Bob McNair has said that Matt Schaub is not responsible for the Houston Texans missing out on a Super Bowl appearance this season.

The quarterback has been criticised in the media and by fans for the Texans' missing out on a bye week in the playoffs before being knocked out by the New England Patriots.

The team's CEO told the Texans' website: "I don't think it's justified. I think Matt had a good year, and I think all of us need to play better when the limelight is brighter. And we didn't do that.

"But that wasn't just Matt, we have 53 people on that team, and everybody needs to step it up. We need to step it up. I need to do better. Everybody needs to do better in this organisation to get us there.

"Matt has all the ability in the world. We haven't said that he was, quote, 'the best quarterback in the league.' He's certainly one of the top 10. We've said that all along and we feel that way, and he can be one of the top five."

The Texans won the AFC South in 2012 for the second time in their 11-season history.