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    Bridgewater Bogus

    Teddy Bridgewater bogus? Case Keenum dominated a bowl game too, Clowney still the better No. 1 pick

    Chris Baldwin
    Dec 29, 2013 | 9:12 pm

    Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith attended two football games this weekend in a span of less than 20 hours. But there's little doubt the college game he saw Saturday night in Orlando is infinitely more important than the putrid display of pro football he experienced Sunday afternoon in Nashville.

    Smith sat next to Texans owner Bob McNair and chief operating officer Cal McNair for the latter — and they were just two guys in sweaters and one in a suit enduring one final indignity. Albeit a fruitful one. For Matt Schaub truly helped the franchise he earlier buried in an avalanche of Pick Sixes, doing enough Schaub things (two interceptions, a fumbled quarterback center exchange) Sunday to ensure the Texans left Tennessee with a 16-10 loss to an unimpressive Titans team.

    That guarantees Smith and the Texans the No. 1 pick in this May's NFL Draft — the well-earned prize of a horrific 2-14 season.

    The Texans plan to have Penn State University coach Bill O'Brien molding that top selection. And it's a pick the franchise absolutely cannot afford to get wrong.

    You know who else once played a spectacular bowl game to end his college career? One Case Keenum.

    Which makes what happened in Orlando potentially damaging to the Texans' future. There is no doubt Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater put on a show in a 36-9 rout of a once mighty Miami Hurricanes program. He excelled on third down, displayed a quick release and never came close to looking rattled as he racked up nearly 500 yards of total offense and four touchdowns. One of this throws was so pretty it even earned its own GIF.

    But does any of that make Teddy Bridgewater any more of a surefire franchise quarterback? J.J. Watt tells reporters in Nashville the Texans can't expect a rookie to completely change the team. But there's no doubt the Texans need to grab the most talented rookie — and surest potential game changer — at No. 1.

    Does one great bowl game mean that player is Bridgewater?

    You know who else once played a spectacular bowl game to end his college career? One Case Keenum.

    Yes, Keenum, the Texans' super media dismissed 25-year-old quarterback destroyed BCS team Penn State in his own bowl swan song, throwing for 532 yards and three touchdowns while completing 45 of 69 passes. You'd have been hard pressed to find a quicker release anywhere than that shown by Keenum on this January day.

    Keenum's own first-year starter NFL numbers look better with every Matt Schaub throw. The 10-year veteran only manages to lead the Texans to 23 points in his last two starts, an average of 11.5 per loss. Working with a similarly crippled offense, Keenum put up 23 or more points four times.

    No matter what stubbornly ignorant 610 AM host Nick Wright relentlessly preaches, Keenum's first season as a yanked around, part-time starter shows plenty of promise.

    JaMarcus Russell finished his LSU career by blitzing Notre Dame for 332 yards in a BCS bowl.

    Which doesn't mean the Texans shouldn't draft a quarterback in May. It dose mean they shouldn't reach for one at No. 1. They'll be other QBs with promise — and arguably as much upside as Bridgewater — later in the draft. There won't be a physical force like Jadeveon Clowney anywhere around after the first three or four picks.

    The Texans will get one shot at a real game changer.

    Fox Sports Southwest analyst Tony Banks — the former NFL quarterback — says that Bridgewater seems to play smaller than this reported 6-foot-3 size while a quarterback like Drew Brees plays much taller than his own height. Doubts remain despite Bridgewater's bowl bonanza.

    You don't think the Texans could have managed to sneak into the AFC playoffs this season if they had Clowney on the same defensive line with J.J. Watt? Would-be No. 6 seed after would-be No. 6 seed gave away the last playoff spot Sunday as Houston played that meaningless game in Nashville.

    The eventual "winner" — 8-8 San Diego — is one one of the two teams the Texans actually managed to beat this season.

    J.J. Watt Times Two

    Watt's excellence amongst the misery (nine tackles, one sack, one forced fumble against the Titans) gives a glimpse of how dominant this defense could become with a few key talent infusions. The Texans are already getting Arian Foster back on offense (if No. 23 doesn't get hurt in the first few moments of Keenum's first NFL start, the Texans easily could have been playing for something in Week 17). Andre Johnson is coming off arguably his most impressive season yet.

    And there are no sure things at quarterback in this draft. There's no guarantee the Texans will even get a passer better than Keenum at No. 1.

    The Texans get one shot at a real game changer.

    Teddy Bridgewater's bowl game looks nice. But plenty of college quarterbacks enjoy fantastic bowl games. JaMarcus Russell finished his LSU career by blitzing Notre Dame for a career-high 332 yards in a BCS bowl game. Ryan Leaf pushed Michigan to the limit in the 1998 Rose Bowl before turning pro.

    Fantastic bowl performances are no guarantee of future success. And these Texans need immediate success.

    "We just got into a whirlpool and it never ended," Texans interim head coach Wade Phillips said at his final game day press conference of the season, trying to describe a lost year.

    The Texans cannot afford a lost draft. This is the year to be certain. Best talent wins.

    Teddy Bridgewater dazzled in his bowl game. Then again, who doesn't?

    Teddy Bridgewater run
      
    Photo by Andy Lyons Getty Images
    Teddy Bridgewater dazzled in his bowl game. Then again, who doesn't?
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    O'Brien Talks Tough

    Tough new sheriff: Bill O'Brien sounds like the anti Kubiak, vows to be hard on Texans players

    Chris Baldwin
    Jan 3, 2014 | 1:43 pm
    Tough new sheriff: Bill O'Brien sounds like the anti Kubiak, vows to be hard on Texans players
    Photo by Rob Carr Getty Images
    Bill O'Brien admits he missed the NFL.

    Bill O'Brien certainly hasn't walked timidly into his new job as the head coach/franchise savior of the Houston Texans.

    With large posters of J.J. Watt and Andre Johnson flanking him on either side of an elaborate press conference stage, O'Brien didn't pay homage as much as he demanded a new standard.

    "To me it's about accountability," O'Brien said. "It's about demanding. It's about putting together a fast, physical football team."

    In other words, Mr. Nice Guy went out the window with former Texans coach Gary Kubiak. O'Brien mentioned "accountability" and "demanding" several times in his introductory press conference Friday afternoon at Reliant Stadium. And you can bet the chorus sounded like sweet music to Texans owner Bob McNair.

    CultureMap was the first news outlet anywhere to report that O'Brien was the Texans' top choice to be the team's new coach way back on Dec. 18. This was a McNair driven pick from the beginning and it is the 44-year-old O'Brien's toughness that drew the owner to the former Penn State coach and Bill Belichick assistant.

    "To me it's about accountability. It's about demanding."

    And McNair himself certainly talked tough on introduction day.

    "I'm ready to kick 2013 the hell out the door," McNair said. "Not acceptable. Not what we're going to do in the future."

    McNair went on to talk about O'Brien having shown he's willing to make the hard decisions — something he clearly felt was lacking as the Texans spiraled from Super Bowl schemers into a 2-14 death march in 2013.

    "Some coaches who have been players still think of themselves as players rather than the head of an organization," McNair said. "And have trouble making difficult decisions."

    Kubiak, of course, played quarterback for the Denver Broncos. As for an inability to make tough calls? Just look at how long Kubiak stuck with a flat-lined Matt Schaub and how he kept trying to go back to Schaub even after the Case Keenum call was made.

    O'Brien noted that "there are a lot of good football players on this team." He also declined to take any pressure off himself and describe this makeover of a team with the worst record in the NFL as a rebuilding job.

    "There are a lot of pieces in place here," he said. "It's all about hard work . . . Quick turnaround, rebuilding are labels. I'm not into all that."

    Tom Brady Tough?

    All in all, it's an impressive opening performance for a first-time NFL head coach. O'Brien knows how to command the stage. Texans general manager Rick Smith talked about the new coach's "charisma."

    O'Brien even makes sure to work in the obligatory Texas joke about the cowboy life.

    "Right after this, I'm going to go out and buy my first pair of cowboy boots," he said.

    It's already becoming clear there will be one cowboy in charge of these Texans. One who happens to be a hard-nosed Northeast guy who's probably still most famous for getting into a sideline screaming match with New England Patriots golden boy quarterback Tom Brady.

    "I'm ready to kick 2013 the hell out the door."

    O'Brien downplayed the incident, but it's clearly helped burnish his taskmaster image.

    "You know it's a competitive sports," O'Brien said. "Tom Brady's a great friend. These things happen. The thing that people don't understand is that 30 seconds after it was over, we were sitting together and going over pictures (of game action)."

    The Texans players are clearly intrigued by O'Brien. Veteran center Chris Myers sat amongst the press at the stadium and listened to the new head man.

    There will be a lot more change coming to the stadium. Smith hinted at as much when he noted how the Texans needed a coach who can guide young players.

    It's hard to imagine O'Brien tip toeing around that change. He plans to meet with all the remaining Texans coaches Saturday (as with any head coaching change, it's unlikely many of the current assistants will be kept by O'Brien). He'll tackle the quarterback question later, though it's clear Keenum is still in the picture.

    Almost every new NFL head coach sounds good on introduction day. Especially when the team brings out a marching band for the occasion. But O'Brien sounds tough and no nonsense.

    Just what Bob McNair wanted. This is his call. His makeover. His tough guy.

    Bill O'Brien will not call the Houston Texans a rebuilding team.

    Bill O'Brien presser
      
    Photo by Scott Halleran Getty Images
    Bill O'Brien will not call the Houston Texans a rebuilding team.
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