He played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers, and was selected by the Falcons in the third round with the 90th pick of the 2004 NFL draft.

The two quarterback system worked relatively well with both effectively passing the ball to receiver Billy McMullen, the team's leading offensive threat.

[8] Spinner transferred to the University of Richmond for the 2002 season, seemingly making Schaub the unquestioned starter.

[9] However, Schaub was briefly replaced by redshirt freshman Marques Hagans in the first game of the 2002 season against the Colorado State Rams.

[10] Hagans was named the starter for the next game, against the Florida State Seminoles, but was replaced by Schaub who went on to his breakout season.

He was the fifth of seventeen quarterbacks taken in a quarterback-rich class, including Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, and Ben Roethlisberger.

[18] In 2004, Schaub played in six games with the Atlanta Falcons, including starting the Week 16 contest against the New Orleans Saints, replacing the injured Michael Vick.

[19][20] In 2005, Schaub was named the Most Valuable Player in the American Bowl preseason game in Tokyo, Japan.

In front of 45,203 fans at the Tokyo Dome, Schaub completed 11 of 13 passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns in a 27–21 comeback victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

[26] In Week 4, he started against his former team, the Atlanta Falcons, in which he completed 28 of 40 attempts, with 317 yards and one touchdown in what would be his second loss of the 2007 season.

[34] Schaub's season was broken up however with a knee injury against the Minnesota Vikings, which expected to keep him out for around four weeks, making Sage Rosenfels the new starter.

[44][45] He was selected to his first Pro Bowl as an injury replacement to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, winning MVP honors.

[48] Hopes for strong start to the season were rejuvenated when Schaub threw for 497 yards in an overtime victory over the Washington Redskins on September 19, 2010.

[55] After a Week 10 game versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Schaub was placed on IR with a Lisfranc injury to his right foot after a quarterback sneak.

[56][57] Schaub entered the 2012 season in the final year of the contract he signed when he initially joined the Texans back in 2007.

After the season opening 30–10 win against the Miami Dolphins, Schaub signed a four-year, $62 million extension with the Texans, keeping him under contract through 2016.

[71] During the 2013 NFL draft, the Texans upgraded Schaub's receiving weapons with the selection of DeAndre Hopkins in the first round.

He finished the day with 298 passing yards, three touchdowns (including the game-winner to rookie DeAndre Hopkins) and two interceptions in the Texans' 30–24 overtime victory.

[75][76] In the following week against the San Francisco 49ers, Schaub threw three interceptions, including a pick-six on his first pass attempt of the game.

[80] On March 21, 2014, the Oakland Raiders traded their 2014 sixth round draft pick to the Texans in exchange for Schaub.

[83] On October 26, 2014, Schaub made his first pass attempt as a Raider in the regular season against the Cleveland Browns.

[86] Schaub was named the Ravens' starting quarterback for the rest of the 2015 season after Joe Flacco suffered a season-ending injury by tearing his ACL and MCL during a Week 11 victory over the St. Louis Rams.

[90] Schaub finished his stint with the Ravens starting only two games with a 1–1 record, throwing 540 yards, three touchdowns, and four interceptions.

[97] On October 27, 2019, Schaub made his first start as a Falcon since 2005, due to Ryan being inactive with an ankle injury.

Schaub finished the Week 8 contest with 460 passing yards, one touchdown, and one interception as the Falcons lost, 27–20, to the Seattle Seahawks.