Matt

Schaub

It ends up a long strange trip for the 39-year-old, one that began in 2004 as Michael Vick’s backup in Atlanta. Schaub showed well in occasional mop-up duty and was acquired by Gary Kubiak’s Texans for a pair of second-round picks in 2007. Schaub ended up making two Pro Bowls and leading the league in yardage in 2009, helping to usher in this era’s hyper efficiency. Although his final years in Houston (2012-13) were an interception-marred mess, Schaub went on to carve out a second career as a backup for the Raiders, Ravens and Falcons. He spent the past four years holding Matt Ryan’s clipboard. Although not even close to a Hall-of-Famer, Schaub belongs in the “hall of very good.”

Schaub, who is known for smarts and toughness, will likely be carrying a clipboard as a rookie. But it appears the Virginia grad may be Michael Vick’s long-term backup.

Schaub also had a monster preseason in 2004 to win Michael Vick’s job. The second-year player should be one of the league’s more valuable reserves in the next few years.

Schaub started one game in 2019, throwing for 460 yards against the Seahawks. Still, it took 52 attempts to do so, and the Falcons trailed 24-0 at halftime. It was Schaub’s first start since 2015. He’ll be 39 in June and can’t be counted on as a realistic option for contention if Matt Ryan misses time. It’d hardly be surprising if the Falcons use a late-round draft pick on the position.

Very interesting. The Raiders’ offensive coordinator is Greg Knapp, who coached Schaub in Atlanta. The attempt to acquire Schaub indicates that the Raiders aren’t sold on drafting a quarterback with the first overall pick.

Schaub’s release is a mere formality, as he’s owed $11 million in 2014 salary and bonuses and isn’t worth half that much. He could command $3-4 million annually on a backup-caliber deal. Per Pasquarelli, Schaub “has some fans in the organization.” We hope the Raiders wouldn’t be counting on Schaub to start.

Schaub has not yet been cut by the Texans, but it’s expected to happen soon. Raiders beat writer Jerry McDonald’s report suggests Oakland is higher on Schaub than free agent Josh Freeman, with whom OC Greg Olson worked in Tampa Bay. If McDonald’s report is accurate, it’s not a promising sign for Freeman.

There are rumblings the Texans are considering keeping Schaub, but he is most likely gone. The lack of available quarterback talent could give Schaub a shot to start in 2014, but he will more likely find himself in a backup role. Houston could save $3.6 million against the 2014 cap by releasing Schaub.

The presumption is that the Texans will be able to trade Schaub for assets at some point -- even though he was benched in favor of 2012 undrafted free agent Case Keenum last season. It’s already been reported that the train wreck that is the Raiders is targeting Schaub as their veteran addition.

Two of the four, Schaub and Sanchez, are not even free agents, though that is likely to change in the near future. The list is depressing, but it is even more depressing that each of these signal callers would be an upgrade over the quarterbacks currently on the Raiders’ roster. Oakland would be wise to invest in a quarterback early in this year’s draft.