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Texans' struggles at QB show why the Saints should be proactive in finding a successor

TEXANS' STRUGGLES AT QB SHOW WHY THE SAINTS SHOULD BE PROACTIVE IN FINDING A SUCCESSOR

BY NICK UNDERHILL | NUNDERHILL@THEADVOCATE.COM PUBLISHED JAN 15, 2017 AT 12:00 AM | UPDATED JAN 15, 2017 AT 2:51 PM

The Houston Texans should have beaten the New England Patriots.

Don’t be fooled by the score. Yeah, the Patriots covered the spread in a 34-16 victory. But New England didn't play well — at least not well enough to deserve to win a playoff game. You can be certain the Patriots felt fortunate to walk away with the win and realize they'll need to play much better to make the Super Bowl.

“It doesn’t feel great,” Patriots quarterback Tom Brady told reporters. “We worked pretty hard to play a lot better than we played.”

There were probably a few times New England was worried about things falling apart. But it didn't have to worry for long, because the Texans lacked the quarterback to take advantage of the Patriots' sloppiness and a quality defensive performance by Houston. Brock Osweiler simply couldn't take advantage of his opportunities.

Houston's situation at quarterback is what can happen when you struggle to find or develop a player at the position. Despite showing some of the same issues while with the Denver Broncos last season, Osweiler signed a four-year, $72 million contract last offseason. He never visited Houston as a free agent. In fact, Texans coach Bill O’Brien told Sports Illustrated's Peter King that his only interaction with the quarterback before signing him was a 10-second meeting during a 2014 joint practice.

That’s it.

That meeting and what Osweiler did during his seven games as Denver’s starter last year, when he threw for 1,967 yards on 61.8 percent passing with 10 touchdowns and six interceptions, were enough for Houston to go all in.

But the truth is, there was likely some desperation in the decision. The team had assembled one of the better defenses in the league and needed a quarterback to put it over the hump. The Texans almost had to take a shot with no other sure thing at quarterback.

Unfortunately, Osweiler responded by completing 59 percent of his passes with 15 touchdowns and 16 interceptions during the season. And after playing well in Houston’s first playoff game, he threw three interceptions against the Patriots.

It’s clear that Osweiler isn’t the answer. Houston might want to move forward with Tom Savage, who avoided mistakes in a few starts this year, but it's stuck in one way or another for at least another year. If the Texans cut Osweiler, it would cost them $25 million in dead money. And it’s unlikely they can trade him, since his $16 million base salary is guaranteed. It's hard to imagine anyone would want to take that on.

That's what can happen when a team is desperate for a quarterback. You can build a roster full of talent everywhere, but if you don’t have the right guy under center, it’s hard to overcome lackluster quarterback play. And sometimes when you miss on finding someone serviceable for a couple of years, you end up going in blind with a guy you never met.

These are the things Saints fans should keep in mind as New Orleans enters the offseason. Two years ago, the organization used a third-round pick on Garrett Grayson, to the chagrin of a certain segment of the fan base. Those critics felt it was a waste of a pick. That group believes the Saints should wait until Drew Brees retires or moves on to start looking for the next quarterback.

But there are no guarantees you’ll find that player when you need him — especially if the roster improves in other areas and becomes good enough to hover around .500 even with a mediocre player at QB. That’s what’s happening with the Texans. Or, worse, there could be no improvement and a quality quarterback remains elusive, a fate the Cleveland Browns cannot escape.

There are also no guarantees that the search for a quarterback will pay off. Grayson’s an example. Ryan Mallett didn’t hit in New England, and the Patriots might have struck too early with Jimmy Garoppolo since it doesn't look like Brady is going anywhere. Dallas got lucky with Dak Prescott, but being proactive put the club in position to continue succeeding.

But it’s better to start looking early and either get lucky or have something work out than wait until you have to find a quarterback. That’s how mistakes are made, and mistakes at that position aren’t easily overcome. You become invested in the player, and it’s not easy to just drop one and move in another direction. There aren’t enough good quarterbacks to even cover the number of teams in the NFL.

With Brees entering the final year of his contract and adding another year of mileage to his body — he turned 38 on Sunday — the Saints should have an eye out for their next quarterback.