great locker guy who is invisible on the field, Anthony Weaver. It's on to pay brittle-man Ahman Green his retirement fund.

Oh man though pay a guy a a small contract with big upside in hopes he might turn it around in hopes to cash in. Man what a novel idea!
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There's a difference between a guy who just doesn't like football all that much and a "cub scout." My only point was when football was taken away from Ced Benson last year it didn't bother him one bit. He didn't stay in shape or even do football drills to stay sharp. He sat around partying and once he was rejected from a tryout and told to get in shape by his agent he did and he performed for the Bengals. He wasn't anywhere close to football shape last year in the Texans tryout.

Its NOT like he ran a 4.40 forty and benched 220lbs 30 times and just as we were about to sign him McNair intervened and said "no this guy isn't a cub scout we can't sign him!" He was physically out of shape.
 
DocBar said:
Wow....is the season over already? Here I was getting all worked up for a Jags game and we're talking about Ricky Williams Jr. finally pulling his head out of his ass and acting his age instead of his SAT score? Benson was a bad apple and more of a desperation move by us and the Bengals. The Bengals were just more desperate than we were. Hindsight and all that crap.
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This message board supports a general discussion of many things Texans related. The diverse fanbase discusses many topics.

If you are looking for Texans-Jaguars discussion, perhaps you are on the wrong thread
 
m5kwatts said:
He wasn't anywhere close to football shape last year in the Texans tryout.
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Even assuming that's true, that was LAST year. We had another shot at him just a couple of months ago and we let him go over a few extra bucks. And that was AFTER he had proven his worth with the Bengals.

With our running back situation the way it is right now, there's simply no other way to look at that but as a mistake.
 
TexansFanatic said:
Even assuming that's true, that was LAST year. We had another shot at him just a couple of months ago and we let him go over a few extra bucks. And that was AFTER he had proven his worth with the Bengals.

With our running back situation the way it is right now, there's simply no other way to look at that but as a mistake.
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He was chasing more money and a starting role. We lost a bidding war to another team who offered a more favorable package. Its too early to declare that a mistake, especially when we've faced two great run defenses making our running game look bad and actually have a 2nd back running back playing well already. And I won't even bring up Benson's history as a huge bust before 2008 because all he did was run for 3ypc and get hurt.
 
blitz90 said:
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Why is it that the Houston media is more concerned and focused on "local" college athletes than it is on the Houston Texans?... at a Houston Texan press conference!!!!!!

.. yesterday, there were questions asked about how much playing time Aldridge (on the freakin' practice squad) is going to get at RB this season. Questions about Ced Benson... of course, they asked about Casey Studdard and Frank Okam as well. I'm sure someone wanted to ask if we would sign Vince Young if he gets released.

But, how many questions about how/what was the breakdown on the Chris Johnson TD reception? Who asked why Okoye is starting overy Deljuan Robinson? ... nothing like that. It kills me and I develop a deeper anymosity towards the Texas Longhorns and the Houston Sports media every day!
 
dalemurphy said:
Why is it that the Houston media is more concerned and focused on "local" college athletes than it is on the Houston Texans?... at a Houston Texan press conference!!!!!!

.. yesterday, there were questions asked about how much playing time Aldridge (on the freakin' practice squad) is going to get at RB this season. Questions about Ced Benson... of course, they asked about Casey Studdard and Frank Okam as well. I'm sure someone wanted to ask if we would sign Vince Young if he gets released.

But, how many questions about how/what was the breakdown on the Chris Johnson TD reception? Who asked why Okoye is starting overy Deljuan Robinson? ... nothing like that. It kills me and I develop a deeper anymosity towards the Texas Longhorns and the Houston Sports media every day!
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There's morons in the media and the sun will rise tomorrow. These things I am sure of.
 
Jackie Chiles said:
This has been taken totally out of context, anyone that listened to Kubiak's Monday presser knows that. Barry Warner came out of left field with this in a question (more like a statement) to Gary. Gary also said he was pleased with what they have at RB. Neg rep to Rotoworld.
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Agreed. I saw the video and that is exactly what happened. When I heard that question, I was like ' I can't believe this dude asked that question. Where do I go to sign up for his job?'
 
Kubiak sounded displeased because his running back is handing the football over to the defense, not because Cedric Benson is FINALLY showing some reason to why he was selected *4th overall?*

Maybe we passed on him because of issues with the law, maybe we passed on him because of his reputation as a sloth and a poor ballcarrier. REAL easy for someone to make themselves a good journalist for being right about things in hindsight. Also easy for someone to do that to the journalist.

"Barry, your question was irrelevant to things that are happening now and it's now been used to skew what really happened. How did you feel collecting a check when you are so clearly inept at your job?"
 
Anyone thinking that Kubes isn't regretting not signing Benson is making an excuse for Kubes and this team. We needed help at RB and didn't address it. Kubes, nor did anyone else expect our running game to be this poor to start the season, but it is and we needed to find another guy in the off season and didn't go out and find that bruiser that we needed. Chris Brown will be hurt in a few weeks, so don't bother mentioning him.

Benson is running really well. I wanted no part of the guy last year before the Bengals signed him and I was just as wrong as Kubiak was, but he proved that he was more committed to working hard and becoming a productive player. Benson would be a nice piece to this team right now, whether anyone wants to admit or not.
 
Texecutioner said:
Anyone thinking that Kubes isn't regretting not signing Benson is making an excuse for Kubes and this team. We needed help at RB and didn't address it. Kubes, nor did anyone else expect our running game to be this poor to start the season, but it is and we needed to find another guy in the off season and didn't go out and find that bruiser that we needed. Chris Brown will be hurt in a few weeks, so don't bother mentioning him.

Benson is running really well. I wanted no part of the guy last year before the Bengals signed him and I was just as wrong as Kubiak was, but he proved that he was more committed to working hard and becoming a productive player. Benson would be a nice piece to this team right now, whether anyone wants to admit or not.
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Whether Kubiak regrets it or not, we'll never know. He does NOT express any regret as the title of the thread and article hints to. Anyone who's seen the PC video would know this.
 
HOU-TEX said:
Whether Kubiak regrets it or not, we'll never know. He does NOT express any regret as the title of the thread and article hints to. Anyone who's seen the PC video would know this.
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You think he doesn't regret it when Slaton is running like Stacy Mack and Chris Brown is doing anything effective while Benson is running with a lot of strength and power like he did in college? You're wrong.
 
Texecutioner said:
You think he doesn't regret it when Slaton is running like Stacy Mack and Chris Brown is doing anything effective while Benson is running with a lot of strength and power like he did in college? You're wrong.
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Dude, read. I don' know what Kubiak does or doesn't regret.

Whether Kubiak regrets it or not, we'll never know.
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TEXANS84 said:
Cedric wanted to play for the Texans.
He was offered decent #2 money. The Bengals offered him a better price and the guarantee of the starting role. Can't say I blame him.
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That's the big thing. We just weren't prepared to spend more cash on him. Hindsight and all, but it's not like we didn't sign AP for vet minimum. Our franchise will live without Ced.
 
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