On Jan. 4, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank announced that Matt Schaub would be retiring, officially hanging up the cleats after an eventful 16 seasons. One tweet from Adam Schefter evoked similar feelings of seeing a high school sweetheart post on Facebook. Suddenly, for many Houston fans, it didn’t feel as if seven years had passed since No. 8 suited up for the Texans.
You took over the starting quarterback job in 2007, during a time when the Texans had never sniffed better than third place in the AFC South since their 2002 inception. If Schaub was an ex, then Schaub was the ex who showed Houston what they deserved. You taught Houston what love was, during an average 9-7 campaign (so close to the postseason) where Schaub led the NFL with 4,770 passing yards. A franchise-record that would stand until just two days ago, when Deshaun Watson wrapped up his first passing title.
You would man the backfield with undrafted, breakout running back Arian Foster, and throw bombs to Andre Johnson. Suddenly, the fledgling Houston franchise had one of the most legitimate offensive trios in the league.
You taught the Texans to believe in relationships, piloting the team to their first playoff appearance in 2011. Although T.J. Yates ended up starting in the playoffs after an unfortunate broken foot, Houston saw the postseason and found postseason success for the first time. There’s no AFC South Title or memorable J.J. Watt interception.
You taught the young franchise the highs-and-lows that comes with relationships. A 12-4 campaign in 2012 that left Houston fans feeling like legitimate contenders was followed-up by a devastating 2-14 season. We watched Richard Sherman and other defensive backs ultimately destroy what had been a beautiful legacy in Houston. The four consecutive games with a pick-six streak will not soon be broken nor forgotten.
In 2013, Matt Schaub set the record for consecutive games throwing a pick-six (4). It just happened again on #MNF: https://t.co/1yw1u06sHL
— ESPN (@espn) December 1, 2015
You left your separate way for the OaklandRaiders , Houston turned towards new head coach Bill O’Brien, top selection Jadeveon Clowney, and a pedestrian era of quarterback play, exemplified by Brian Hoyer, Brock Osweiler, and Tom Savage.
Of course, now Houston has met “the one” and things are different now. Houston sports fans have moved on, just as you did. 2021 seems all but certain that Watson breaks your franchise record for passing touchdowns and passing yardage.
Thank you for everything, Matt. Thanks for helping to pull the Houston Texans out of the AFC cellar and into something respectable to cheer for, something memorable. Sorry it couldn’t end here with hoisting a Lombardi Trophy.
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