Friday Stoots 6 Pack

Statement possibility ahead for Texans

Houston Texans Bill O'Brien
Houston Texans/Facebook

1. As the Texans now dead winning streak grew, the opponents they could make a "statement" against were few and far between. Now, some games ended up looking better and better. The Cowboys are legit and so are the Colts. The Bills are far better than first believed. Still, the winning streak didn't earn the Texans a lot of credit and the loss to the Colts elicited plenty of "I told you so's" from doubters. The defending champions were potentially the last opponent the Texans would face who was partially relevant. Even that was in danger, but then Nick Foles stepped in, did Nick Foles things, and now the Eagles are a legit opponent. Even most doubters will give Houston credit for a road win against a hot Philly team.

2. Keke Coutee and Lamar Miller remained in the limited participation part of the injury report for the Texans on Thursday. The playoffs are very close to being a lock and Houston might be locked into at least a playoff spot come Sunday's game anyway. If the Chargers down the Ravens the Texans have the playoffs to look forward to in January. That is where the focus should be for both these players. Especially if D'Onta Foreman is somehow ready to contribute. Don't be shocked to see the inactive list include Coutee and Miller or at the very least one of them. Speaking of injuries, Fletcher Cox has been missing practice this week for the Eagles. Cox is one of the best interior players in football and would be a great test for the Texans offensive line. He isn't the type of player who has to practice to play. If he isn't 100 percent he is still better than most. He could destroy the Texans offensive plan with his inside prowess.

3. Jadeveon Clowney embracing his role with the Texans is refreshing.

"Probably moving around a lot more," Clowney said as an answer to what he has improved on this year. "They move me around more than I've probably ever moved. I've played more linebacker this year than I've played in the past four years, but whatever I can do to help this team, I'll do it. I'll line up over the nose, guard, anywhere."

I can remember it wasn't that long ago Clowney said, somewhat joking and somewhat serious, he didn't love mixing it up with guards and centers. He's dominating those players regularly and the Texans have moved him all over the place and let him just wreck offenses. It has been really fun to watch one of the freakiest athletes in the NFL play free and ferocious.

4. Pay very close attention to the New England Patriots this weekend. If the Patriots are going to be the typical Patriots they should run through their last two opponents which are the Bills and Jets. Both games are at home and despite some late season life to two teams headed nowhere in 2018 the Patriots, and Tom Brady specifically, should handle both of them if they are getting back to their usual level of play. If you see New England struggle in both of these games it may be a sign they're more vulnerable than ever. Especially important in keeping the the bye for the Texans and a potential divisional showdown with New England.

5. The Dallas Cowboys went from comfortable to nervous in just one week. They turned in a horrid performance against the Colts, albeit with little to play for in that game having seemingly locked up a home game in the playoffs. Philadelphia made it interesting though beating the Rams and putting some pressure on the Cowboys. Now, Dallas has to lose out and the Eagles have to win out for Dallas to slip out of the playoffs. It would be important to show a little more life on offense than last week against the Colts. The Buccaneers aren't very good; it should be a bounce-back for the Cowboys.

6. I hope you are playing in your fantasy football championship this weekend. I believe the fantasy season is so crazy at the end of the year it should end week 16 of the NFL season, not the final week. Most teams aren't resting players before the last week. I also believe you should get some, if not all, of your entry fee back for making the fantasy playoffs. It is a fun wrinkle my big league added years ago and it keeps people who start slow in the hunt all year. Most of all, have fun with fantasy football and enjoy watching football.

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Ravens hammer the Texans, 31-2. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

Lamar Jackson broke the NFL career rushing record for quarterbacks in Baltimore's 31-2 victory over the Houston Texans on Wednesday, bolstering his case for MVP as the Ravens moved closer to the AFC North title.

*Don't miss the video below as the guys from Texans on Tap react to the game live on YouTube!

Jackson threw for 168 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 87 yards and another score. He pushed his career rushing total to 6,110 to move past Michael Vick, who had 6,109 in his 13-year career.

The Ravens (11-5) have already wrapped up their third straight playoff berth and need a victory over Cleveland next week to win the division over Pittsburgh. The Steelers dropped a third straight with a loss to Kansas City on Wednesday.

Jackson, the MVP last season and in 2019, put on a show rivaled only by the spectacular Super Bowl-caliber halftime performance by Beyoncé to give Baltimore its third straight win. And he needed just more than three quarters to do it, giving way to Josh Johnson with about 10 minutes left and the game long decided.

Jackson threw 9- and 1-yard TD passes and was not touched on a 48-yard scoring scamper that made it 24-2 in the third quarter.

Derrick Henry ran for 147 yards and set the Ravens season record with his 16th touchdown on a 2-yard run in the first quarter. He eclipsed Ray Rice (2011) and Mark Ingram (2019).

Baltimore dominated a Houston team reeling after losing dynamic receiver Tank Dell to a season-ending knee injury Saturday.

The AFC South champs struggled to finish drives and got their only points on a safety in the second quarter. C.J. Stroud threw for 185 yards, but was sacked five times and threw an interception and Joe Mixon managed just 26 yards rushing as the Texans (9-7) lost a second straight.

Rookie Kamari Lassiter dropped Henry for a 4-yard loss for the safety with about 10 minutes left in the first half to cut the lead to 10-2.

Dameon Pierce then returned the kickoff 45 yards to get the Texans to their 43. But they came away empty when Mixon was stopped on the 1 after grabbing a short pass on fourth-and-3.

Jackson then orchestrated a 99-yard drive to pad the lead. He scrambled to evade the rush and found Mark Andrews for a 67-yard gain to get the Ravens in the red zone with just more than two minutes left in the first half.

Isaiah Likely’s 9-yard TD reception two plays later made it 17-2. It was the first 17-2 halftime score in NFL history.

Kyle Hamilton intercepted Stroud's pass on the first drive of the second half. Two plays later, Jackson’s long TD run made it 24-2.

He set the rushing record on a 6-yard run on Baltimore’s next drive. Later in the drive, he scrambled to escape several defenders before finding Andrews for a 1-yard score to leave Baltimore up 31-2.

Injuries

Ravens RB Rasheen Ali injured his hip in the third quarter and didn’t return. … Texans TE Cade Stover returned after missing two games following an emergency appendectomy.

Up next

The Ravens host the Browns, and the Texans visit the Titans next weekend. The game dates have yet to be determined.

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