Texans name Brian Hoyer starting QB
 

Texans name Brian Hoyer starting QB
18h - NFL BRIAN HOYER +2 more
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Tania Ganguli, ESPN Staff Writer

HOUSTON -- The Texans named Brian Hoyer as their starting quarterback Monday, rewarding him for what coach Bill O'Brien said was his consistency since organized team activities began in May.

Texans reward Brian Hoyer for his consistency

Quarterback Brian Hoyer is smoothly running the Texans' offense and has earned the edge for the starting job. For now.

"We all need to give Brian Hoyer a chance," O'Brien said. "... I believe in him. I believe in his ability to run our offense efficiently."

Hoyer competed with Ryan Mallett for the starting job throughout the Texans' voluntary and mandatory offseason programs and through the first two weeks of training camp. Both players signed two-year deals with the Texans in the offseason, with Hoyer's deal worth $10.5 million and Mallett's worth $7 million.

The quarterbacks were told of the decision together in a meeting Monday morning.

"A sense of excitement, a sense of accomplishment ... and realizing that it's just the beginning," Hoyer said. "My being named the starter today doesn't mean that anything is going to be given to me. I have to go out and earn it every day. It's an honor and privilege to be able to do that. From here on out I have to go out and prove to my teammates, prove to everyone in this organization that I can be a winning starting quarterback for this team."

The 29-year-old Hoyer started Houston's preseason opener earlier this month against San Francisco, throwing a touchdown pass to Cecil Shorts III on the team's opening drive. Hoyer took the rest of the game off while Mallett played the remainder of the first half and second-year QB Tom Savage played the second half.

Mallett started Saturday's game against Denver. Neither Hoyer nor Mallett was able to get the Texans into the end zone against the Broncos.

"I think at this point there's definitely things that need to be corrected and get fixed," Hoyer said after the game, "but I don't feel poorly about where I'm at. I don't know if I'd say I feel great. I think we have a long way to go as an entire offensive unit, myself included."

O'Brien has often stressed that what happens in games and on the practice field was only part of the team's evaluation of its quarterbacks.

Hoyer's Ranks Last Season

Brian Hoyer ranked near the bottom of qualified NFL quarterbacks in completion percentage, touchdown-to-interception ratio and Total QBR.

However, he ranked ninth in yards per attempt.
RANK
Comp. pct. 55.3 32nd
TD-Int ratio 0.92* 31st
Total QBR 39.8 30th
Yards per att. 7.6 9th
*12 TD, 13 INT
-- ESPN Stats & Information

Hoyer and Mallett both have served as backups to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and were teammates in New England for one year after the Patriots drafted Mallett in 2011. When Hoyer signed with the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2009, O'Brien was the team's quarterbacks coach.

"When he came to New England as an undrafted guy out of Michigan State, he was a wide-eyed guy," O'Brien said of Hoyer. "He settled down pretty quickly. He made that team, he beat out a couple guys who had been there for a while, and there he backed up Tom, and for a long time we only kept two quarterbacks. ... He did a good job in that situation. From that point to where we are now ... his life has changed."

Hoyer started 13 games last season for Cleveland before eventually losing the job to rookie Johnny Manziel. The Browns started 7-4 with Hoyer under center, but the seventh-year veteran struggled down the stretch, throwing seven interceptions over a three-game stretch.

He appeared in 14 games last season, passing for 3,326 yards, 12 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. The Ohio native sparked Cleveland to a three-game winning streak in 2013 before suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 5.

Mallett, 27, started two games last season, his first in Houston, before suffering a pectoral injury and missing the rest of the year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

I love it when we play against a team with a worse quarterback than ours.

Unbelievable. Bill Obriens top 2 qbs are Mallett and hoyer. What in the living **** is the Parcells trees obsession with picking qbs from the tree?

It seems like the quarterback position really makes a difference in a team's performance, doesn't it?

"Well, it's not really as important as most other positions"

-Every Chiefs GM in modern history

Can't win without a Pro Bowl punter.

We must build a team around the most injury prone position on offense.

Texans name Brian Hoyer starting QB
 

Except that Dorsey and Reid do think that way. They believe Alex Smith is a great qb for their team. Hence the high price and contract extension and drafting dee ford instead of Teddy Bridgewater or Derek Carr.

They should be drug tested for not drafting Teddy B.

Just being released by the Cleveland Browns should have thrown up a huge red flag

No business losing this game.

He wasn't released. He had no contact and didn't want to come back. And no one should blame him. They treated him like shit.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300...hoice-of-hoyer

Ryan Mallett disagrees with Texans' choice of Hoyer

Ryan Mallett lost the Houston Texans' starting quarterback job to Brian Hoyer, but that doesn't mean we won't see him on the field this season.

A dejected Mallett spoke to the media Tuesday morning and said he plans to stay ready if called upon.

"Obviously I'm disappointed and I don't agree with it but I'll be ready," the signal-caller said, via the Houston Chronicle.

Adding: "We played four quarterbacks last year. So, I'll do what I have to do to better the team."

Mallet admitted he was frustrated Bill O'Brien named Hoyer the starter.

"I don't know what else to do except work my ass off. I don't look at it as a setback. I thought I did enough to win the job," he said.

Mallett was unimpressive in his two preseason opportunities and didn't show coaches enough in practice to leap Hoyer for the starting gig.

"He disagrees (with the decision), but he's going to go to work and prepare like he's going to play, and that's what he's done," O'Brien said.

The truth is that Hoyer and Mallett were always both likely to play at some point this season. Hoyer just gets the first crack.

"I'm going to prepare like I'm starting every Sunday," Mallett said. "I can't let the team down when my number is called."

Mallett: Million dollar arm, 50 cent head.

Hoyers a good qb I'd rather go against the statue Mallett

Saw dust for Brains.