DJ Bien Aime
DJ Bien Aime
ESPN
DJ Bien Aimé covers the Houston Texans on ESPN. He joined ESPN in July 2022 after covering the New York Jets. He is a former athlete who finished his collegiate career at Louisville. Listen to DJ’s “Talkin’ Texans” show on ESPN Radio.
jamison hensley
jamison hensley
ESPN Staff Writer
Jamison Hensley is a reporter covering the Baltimore Ravens for ESPN. Jamison joined ESPN in 2011 and covered the AFC North, before focusing on the Ravens in 2013. Jamison won the National Sports Media Association Maryland Sportswriter of the Year Award in 2018 and wrote a book titled “Flying High: A Baltimore Story.” Ravens. He was the Ravens beat writer for the Baltimore Sun from 2000 to 2011.
HOUSTON — The Baltimore Ravens are now one win away from repeating their title as AFC North champions.
After defeating the Houston Texans 31-2 on Christmas Day, the Ravens hold the fate of the division in their hands with a relentless rushing attack and dominant defense. It was an embarrassing result for the Texans as they were unable to score any touchdowns due to their lackluster offensive ability.
With one week left in the regular season, Baltimore (11-5) holds a one-game lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-6), who lost 29-10 to the Kansas City Chiefs on Wednesday. are.
The Ravens end the season at home next week against the last-place Cleveland Browns. Baltimore controlled the game with 251 yards rushing, combining the power of Derrick Henry (147 yards) with the speed of quarterback Lamar Jackson (87 yards).
It was a record-setting day for Jackson, who surpassed Michael Vick as the best rushing quarterback in NFL history.
The Ravens defense outplayed Texans quarterback CJ Stroud, recording five sacks and one interception. If not for Henry’s safety in the second quarter, Baltimore might have recorded its first shutout since October 2018.
The keys to the game are:
Promising trend: The Ravens scored a touchdown on their first drive for the first time in 12 weeks. After a 75-yard drive, Henry scored on a 2-yard run, scoring his 16th touchdown and setting a Ravens single-season record. It also ended Henry’s four-game touchdown drought, the third-longest of his career.
Pivotal play: On fourth down in the second quarter, the Ravens blocked running back Joe Mixon from running back Joe Mixon in front of the end zone. With Baltimore leading 10-2, Baltimore safety Ar’Darius Washington hit Mixon for a down at the Ravens’ own 1-yard line, halting Houston’s momentum. This was the Ravens’ fourth goal of the season and their fourth consecutive stoppage. Baltimore then drove 99 yards for a touchdown, ending with Jackson’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely. Jackson scrambled to gain 8.4 seconds before throwing the ball, the second-longest touchdown throw of the season.
Eye-popping stat: Jackson reached a top speed of 21.25 mph on a 48-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. This is the highest top speed of Jackson’s seven-year career, according to Next Gen Stats. This is the second-fastest top speed for a quarterback this season, behind Arizona’s Kyler Murray (31.27 mph). — Jamison Hensley
Next game: vs. Browns (January 5th TBA)
In a test to prove whether they can compete against the best team in the AFC, the Texans were completely defeated against the Ravens and didn’t come away with any good results. They allowed Henry 147 yards rushing and a touchdown. He also allowed a 48-yard rushing touchdown and two passing touchdowns to Jackson, who had a passer rating of 143. Houston’s rushing attack was non-existent, gaining 58 total yards, while Stroud had a below-average performance with 185 total passing yards, including an interception. He had five sacks, marking the first time in Stroud’s career that he had zero scoring drives.
The Texans are 1-5 against championship teams this season and are limping into the playoffs. Their only win against a winning team came in Week 5 against the Buffalo Bills. On the bright side, the Texans will still advance to the playoffs after winning the AFC South.
Two words to describe this game: No fighting. The Texans were physically dominant from the start, allowing the Ravens 115 rushing yards in the first quarter, the most the Texans have given up in a first quarter this season. Houston mustered no energy for the rest of the game.
QB Breakdown: This was probably the most disappointing performance of Stroud’s NFL career. The offense is without star wideouts Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell, but Stroud was thrown eight innings, the second-most this season. He also failed to score on the offensive line for the first time in his young career.
Biggest holes in the game plan: Without their two best receivers, offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik gave Mixon just nine carries and Stroud had 36 dropbacks. In the first half, when the Texans were down 10-0 but the game was still within reach, Slowik had a 13-play stretch, calling 12 of them pass plays.
Prediction for next week: Texans starters will play just one quarter against the Tennessee Titans. With Houston locked in as the No. 4 seed, there’s little incentive for the Texans to play him as the starter for an extended period of time in Week 18. It’s not worth the risk of an important player getting injured. That’s especially true with safety Jimmy Ward, nickel Jalen Pitre, Diggs and Dell. It’s already in season. — DJ Bien Aimé
Next game: Titans (January 5th TBA)
