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Sunday, April 23, 2006
Falcons must trade Schaub
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jeff Schultz
Because it’s NFL draft week, you start with the premise that anything a general manager says is likely one percent truth and 99 percent meat-byproducts. That represents a significant dropoff from the other 51 weeks, when it’s two percent truth.
But let’s give Rich McKay the benefit of the doubt. When he’s asked, “Have you ever been offered a first-round draft pick for Matt Schaub?” and responds, “No, but I keep reading I have,” I’m going to assume he’s telling the truth.
Because if McKay actually had been offered a first-round pick for their unproven, backup quarterback and said no, the man should be declared psychologically unfit to drive a football team. Or a Big Wheel.
We have long had this fascination with backup quarterbacks. Scott Mitchell was never so popular than while he sat waiting behind Dan Marino.
Gary Hogeboom was going to be the next Roger Staubach, when it turned out he wasn’t even the next Danny White. Every backup is great until somebody says, “OK, now you’re in charge.” Then, of course, their backup becomes more popular.
It follows that here in Atlanta, where Michael Vick hasn’t won a Super Bowl, there is a small and disturbed following who believe Matt Schaub could do better. I’m assuming this is based on something other than the fact Schaub is 0-2 as a starter, which projects closer to Doug Johnson than Super Bowl.
This isn’t to suggest Schaub will not be a solid starter one day. But he is not there now. He may never be there. He is a pack of seeds. He may end up resembling the picture on the front, or he could turn into this fall’s weed patch.
Which is why the Falcons need to trade him.
Understand something: Barring a career-ending injury by Vick, Matt Schaub will never be the Falcons’ starting quarterback. Never. The Falcons have too much invested in Vick in salary, marketing and all things related to identity. That is not going to change.
To anybody who foresees the day when Schaub beats out Vick for the starting job: Stay off the Big Wheel.
Trade him. Trade him because you need to get better now. Trade him because the window of opportunity to win a Super Bowl is small, and the Falcons already have made significant moves this off-season to get there. They’ve added John Abraham and Lawyer Malloy to a defense that never had a chance to benefit from the injured Ed Hartwell last season. But they can do more.
Trade Schaub because the importance of a safety net behind Vick is overrated — because if Vick goes down, the Falcons are dead anyway.
“I understand that line of thinking,” McKay said. “I don’t agree with it, but I understand it. If Mike misses a game or two or three or four, those games are still important, in a year where we’re trying to get to the Super Bowl. We need somebody to step in.”
The Falcons parted with their first-round pick instead of Schaub in the three-way deal that brought Abraham from the New York Jets. This happened partly because owner Arthur Blank wanted to make certain McKay had exhausted all other avenues before parting with Schaub. Also, because McKay concluded there was no viable option for a new No. 2 quarterback. (Among the available bodies: Jamie Martin, Jay Fiedler, Ty Detmer.)
Problem is, if the Falcons win a Super Bowl this season, it won’t be because of Schaub. This follows scientific theory that there’s only one Tom Brady story every several decades. If the Falcons win a Super Bowl, it will be because they defended better, pass-blocked better and generally functioned better than a year ago. It will be because they plugged holes.
Trade Schaub — plug a hole.
The Falcons need a starting cornerback because Jason Webster is central to every opponent’s game plan. They need a running back, because Warrick Dunn needs a breather, and the breather can’t come from the breathless (T.J. Duckett). They need a guard, a tackle, a center — anybody who can give Vick more than two seconds to think.
If Schaub can’t fetch a first-round pick, maybe he can be packaged with something or someone that can. Or maybe the Falcons could get a player in return — one who actually figures on playing.
Fixing the starting team should be a higher priority than keeping a backup, particularly when the backup hasn’t proven anything. The Falcons believe keeping Schaub gets them closer to a Super Bowl. Maybe they have it backward.
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