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TJ Yates

El Tejano

Hall of Fame
Saw the game last night vs. Tenn. Pretty impressive. He's a fighter. Has alot of Schaubish qualities so I can see why they drafted him.
 

m5kwatts

Veteran
I see a lot of Tony Romo in him to be honest-improvises when the pocket breaks down and does those awkward shovel passes that scare you but somehow get completed. The UNC o-line was pretty bad though and they struggled to run the ball in the games I watched. He shoulda gone higher from what I've seen and I don't know why the Redskins didn't take a flier on him.
 

El Tejano

Hall of Fame
I see a lot of Tony Romo in him to be honest-improvises when the pocket breaks down and does those awkward shovel passes that scare you but somehow get completed. The UNC o-line was pretty bad though and they struggled to run the ball in the games I watched. He shoulda gone higher from what I've seen and I don't know why the Redskins didn't take a flier on him.
I like the tools he has and appearantly they ran alot of what we did so it may not be too long a learning curve. If Schaub can't get us to the playoffs this year or the next, we will need to start looking around again and Yates just might be ready.
 

Rey

Guest
I like Dan o's arm strength but his decision making is poor.

If he could play within himself and not try to force the ball into coverage he could be a capable qb. He does almost everything else right.

Only problem is decision making is most of the job.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
I like Dan o's arm strength but his decision making is poor.

If he could play within himself and not try to force the ball into coverage he could be a capable qb. He does almost everything else right.

Only problem is decision making is most of the job.
Dude has no sense of pocket awareness .... I wonder if he has a sense of where he's at.
 

beerlover

Hall of Fame
I don't mind Kubiak with his experience taking a shot every draft on a QB until the pipeline is loaded with talent, cause not only do the Texans need a quality back-up other teams will pay premiums in trades to get one.
 

badboy

Hall of Fame
As I think Leinert & Danny O will be gone I'd like to see Houston go with Schaub and Yates. Pick up a UDFA for practice squad & if needed a vet durinvg season if Matt goes out. Give Yatresz all the reps he c an get
 

CloakNNNdagger

Hall of Fame
Here's a piece that I stumbled across, which I have never seen posted on this board before. The repeated knock on Yates at the time of the draft was that his arm was suspect. But if most of this is true, we may have finally found that diamond that the Texans seem to always be looking for.

Veteran QB coach on T.J. Yates: 'He's got plenty of arm'

by Aaron Wilson
April 12, 02011

Highly respected quarterbacks coach Larry Kennan has worked with everyone from Eli Manning to Chad Pennington, Tim Couch, Drew Brees, Byron Leftwich and Alex Smith.

And the veteran former New England Patriots assistant ranks University of North Carolina quarterback T.J. Yates comparably to those NFL quarterbacks in terms of football acumen, leadership and ability.

A four-year starter for the Tar Heels, Yates is visting the Indianapolis Colts today and the Atlanta Falcons later this week and has previously conducted private workouts for the Kansas City Chiefs, Chicago Bears and the Philadelphia Eagles.

"He's been extremely well-schooled, he’s like an NFL veteran quarterback," Kennan told National Football Post today in a telephone interview. "He had great coaching at North Carolina. He had to learn coverages and blitzes and protections. He's very wise about those things, way ahead of where a lot of guys are at that time. I've worked with Byron Leftwich and Chad Pennington and Drew Brees and T.J. is about as good as anybody I've seen. He's very aware. He can watch film and see exactly what's going on with coverage. He's very advanced.

"I've told a couple teams that run more complicated offenses like New Orleans that he would fit in very well with them. T.J. can make all the throws. The knock on him is that he doesn't have a strong arm, but he's got plenty of arm. Obviously, I’m high on the guy. What I’ve seen from him is real good stuff. With Eli and Alex Smith and Pennington, he's right up there with them. There's not a hell of a lot of difference in watching him throw and watching Eli throw."

The honorable-mention All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection draws high mark for intangibles, accuracy and productivity.

The four-year starter was graded as a later-round draft pick by most draft analysts, but is starting to garner middle-round consideration following a sharp Pro Day workout in Chapel Hill, N.C.

“I know there’s some teams that are thinking if we can get him in the fourth round it’s a steal," said Kennan, who prepared Yates for the NFL scouting combine, his Pro Day and the Texas vs. the Nation all-star game in San Antonio. "What I think about TJ I think if he goes to a good team he doesn’t have to play immediately and can be behind a good veteran for two or three years, then he can go some place after that and be a verygood starter on a good team. He will play in the league for 10 or 12 years. He'll work at it and he'll do the right things."

Yate completed all but a few of 130 scripted passes at his Pro Day.

"It was a phenomenal workout, I can’t imagine anyone not thinking it was a good workout," Kennan said. "It was rapid-fire. He only missed a couple."

The 6-foot-3, 219-pounder owns 37 school records for the Tar Heels.

Last season, Yates completed 66.8 percent of his throws for 3,418 yards and 19 touchdowns.

As a junior, he passed for 2,136 yards and 14 touchdowns.

For his career, he has passed for 9,143 yards and 57 touchdowns.

There aren't many four-year starters around.

"It’s completely invaluable," Kennan said. "He started for four years in a good conference, on a team that was rebuilding that went from being okay to being pretty good. With the exception of one year when Hakeem Nicks was there, he didn't have a great case of receivers. As a junior, he had a bunch of nobodies. His senior year, his best receiver and running back get suspended. It's hard to look good when you don’t have really good players around you."

The Tar Heels dealt with a lot of adversity last season due to NCAA suspensions and injuries, but Yates was a constant presence over the past four years.

"He lived through some hard times," Kennan said. "That's part of the reason he's not being talked about as a second or third-round pick. He didn't have that full complement of receivers or his stats would be phenomenal. T.J. is a quiet leader, not a shouter or a yeller.

"He's a very quiet leader and guys have great respect for him. He'd be a good guy for Indianapolis because he could learn from Peyton and he's one of the few guys who's smart enough to do what Peyton does and call the plays.".
 

Wolf6151

All Pro
As I think Leinert & Danny O will be gone I'd like to see Houston go with Schaub and Yates. Pick up a UDFA for practice squad & if needed a vet durinvg season if Matt goes out. Give Yatresz all the reps he c an get
I agree completely, if Schaub goes down our season is over and there's nothing that Dan-O or Leinart can do about it. In that situation Yates should get all the reps he can and we draft even higher the next year. We also save some money by cutting Dan-O and not re-signing Leinart and can use that money on some better quality FA's. Give Yates all the reps. he can handle in the preseason and make him the backup.
 

Clamp

Noob
Definitely the most praise or hype for any back up we have ever had. I will be hoping to hear some things from Kubiak about his progress throughout the year. Too bad he didnt get a full offseason to show what he had and to learn. I have only heard good things since we got him in the draft and I remember McShay talking about how he was a steal and had several really nice things to say about him. I am very hopeful that he might turn into a future starter for us.
 

thunderkyss

Just win baby!!!
Staff member
Contributor's Club
Here's a piece that I stumbled across, which I have never seen posted on this board before. The repeated knock on Yates at the time of the draft was that his arm was suspect. But if most of this is true, we may have finally found that diamond that the Texans seem to always be looking for.

"He started for four years in a good conference, on a team that was rebuilding that went from being okay to being pretty good. With the exception of one year when Hakeem Nicks was there, he didn't have a great case of receivers. As a junior, he had a bunch of nobodies. His senior year, his best receiver and running back get suspended. It's hard to look good when you don’t have really good players around you."

The Tar Heels dealt with a lot of adversity last season due to NCAA suspensions and injuries, but Yates was a constant presence over the past four years.
Man if it isn't one excuse, it's another......
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Highly respected quarterbacks coach Larry Kennan has worked with everyone from Eli Manning to Chad Pennington, Tim Couch, Drew Brees, Byron Leftwich and Alex Smith.
Only one of those names will draw much attention as a great NFL starting QB.
I don't think that list adds much credibility to the guy's QB scouting acumen.
I agree with the others that if Schaub misses any significant time, we're screwed, so why not give this kid a shot and ditch Whinert and Dan O crap another INT?
 

thunderkyss

Just win baby!!!
Staff member
Contributor's Club
after what i saw from yates i am actually encouraged and he was doing it in the hurry up offense,
Kid looked good.

He didn't take many snaps from center... I wonder if they feel it's a limitation. That will affect our offense if it is.
 

Hookem Horns

Texans Talk Bartender
Staff member
I know nothing about this guy however the first thing I noticed is he has that "I am in charge" look on his face that I have always felt Schaub lacks. Dude looks confident and composed. Let's see what happens now.

 

thunderkyss

Just win baby!!!
Staff member
Contributor's Club
I know nothing about this guy however the first thing I noticed is he has that "I am in charge" look on his face that I have always felt Schaub lacks. Dude looks confident and composed. Let's see what happens now.
Don't question Schaub's leadership....

Not here.
 

The Cush

Rookie
I wonder if McNabb can work a release out of Minnesota with their commitment to Ponder. He would be a serviceable option if Leinart has a significant injury and we are staring at a 1) Yates 2) Clemens 3) Daniels QB depth chart.
 

beerlover

Hall of Fame
Yates has a better arm than Leinart or Schaub he will however test his OL protection which makes it more difficult to run.
 

Carr Bombed

Hall of Fame
Yates has a better arm than Leinart or Schaub he will however test his OL protection which makes it more difficult to run.
What made it difficult to run is that Kubiak didn't let Yates really pass the ball in early downs in the second half. It put us in obvious passing situations and running situations.

However I don't think they ever prepared to have to go to Yates in this game so lets see how they look next week when Yates can practice with the starters and the staff can put a game plan together with plays that Yates is comfortable with and can run. We were put in a tight spot this week.

I do like Yates better than Leinart though...wasn't really impressed with him at all.
 
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