HOUSTON - David Carr would prefer to count how many times he has stood up rather than how many times he has been sacked. That makes the approaching record sound a little more appealing.

Opponents have constantly pummeled the Houston Texans' quarterback in his rookie campaign, but Carr always remains the optimist. He has absorbed 68 sacks, and with three games remaining, including tomorrow's matchup against the Ravens, he will surely surpass the NFL sack record of 72, set by Randall Cunningham in 1986.

"I'm just proud I made it through the whole thing," said Carr, the No. 1 pick in the 2002 NFL draft. "There are some hits you take and you wonder if you should get up. But you do, and that's part of the game. That's how I was raised, I guess."

Carr has missed only one football game since fourth grade and one practice when his wife gave birth to their son 2 1/2 years ago. With the Texans, he has continued to be a mainstay on the field, taking all 763 snaps.

Despite standing behind an inexperienced and injured offensive line, Carr has led the Texans to four victories, completing 181 of 339 passes (53.4 percent) for 2,070 yards and nine touchdowns.

"He's earned respect in the locker room, and I think that's always a big step when you're a rookie quarterback," Texans coach Dom Capers said. "I've seen it happen many times where that's not easy to do, and I think he's done it because of his competitiveness and his toughness and the fact that he's not missed any plays."

While the sacks continue to pile up, Carr deals with the bruises as his teammates try to cope with the guilt.

Two rookies start on the offensive line, which was beset by injuries early when its veteran bookends, Tony Boselli and Ryan Young, were forced to sit out training camp. Young returned to the lineup in midseason, but Boselli is out for the year. Only rookie left tackle Chester Pitts and center Steve McKinney have started all 13 games on the offensive line.

"I brought this record on myself, and I have got to do better," Pitts said. "If I didn't give up sacks or get beat, I wouldn't have anything to worry about. It's not something you strive for or the goal you shoot for, but when something like this happens, you have to deal with it. Hopefully, you learn from your mistakes and next season you are not in the race for it again."

The Texans' offense has been consistently inconsistent, hitting an NFL-record low last week against Pittsburgh. Houston picked up only 47 yards, the lowest offensive output ever by a winning team in the NFL.

The spread offense Texans fans caught a glimpse of early this season has all but vanished. In the team's season-opening victory over the Dallas Cowboys, Carr's first pass attempt went 19 yards for a touchdown to tight end Billy Miller. He later completed a 65-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Corey Bradford.

But the deep ball has mostly been a rarity this season, with teams better guarding the Texans' receivers and defenses limiting Carr's time to throw.

"I don't want to see David's rookie year performance overshadowed by the sacks record because he's playing great football," running back James Allen said. "People are going to say what they want to say. But the kid is playing great."

Carr has managed to stay positive and confident, despite being unable to lead the Texans out of the NFL's offensive cellar. Houston is 32nd in total offense, averaging 223.5 yards a game. The Texans are also last in passing, averaging 134.5 yards a game.

"I see some guys have only been sacked seven times or 10 times, and I wonder what would have happened if I would have been able to stand up a little longer?" Carr said, smiling. "I have wondered that a few times. But that's what you get for wondering, I guess."

Next for Ravens

Matchup:Ravens (6-7) vs. Houston Texans (4-9)

Site:Reliant Stadium, Houston

When:Tomorrow, 1 p.m.

TV/Radio:Ch. 13/WJFK (1300 AM), WQSR (102.7 FM)

Line:Ravens by 3

SunSpot: For more coverage, visit sunspot.net/ravens