Eight isn’t enough to figure out if player will be successful

Osweiler compares favorably with starts of other Houston QBs

The quarterback signed a contract that staggered the NFL. No way the veteran free agent was worth that many millions. When he struggled over his first eight games, fans and media demanded that he be benched or even cut, claiming buyer’s remorse and calling him a bust.

And now Warren Moon is enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Moon — as well as Steve McNair and Matt Schaub — suffered growing pains over the first half of their first

history — $5.5 million over five years — in 1984.

Moon was 0-8 in his first eight starts. He had 1,729 yards, a 53.6 completion percentage, seven touchdowns, six interceptions and a 77.0 rating.

Osweiler has a 5-3 record, 1,719 yards, a 59.3 completion percentage, nine touchdown passes, nine interceptions and a 73.1 rating.

McNair’s turn

In 1995, the Oilers used the third overall pick on McNair and signed him to a seven-year contract. He started six games in his only two seasons in Houston.

McNair became a regular starter in 1997, the Oilers’ first season in Nashville, and was the league’s co-MVP in 2003.

In his first eight games that season, McNair had a 4-4 record, 1,394 yards, a 53.1 completion percentage, 10 touchdown passes, seven interceptions and a 75.8 rating.

In 2007, Gary Kubiak’s second season as coach, he determined that David Carr wasn’t the answer at quarterback, and they were desperate for a replacement.

General manager Rick Smith traded a pair of second-round picks to Atlanta for Schaub, who played behind Michael Vick during his first three seasons with the Falcons.

In his first eight games with the Texans, Schaub had a 3-5 record, 1,658 yards, a 67.9 completion percentage, five touchdowns, seven interceptions and an 85.0 rating.

Now, before you make snide remarks about Schaub, let’s set aside 2013, his last season in Houston. He put together three 4,000-yard seasons. Schaub and receiver Andre Johnson became one of the league’s most prolific combinations.

Between 2009-2012, Schaub was 35-24, including 20-7 in 2011 and 2012 when the Texans won the AFC South and earned two playoff victories.

I’m not saying Osweiler will be as good as Moon or McNair or even Schaub, but my point is that you can’t always make a definitive judgment on a quarterback after eight games.

And for those of you who mention Dallas rookie Dak Prescott, he’s playing behind the NFL’s best offensive line with a spectacular rookie running back in Ezekiel Elliott.

Osweiler may turn out to be an expensive bust, but he also may end up helping the Texans win the division and a playoff game. It’s just too early to tell.

Things to do

Osweiler points to three things he must do better to improve over the second half of the season.

“Ball security,” he said. “I need to clean that up, limit the interceptions, and that’s something I’ll do.

“The second thing would be (to) convert more third downs (38.7 percent). That’s me throwing accurate passes, finding the right matchup, throwing it on time. It’s the line (and) receivers — everybody working as a whole to keep us on the field.

“Then, when we get into the red area, there’s been a few times when we get down there and we have a penalty or maybe I take a sack — some kind of negative play that (gets) us off schedule a little.”

The Texans are tied for last in red-zone touchdowns with eight. Their touchdown percentage of 38.1 percent is 32nd.

“It seems like we end up settling for field goals,” Osweiler said. “If we have some laser focus in the red area and on third down, hopefully that’ll lead to more points and, ultimately, to more wins.”

Coach Bill O’Brien was asked Wednesday for one thing that makes him believe Osweiler can reduce interceptions and become more consistent over the second half of the season.

“He prepares, works very hard (and) is in here morning, noon and night trying to communicate with the coaches,” O’Brien said. “He prepares on his own, communicates with his teammates (and) works very hard at practice.

“I see a lot of things he does well, but my faith in him is based on who he is and what he’s shown us from a work-ethic standpoint since he’s been here.”