Attention, Matt Leinart report to the starting position

This past weekend saw Texans fans see some great things but also something terrible. The 37-9 victory over the Buccaneers give the Texans a 7-3 record, tied for best in the AFC, however, Matt Schaub went down with a foot injury that could leave him out for the rest of the season.

Never before has Houston been 7-3, a prime position to take the AFC south. The rest of the division is weak but the Tennessee Titans possess enough talent to put up a fight. The question arises: Can Matt Leinart, labeled by some as a bust, take the lead of this extremely talented team and lead them into the playoffs?

Matt Schaub along with Andre Johnson, his go to receiver, has become the face of the franchise. The past two years he has thrown for over 4000 yards and started every game. Now in his 5 th year with the franchise he took a serious leader role, setting up offseason activities during the lockout and creating the mindset of winning team among players who had experienced very little of it.

Although the offensive approach has shifted to more of a run-first game plan, Schaub has been having one of his best seasons. Even without his star wide receiver, his passer rating and QBR ranked among the best in the league and his production has already lead to more wins than the team had last season.

However, in this last weekend’s game, one where Schaub posted a career high passer rating and had two +78 yard touchdowns, he experienced a foot injury that will sideline him for at least two weeks, likely the season.

Enter Matt Leinart. A former Heisman winner, college national champion (stripped due to Reggie Bush-USC scandal) and first round draft pick, he has been largely underwhelming in the NFL. 4 seasons in Arizona saw him often injured and losing before being benched and cut.

Houston then picked him up in 2010 and an apparent connection was made between him and the system. An apparent attachment to the offensive system has occurred.

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“The quarterback coaching here is second to none, it’s unbelievable.” Leinart said. “I think that’s why Matt has been able to be so successful and efficient for years now.” (Interview on ESPN.com)

The two Matt’s have budyed-up since coming together and Leinart has improved his footwork considerably while also entering an offense that follows his strength.

Houston’s run game is ridiculous, as both Arian Foster and Ben Tate rank among the top 10 in rushing. This opens up a play-action game that is second to none. Rollouts, bootlegs and run-action plays are a staple of this offense and the offense Leinart thrived at in college.

“That’s something I’ve always been comfortable with, in college we ran (bootleg) all the time, as much as we do here,” he said. (Interview on ESPN.com)

Now heading into a bye week, Houston must prepare the new starter to get the team what it has expected. A great arsenal of weapons, including the now healthy Andre Johnson, and the powerful run game should ease the strain on the QB.

“I told Gary, we’ll just continue to go and win for him and keep this thing going forward.” (ESPN.com interview)

The team that has lost key players: OLB Mario Williams, FS Daniel Manning, and for part of the season Andre Johnson, will look to see if they can overcome perhaps the largest loss yet.

By Derek Updegrove
ProFootball-fans.com Houston Texans Correspondent