[News] John Harbaugh Comes To Matt Schaub's Defense

[BR News]

The Ravens' backup QB has been turnover prone in training camp, but is still feeling out his receivers.

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[Purpleghost23]

Andre Johnson made Schaub guess...

[drillem]

I like Shaub as backup. He can be an influence during games in helping Joe with technical info in difficult situations as well. He has a level of experience in qb that few teams have in a backup qb.

[MichaelJ34]

I see that Urschel and Myers both are injured now with Concussions making our list of injuries much bigger. Starting to get worried about the chances going into 1st preseason game

[Prino61]

Stop coming to his defense and come to his offense so he can stop throwing interceptions

[757RavensFan]

I see that Urschel and Myers both are injured now with Concussions making our list of injuries much bigger. Starting to get worried about the chances going into 1st preseason game

 

Not too concerned even if they're diagnosed w/ concussions.  Worst case, they fail the protocol test and out for a week.  They'll be back in time for the scrimmage. We already know what Urschel brings to the table.  He would start on a lot of other teams.  Myers needs the practice as a rookie, but again not worried b/c concussions just require rest to recover from. 

[balfan23]

Stop coming to his defense and come to his offense so he can stop throwing interceptions

I rather doubt calling Schaub out publicly is the cure for his issues. If you haven't noticed yet, Harbs is not big on berating individuals in press conferences. He understands it is not helpful. You can rest assured, anyone in a Ravens uniform knows what Harbs thinks about them .. but that is communicated in meetings, practices and behind closed doors, not in the press. 

[Dorota]

I like Shaub as backup. He can be an influence during games in helping Joe with technical info in difficult situations as well. He has a level of experience in qb that few teams have in a backup qb.

Agreed.

 

Also, I will leave judging Schaub until and if I see him in a live game. With a QB this experienced, with Pro Bowl under belt, you can't say he doesn't have the abilities and for some, the pressure of responsibility makes them worse, others step up on the other hand. We won't know until we do know.

[salamander]

Since the repeated references to Matt's struggles always include confidence issues, I am reluctant to harshly criticize him publically on the website. Sure, Matt has his shortcomings, but if disaster happens and Matt has to come in and take over, he is going to need every drop of confidence he can muster. Confidence is a huge issue for a lot of players and going through the humiliation of losing a starting QB job has got to be a confidence killer. Just hoping Matt can build some confidence and I wish him the best.

[January J]

Since the repeated references to Matt's struggles always include confidence issues, I am reluctant to harshly criticize him publically on the website. Sure, Matt has his shortcomings, but if disaster happens and Matt has to come in and take over, he is going to need every drop of confidence he can muster. Confidence is a huge issue for a lot of players and going through the humiliation of losing a starting QB job has got to be a confidence killer. Just hoping Matt can build some confidence and I wish him the best.

while that's true- at some point you just gotta speak the truth and tell the guy like it is. Can't ignore reality. The fact is he hasn't been performing well- he needs to ignore he critics , take leadership , and improve on his game. Confidence is huge - but IMO that's not on us to help him gain.

Oh and btw- another pick 6 today.

[Bohica5]

Quack quack quack....He's terrible and doesn't deserve to be on this team!!!......quit making excuses for this Duck!!.....he is no longer able to do anything for us! I'd rather Tucker try throwing as a backup!....schaub is SO bad and isn't the 1st mistake we've made signing a player......so just hurry CUT him and sign anybody else!!.....I can't imagine schaub with a superbowl ring either so what are you waiting for Oz?

[RavenManiac#7]

Excuses are easy to come by and not surprising to hear from Harbs in this case. But, in my opinion, any way you shake it I don't think we can feel confident that we can win with Schaub at the helm. It's not just how he's looked so far with us, it's also his recent history. To me, this is a QB who has lost confidence in himself and has, also, had his arm strength and accuracy diminish. I believe his best days are behind him and there just aren't any more of them left. Honestly, I hope I'm wrong, but I think he's done.

[nevermorebmore]

If Schaub is holding anything but a clipboard for more than a game, something terrible has happened. In that awful circumstance, keep the interceptions rolling and wait for Ozzie magic in the spring. I'm a foolish fan, but the hope of having a starting-calibur backup does not make sense to me. With the salary cap what it is and the rookie wage scale, I think I'd rather have high draft picks than a mediocre season with an overpaid backup if the franchise guy goes down. They need to be proficient for the scout team and knowledgeable on the sideline - Schaub hits those check boxes.

Interceptions from the backup QB in training camp don't matter in the big picture.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

It seems like every time I am reading something about Schaub it is that he's throwing interceptions and pick sixes. He's become known for throwing picks lately and I don't think that it magically cures itself just because he comes to Baltimore. Something's clearly happened to him. Either he just isn't making the same reads anymore, or he's lost a bit more zip on his arm that was already not exactly a Howitzer canon to begin with. If Flacco goes down, we're in trouble.

[purpledown]

now we know why this guy is so well traveled.

[stampedehero]

Sounds like Harbs is giving us the PR statement.  I once said that I hope Schaub made his Hail Mary play as a design scheme.  We all hope that he gets his QB cocky attitude back in case he gets his chance to prove his worth.

[Jim Giampaoli]

"That's going to happen in practice". Wonderful to read, Harbs. I ,for one, now feel entirely confident that our backup Qb. will have good days. Maybe on Sunday's too.

Edited August 7, 2015 by Jim Giampaoli

[RavenzOz]

I could say something facetious like at least he is building the confidence of our secondary, but the fact is he is an ex-probowl player, who likely still has the talent and the arm, but there is something going on upstairs (probably confidence related) that has switched him off in the last three years. If there is a team that will bring out his best, over time, it's our team.

 

And Matt Schaub aside, how many backups in the league would you trust to take you deep in the playoffs? For that matter how many starting QB's would you trust to take you deep in the playoffs? There's only about ten or twelve I'd trust, and we got the most resilient one.

Edited August 7, 2015 by RavenzOz

[DrinkmoreBeer]

I ran into JaMarcus Russell last night at IHOP and he's totally available.

[birdseye]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000507512/article/rodgers-shows-tracking-training-camp-ints-is-silly

please read

[balfan23]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000507512/article/rodgers-shows-tracking-training-camp-ints-is-silly please read

Very timely. Nice find.  I like the quote "beat writers must do something, apparently." 

[EdTheMythicalOne]

It seems like every time I am reading something about Schaub it is that he's throwing interceptions and pick sixes. He's become known for throwing picks lately and I don't think that it magically cures itself just because he comes to Baltimore. Something's clearly happened to him. Either he just isn't making the same reads anymore, or he's lost a bit more zip on his arm that was already not exactly a Howitzer canon to begin with. If Flacco goes down, we're in trouble.

 

I guess Matt Schaub read this post. All kidding aside, as I posted before it isn't like this interception thing is just now happening in training camp. He had an absolutely horrible season in his last stint as the Texans starter and was buried on the Raiders depth chart after awhile....The RAIDERS. A caveat though, if any team loses a starting QB the caliber of Joe Flacco, they are usually going to be in deep trouble. Not every day you can replace a franchise QB.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

I've seen the posts about how this is a frivilous thing to bring up. Camp INT's don't really matter and it is nothing to be concerned about. If we weren't talking about Matt Schaub though, it might be that way. In 2013 he had his worst season in the NFL. When you look at the numbers he threw 10TD and 14 INT. That doesn't look so bad. The problem becomes how and when he threw those picks. He was eventually benched because he was LOSING his team games. He wasn't able to manage leads. He was turning over the ball repeatedly in crucial situations. Then I decided to look up his game log from 2013.

 

He won his first two games, oddly enough, these were the only two games of the 10 he played in which he threw more TDs that INTs. In 8 following games he either threw the same amount of TDs as INTs or MORE INTs than TDs. 6 of his 10 TDs came in those first two games. 11 of his 14 INTS came after those two games. So in 8 games he then threw 4TDs and 11INTs. Think about that. Then he went to the Raiders where he couldn't beat out Derek Carr or Matt McGloin. He only attempted 10 passes and threw 2 interceptions.

 

So yes, you really don't know what to make of him until you see him out on the field. Even then it will be pre season ball with backups and vanilla offenses being run against vanilla defenses. Thing is, he was out on the field the last two seasons and the results kind of tell you the story.

[Tru11]

I've seen the posts about how this is a frivilous thing to bring up. Camp INT's don't really matter and it is nothing to be concerned about. If we weren't talking about Matt Schaub though, it might be that way. In 2013 he had his worst season in the NFL. When you look at the numbers he threw 10TD and 14 INT. That doesn't look so bad. The problem becomes how and when he threw those picks. He was eventually benched because he was LOSING his team games. He wasn't able to manage leads. He was turning over the ball repeatedly in crucial situations. Then I decided to look up his game log from 2013.

 

He won his first two games, oddly enough, these were the only two games of the 10 he played in which he threw more TDs that INTs. In 8 following games he either threw the same amount of TDs as INTs or MORE INTs than TDs. 6 of his 10 TDs came in those first two games. 11 of his 14 INTS came after those two games. So in 8 games he then threw 4TDs and 11INTs. Think about that. Then he went to the Raiders where he couldn't beat out Derek Carr or Matt McGloin. He only attempted 10 passes and threw 2 interceptions.

 

So yes, you really don't know what to make of him until you see him out on the field. Even then it will be pre season ball with backups and vanilla offenses being run against vanilla defenses. Thing is, he was out on the field the last two seasons and the results kind of tell you the story.

 

looking at the scoreboard alone does not tell the whole story,

 

1 of his INT last season came on a FG attempt where the hold got fumbled and he tried make a play.

his 2nd INT came in the 4th quarter where the raiders where down 45-0 and he was put in relieve of carr.

 

neither of those tell a lot about schaub tbh.

also carr is a 2nd round pick who could and should have gone in the 1st ahead of manziel.

its really not a surprise he got the starting job and he had a pretty good season when you consider how bad the raiders are talent wise.

 

2013 was pretty bad year for schaub but if you look further you will see that the biggest cause was the lack of a good running game which is a  staple of a offense run by kubiak.

when the run does not work then PA and such wont work either and the offense is in trouble.

just look at our own 2013 season.

 

Foster had 1 rushing TD in 2013 in 8 games played.

RBs had 6 TDs in 16 games with 1 TD done by a QB.

there where only 2 teams with less rushing TD and we only had 7 rushing TD as well.

 

so yeah 2013 and 2014 dont say much at all.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

looking at the scoreboard alone does not tell the whole story,

 

1 of his INT last season came on a FG attempt where the hold got fumbled and he tried make a play.

his 2nd INT came in the 4th quarter where the raiders where down 45-0 and he was put in relieve of carr.

 

neither of those tell a lot about schaub tbh.

also carr is a 2nd round pick who could and should have gone in the 1st ahead of manziel.

its really not a surprise he got the starting job and he had a pretty good season when you consider how bad the raiders are talent wise.

 

2013 was pretty bad year for schaub but if you look further you will see that the biggest cause was the lack of a good running game which is a  staple of a offense run by kubiak.

when the run does not work then PA and such wont work either and the offense is in trouble.

just look at our own 2013 season.

 

Foster had 1 rushing TD in 2013 in 8 games played.

RBs had 6 TDs in 16 games with 1 TD done by a QB.

there where only 2 teams with less rushing TD and we only had 7 rushing TD as well.

 

so yeah 2013 and 2014 dont say much at all.

 

I wasn't looking at the scoreboard. I was looking at statistics and while situations and all do matter, in the end numbers really don't lie. I think the results speak for themselves. If 2013 wasn't his fault then why did he finally get benched? Why did Houston let him go if he was so good, and why wasn't he starting for the Raiders? As for the ground game in 2013, sure TD production was down, but the team rushed for 1783 yards which was 20th in the league. It isn't like they had the absolute worst rushing attack in the game. So I think 2013 and 2014 say plenty. He wasn't even good enough to start for the Raiders, and wasn't good enough to be their 2nd stringer.

[January J]

oh and btw........

 

 

 

 

 

another pick 6.

[Tru11]

I wasn't looking at the scoreboard. I was looking at statistics and while situations and all do matter, in the end numbers really don't lie. I think the results speak for themselves. If 2013 wasn't his fault then why did he finally get benched? Why did Houston let him go if he was so good, and why wasn't he starting for the Raiders? As for the ground game in 2013, sure TD production was down, but the team rushed for 1783 yards which was 20th in the league. It isn't like they had the absolute worst rushing attack in the game. So I think 2013 and 2014 say plenty. He wasn't even good enough to start for the Raiders, and wasn't good enough to be their 2nd stringer.

 

i think the ravens giving him a nice contract to be the back up speaks more then your evaluation of the statistics in my opinion.

 

doubt many teams will rate a QB based on a busted special teams play or 1 quarter of play in a season.

 

think the ravens also first handed experienced how a bad running game can affect a QB since flacco him self threw for like 22 int in a similar situation and i doubt anyone considered it to by all his fault.

 

again put things in perspective and it might not be as bad as people are trying to make it out to be.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

i think the ravens giving him a nice contract to be the back up speaks more then your evaluation of the statistics in my opinion.

 

doubt many teams will rate a QB based on a busted special teams play or 1 quarter of play in a season.

 

think the ravens also first handed experienced how a bad running game can affect a QB since flacco him self threw for like 22 int in a similar situation and i doubt anyone considered it to by all his fault.

 

again put things in perspective and it might not be as bad as people are trying to make it out to be.

 

Seems like the Raiders made that decision last season. And you seemd to forget that 2013 was a full season for him. The Ravens paid Bulger a nice sum of money to be a back up at the tail end of his career too. That just kinda goes with the territory. If you want a veteran QB to be your back up you have to pay them the going rate.

 

What perspective do you want me to put them in? The guy totally tanked after playing two games in 2013. You want to blame his offense, but his back up put up better numbers than Schaub did. Then he was the 3rd string QB for one of the worst teams in the game of football. I'm just telling it like it is.

[Tru11]

Seems like the Raiders made that decision last season. And you seemd to forget that 2013 was a full season for him. The Ravens paid Bulger a nice sum of money to be a back up at the tail end of his career too. That just kinda goes with the territory. If you want a veteran QB to be your back up you have to pay them the going rate.

 

What perspective do you want me to put them in? The guy totally tanked after playing two games in 2013. You want to blame his offense, but his back up put up better numbers than Schaub did. Then he was the 3rd string QB for one of the worst teams in the game of football. I'm just telling it like it is.

 

telling it like it is implies you told the whole story not just the parts that fit your argument.

 

for 2014 for instance you failed to mention that derek carr was a early second round pick who was handed the starting job.

it was his to loose and the only way he was gonna loose it was if he was as bad as manziel from both a mentally and football standpoint.

however carr was regarded as 1 of the best QBs in the draft and more pro ready then most other QBs.

then you also disregard the fact that the raiders only gave up a 6th round pick for schaub and had him restructure his contract so the raiders really had no reason at all to give schaub a real chance at the starting job.

again it was carr job to loose.

 

then you talked about the stats he put up but you failed to mention 1 INT came on a special team play while all other stats came in the 4th quarter of a blow out game trailing 42-0.

this information obviously put his stats in 2014 in another light.

no team will judge a QB on a special teams play and any sane person knows no QB is going to play lights out when he gets subbed in being down 42-0 with less then a quarter to play.

 

2013 its also hilarious how you blame him for the texans losing and even suggest the backup did a better job.

going 0-8 is not better then going 2-6.

also the back up did not have better stats at all.

 

back up threw less passes and thus had less completions, way lower completion %, threw for less yards , less TD, avg less TD per pass, avg less yards per game and lower QBR.

 

its really highly debatable is the back up was an improvement at all.

 

you also totally forget to mention the situation the team was in, with them being a terrible team running the ball.

schaub is and always had been a very good game manager but in 2013 he was asked to carry the team because of that bad running game.

 

if you have him manage a game you get a good QB , if you want him to throw you to victory you are doomed.

 

fits the description for a back up quite good TBH.

 

2013 and 2014 are not a good reflection of the QB he could be.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

telling it like it is implies you told the whole story not just the parts that fit your argument.

 

for 2014 for instance you failed to mention that derek carr was a early second round pick who was handed the starting job.

it was his to loose and the only way he was gonna loose it was if he was as bad as manziel from both a mentally and football standpoint.

however carr was regarded as 1 of the best QBs in the draft and more pro ready then most other QBs.

then you also disregard the fact that the raiders only gave up a 6th round pick for schaub and had him restructure his contract so the raiders really had no reason at all to give schaub a real chance at the starting job.

again it was carr job to loose.

 

then you talked about the stats he put up but you failed to mention 1 INT came on a special team play while all other stats came in the 4th quarter of a blow out game trailing 42-0.

this information obviously put his stats in 2014 in another light.

no team will judge a QB on a special teams play and any sane person knows no QB is going to play lights out when he gets subbed in being down 42-0 with less then a quarter to play.

 

2013 its also hilarious how you blame him for the texans losing and even suggest the backup did a better job.

going 0-8 is not better then going 2-6.

also the back up did not have better stats at all.

 

back up threw less passes and thus had less completions, way lower completion %, threw for less yards , less TD, avg less TD per pass, avg less yards per game and lower QBR.

 

its really highly debatable is the back up was an improvement at all.

 

you also totally forget to mention the situation the team was in, with them being a terrible team running the ball.

schaub is and always had been a very good game manager but in 2013 he was asked to carry the team because of that bad running game.

 

if you have him manage a game you get a good QB , if you want him to throw you to victory you are doomed.

 

fits the description for a back up quite good TBH.

 

2013 and 2014 are not a good reflection of the QB he could be.

 

Yeah, telling it like it is. In 2013 Case Keenum was the new starter and he threw 9TD and 6 INTs and threw for 1760 yards for a QB rating of 78.2. While that isn't exactly setting the world on fire; it was better than Schaub throwing for 2310 yards 10TD and 14 INT and a rating of 73.0. The team thought so little of them, they benched him and THEN traded their franchise QB away for a 6th round pick because they didn't want him anymore. You bring up the running game, but Keenum had the same running attack that Schaub did and yet he performed better. He didn't turn the ball over more times than he scored it.

 

As for the Raiders...I am not sure how else to explain this to you. Schaub not playing at all and being the 3RD string QB should tell you exactly what the Raiders thought of him. The Raiders....one of the worst teams in the league....didn't want Schaub starting for them. They didn't even want him to be the back up. I don't care what draft pick they used to get him. I don't care what the expecations of Carr were. You honestly don't think they would have started Schaub if he looked impressive at all in camp in order to let the youngster learn the system a bit more before throwing him to the wolves like most teams do with all of their QB's? He wasn't even good enough to be Carr's backup. He was the back up to the backup.

 

2013 and 2014 aren't a good reflection of the QB you think he can be. I think it is a perfect example of the QB he has become.