HOUSTON, Texas -- The expansion Texans chose the right ride in drafting quarterback David Carr but they needed an SUV. Carr was sacked an NFL record 76 times. Ford tough, Carr took all 947 offensive snaps.

"I told the guys on the offensive line if I can put my foot on the ground and step up, that's all I need," Carr said. "If I don't have to worry about anybody, I promise the ball will be out of my hands."

	David Carr threw nine touchdowns and 15 INTs last season.

Unfortunately, Carr needs some more collision insurance. Left tackle Tony Boselli retired because of pain in his chronically sore shoulder. Right tackle Ryan Young left for Dallas. The remaining offensive line is young and it hasn't had a lot of luck during camp.

Center Steve McKinney sprained a medial collateral knee ligament and is out two to four weeks. During the first two weeks of camp, Carr worked behind seven different centers, including Matt Anderson, who was on tractor bailing hay on a farm when camp opened. Protecting Carr's blindside is promising left tackle Chester Pitts, who was recruited to college by Rams right tackle Kyle Turley while Pitts was bagging groceries in a Ralph's.

"In the NFL, you get banged around and hit hard," Carr said. "That's what I focused on this season. I gained seven or eight pounds and lost 11 percent body fat. Now, my legs are under me."

As the line goes, so goes the future of the Texans offense. Which is why coach Dom Capers is experimenting. The Texans signed 31-year-old veteran Zach Wiegert from Jacksonville to solidify the right tackle situations, but he's bounced from tackle to guard as Capers tries to find the safest combination of blockers to protect Carr.

McKinney's injury is causing even more juggling. Fred Weary, a starting right guard last season, is taking some snaps at center while Wiegert takes over his stop. Milford Brown, a 327-pound supplement draft choice last season, took over the left guard positon. Greg Randall, signed from the Patriots, is the right tackle. Free agent addition Todd Washington is working with the first team at center. Except for Wiegert, the average age of the starting line is 25. Carr's 24.

"The good thing about having linemen younger than me is that they listen to me sometimes," Carr said.

Actually, Texan teammates can't have a higher opinion of Carr. He's beloved. His toughness inspired a veteran defensive unit that ranked 16th in its first season and returns enough starters to merit consideration for the top 10.

Carr figured he needed to prepare his body better for a second assault. He worked tirelessly with strength coach Dan Riley. His upper arms have that Bill Romanowski look, muscles bulging over other muscles. He spent countless hours on strengthening his legs. Any quarterback knows that when the legs get weary it affects the throwing motion.

"The first year for a first pick is one where you have this dinner here, that dinner there, you go here, you go there," offensive coordinator Chris Palmer said. "David played every snap last year so he didn't get a chance to sit back and observe and let the dust settle. I remember working with Drew Bledsoe and that he got hurt halfway through his first year. He came back after three weeks and things settled down in his mind. For David, that didn't happen until the offseason."

Carr was the fourth most productive rookie quarterback in NFL history, finishing fourth all-time in completions (233) and attempts (444) and fifth for yards (2,592). Of course, Capers knows how to build expansion teams. He had the Carolina Panthers in the championship game in Year Two. General manager Charley Casserley is following the same formula, loading the defense with young veteran free agents and building the offense with draft choices.

First-round choice Andre Johnson appears to be the final piece in what should be a potent three-receiver set. Johnson is a David Boston-like 6-2, 228 pounds and runs a 4.3 40. He's worked hard on his vision and hands since the draft and gives Carr a deep threat if there is time to throw long. Drafting Johnson allowed Jabar Gaffney to move to flanker and use his quick feet to work the middle of the field. Gaffney caught 41 passes as a rookie. Veteran Corey Bradford will work the outside routes on the strong side.

	“	We have to have a running game. In the second quarters, all we could do in a lot of games is drop back and pass because the running game was nonexistent. One game, we had 12 yards rushing going into the fourth quarter. ”
		— David Carr, Texans quarterback

"Andre Johnson is having a hell of a camp; he's everything we thought he was," Casserley said. "He's going to be a good player in this league for a long time. Gaffney's better. He has good hands. In the first year, everything happens to fast that a rookie tends to drop some balls. But he's got good separation and he has good hands and is quicker."

The best competition is at running back where former Jaguars backup Stacey Mack has the best chance at starting. Mack is a powerful inside runner who took less money in Houston rather than stay in Jacksonville to be Fred Taylor's backup. He has competition, though. Jonathan Wells led the Texans last year with 529 yards rushing and has good hands catching the ball and veteran James Allen is back. Rookie Domanick Davis showed promise until he broke a bone in his hand. Tony Hollings, a second-round supplemental pick, is doing more than expected following a knee reconstruction last fall.

"Tony has shown he's got versatility and speed, quickness and cutting ability," Capers said. "Coming off ACL surgery, you don't expect a lot. He jumped in there and done more than we thought. You can see that when he gets a hole, he's got a burst to get to go through the hole. We tried to upgrade the speed on the offense. With Andre Johnson and Hollings, we've added speed."

Carr needs more from his running back. Too often last year, he was faced with second-and-9-yard situations in which defenses could tee off on the quarterback. Mack needs to get four to five yards on first downs. Signing a one-year contract, Mack might be the back with the most on the line to show he's a starter.

"Last year, I believe the Texans led the league with about 26 rushing attempts a game," Mack said. "If I can get the ball that many times, I'll be happy. It wasn't the money that made my decision to come here. It was the opportunity."

Carr studied the value of a running back during the offseason and found that top five offenses had backs who caught 40-to-60 passes or more. Allen led the team with 47, but Carr plans to dump the ball off to backs even more to improve his 52.5 completion percentage.

"We have to have a running game," Carr said. "In the second quarters, all we could do in a lot of games is drop back and pass because the running game was nonexistent. One game, we had 12 yards rushing going into the fourth quarter. We're dropping back every time, and defenses were pinning back their ears, playing Cover 2. They were stopping our running game in Cover 2 without doing anything else than having a four-man rush. The guys we have in the backfield now are definitely going to help."

Capers is encouraged. Last year, he put together an expansion team of players from 23 different teams and won four games. Defensively, the Texans are solid and should create more turnovers in Year 2.

"I was proud of the way our guys hung in there and fought last year," Capers said. "We were able to stay competitive. We were in 14 of 16 games."

Protecting Carr, though, is the key to the future. He's bigger, stronger and more prepared. What he can't have is another 76-sack season.

"I can't tell you how much more fun it is this year," Carr said. "Last year was fun. Going into the first season, you figure that you will be able to tell a lot of stories about it, but it's so hard at the same time."

Carr was able to live and talk about his rookie season. The mission this year is to get better and not to be as bruised.

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.