PRESENTED BY COORS LIGHT

What to expect from CJ Stroud, Houston Texans roster opportunities against imposing Ravens

We're just days away from the Texans' first game of the season, and we're still dealing with some roster uncertainty on Houston's offensive line.

The Ravens are a physical defense and the Texans will be working in some new faces because of injuries to Kenyon Green, Juice Scruggs, and Tytus Howard.

There's a reason the Texans are the biggest underdogs of the week, with the Ravens being favored by ten points.

With that being said, how big of a concern is the o-line with Stroud making his NFL start in the regular season?

And how will the Ravens look to attack Stroud on Sunday? Will Baltimore try to take away Dameon Pierce and the running game, forcing Stroud to pass under pressure?

That seems pretty likely, but what about the other side of the ball? Have the Texans done enough this offseason to improve their rush defense and slow down JK Dobbins and Lamar Jackson?

Be sure to watch the video above as the guys share their predictions for the Texans on Sunday.

If you enjoy the videos, subscribe on YouTube for our latest content.

Listen to The Bench with John Granato and Lance Zierlein weekday mornings on ESPN 97.5 and 92.5 FM.

Presented by Coors Light

Most Popular

With the end of the regular season in sight, the Houston Astros host the Kansas City Royals on Friday night, coming off a huge walk-off 2-1 win against the Orioles.

Two players from the finale against Baltimore really stood out for the 'Stros. Jeremy Pena, who had a clutch double late in the game, and Cristian Javier.

Javier struck out 11 batters over 5 innings surrendering only one run, which was exactly what the Astros needed in possibly the most important game of the regular season.

Both Pena and Javier were critical pieces to the Astros title in 2022, and it looks like they're rounding into form at just the right time.

Javier's struggles have caused many to question who would be the team's third starter in the postseason, behind Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander. Let's put this to bed right now, it's Javier.

This should be everything you need to know. Let's start with Hunter Brown. Brown has given up 5 earned runs or more in 4 of his last 7 starts.

How about JP France? France has surrendered 5 or more earned runs in 3 of his last 5 games.

However, Cristian Javier hasn't allowed 5 or more runs in a start since July 3. Javier may only give you 5 innings, but that's actually pretty common for starters in the playoffs. Teams typically remove their starters before the third time through the order.

Prime Time Pena

While the power hasn't been there for Pena this year, he is swinging the bat much better of late. Over his last 30 games, he's hitting .325 while slugging .453. Pena may only have 10 bombs on the year, but he's getting on base and hitting plenty of doubles.

If these two can contribute at a similar level to last postseason, the sky is the limit for the 2023 Astros.

Be sure to watch the video above for the full discussion!

If you enjoy the videos, subscribe to SportsMap Houston on YouTube for our latest content.

Listen to The Bench with John Granato and Lance Zierlein weekday mornings on ESPN 97.5 and 92.5 FM.

Most Popular

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome

Listen Live

ESPN Houston 97.5 FM