Texans vs. Ravens: TJ Yates Will Prove He's Starter Material

When the Houston Texans selected quarterback TJ Yates over Alabama's Greg McElroy in the 2011 NFL Draft, it came as a shocker to say the least.

But the Texans have proven time and time again (i.e taking Mario Williams over Reggie Bush) that they know what they're doing when evaluating young players.

They also gave running back Arian Foster a shot when he went undrafted, only to see him develop into a superstar.

Nothing Yates has done so far has exactly wowed anybody.  He's thrown four touchdowns and three interceptions in his six starts this season (including playoffs).

But you also have to factor in the fact that he was without star receiver Andre Johnson for most of that time, yet still completed 61 percent of his passes in the regular season despite that fact.

I'm not saying Yates is going to be one of the top quarterbacks in the league. 

What I am saying is that he appears to be progressing similarly to how Cincinnati Bengals rookie QB Andy Dalton did in the beginning of the season.

Interestingly enough, Yates' Texans beat Dalton's Bengals in the Wild Card Round, 31-10.

Baltimore Ravens running back Anthony Allen, who played against Yates while he was at Georgia Tech, said via CSN Washington, "He's a good quarterback with a lot of experience, coming out of a pro-style program.  He's used to this."

Yates needs to get better with the deep ball; there's no question about that.  But what has impressed me recently is his decision-making. 

He hasn't thrown an interception in three games, and he's not trying to force anything, which is all he needs to do alongside the Texans' top defense. 

He's a game manager, no doubt.  But he's become a good game manager with just a few starts in the NFL.

I'm not saying he's going to take Matt Schaub's place next season.  Schaub is the better quarterback by far.

What I am saying is that the Texans could conceivably beat the Ravens in Baltimore if Yates plays the way he has been. 

It's going to be a low-scoring game; the team that comes out on top will be the one that takes care of the ball the best.

Quarterbacks need time to develop in the NFL, but Yates has already proven he can make an impact as a rookie.  That's certainly an encouraging sign.