Patrick Starr, a football writer for State of the Texans.com, was kind enough to answer some scouting questions from us in preparation for the Ravens vs. Texans game coming up this Sunday:
RFM: Patrick, everyone talks about Arian Foster and the big yardage he runs for, but could you let us know more about your Offensive Line? Who are these guys and what makes them so good as a unit?
The Houston Texans offensive line has been together since the beginning of the 2010 season and left guard Wade Smith was the last piece to the puzzle. The offensive line consists of Duane Brown (LT) Wade Smith (LG) Chris Myers (C) Mike Brisiel (RG) and Eric Winston (RT). The strength of the line is the left side of the line and are pretty solid against the rush and great in run blocking. The Houston Texans scheme goes all the way back to the Super Bowl days of the Denver Broncos when Mike Shanahan was the head coach and his offensive coordinator was now-Texans head coach Gary Kubiak. Kubiak has masterminded the offense and turned the Texans offensive line into a well-oiled machine. The line does not have to be massive, instead they are more athletic and concentrate moving the line of scrimmage with their zone scheme. The zone scheme takes brains and to be able to think on the run— and this line has been together for 21 weeks straight heading into the Baltimore week, which is important because they seem like they can read each other’s mind on what they are going to do as the play develops. The best offensive lineman has to be Duane Brown, and the most underrated is Chris Myers, and both are the key pieces to the Texans offensive game plan.
RFM: Matt Schaub has got a reputation now as a very good quarterback. With his best receiver Andre Johnson out for this game, who are the guys you think he will target most with his passing attack?
In the Oakland game last week he depended on tight end Owen Daniels and wide receiver Jacoby Jones, I don’t see much change in that mentality heading into this week despite the poor performance by Jacoby Jones. With Andre Johnson out, Jones is the only real speed threat on the field for the Texans, but he works better sitting in open spots in zone coverage than trying to beat someone deep. I do expect Matt Schaub to look for wide receiver Kevin Walter and running back Arian Foster though the air, because when they touched the ball last Sunday they made things happen…
RFM: Who are your linebackers and do you think they are up to the challenge of stopping Ray Rice on those screen plays and cutback runs he’s known for?
The starting linebackers for the Texans will be: on the outside, Connor Barwin and rookie Brooks Reed, and on the inside, Brian Cushing and DeMeco Ryans. I would expect Ray Rice to be Cushing’s main focus for the game, and Cushing is playing at a high level and is making plays sideline to sideline. I think defensive coordinator Wade Phillips will have Reed and Barwin trained enough on the cutback, because the Texans rush defense has been pretty solid so far this season. They held the leading rusher Darren McFadden to only 51 yards on 16 carries, so I would expect the Texans defense up to the task.
RFM: Who are your best pass-rushers? If they can get to Flacco a few times, it might be a huge game-changer for the Texans…
It was Mario Williams, before he was lost for the season with a pectoral injury, but don’t sleep on defensive end Antonio Smith. He has 4.5 sacks in 5 games and really causes issues for opposing lines. Also, the rookie Brooks Reed will be taking the place of Williams, he is nowhere in the same league as Williams but has proven he can get to the quarterback, so it will be interesting how he adapts to being a starter.
RFM: I just found out Derrick Mason, the long-time slot receiver for the Ravens, has been traded to your Texans from the Jets! Amazing…This adds some extra drama and subterfuge to the game. I’m sure the Ravens will have to change some of their signals for play calls. Who does the offensive play calling for the Texans these days? Does Matt Schaub get any leeway to change plays at the line of scrimmage?
The offensive coordinator Rick Dennison does the play calling with input from head coach Gary Kubiak, but it mostly falls on Dennison. As for Schaub, the Texans call multiple plays in the huddle and, depending on what they get, that is what is run. This has been a discussion among many people I talk to, but it honestly looks like Schaub does no audibling at the line…
Thank you Patrick Starr… this should be one heckuva game in Baltimore on Sunday!
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
