Houston, We Have a Problem: Ravens Rout Texans 30-9

Ravens safety James Ihedigbo knocks the ball away from Houston Texans tight end Owen Daniels.

It was an emotional first day of Fall at M&T Bank Stadium as the Texans took on the Ravens. Ray Lewis, who was inducted into the Ravens Ring of Honor at half time, led the team out on to the field. Ed Reed returned to Baltimore to play his first game as a Texan. And the Ravens were looking to avoid going 1-2 for the first time since 2002.

The Ravens began the first quarter on defense, winning the toss but deferring. The Texans proceeded to chew up nearly eight minutes off the clock on a 16-play drive that saw a stingy Ravens defense hold Houston to a field goal.

The Ravens offense came out flat, though, quickly going three and out on their first two possessions. Houston marched down the field on their third possession but the Ravens defense dug in and held Houston to a field goal right after the start of the second quarter. The Ravens did manage to pick up three points on their next drive, cutting the Texans lead in half, 6-3.

Ravens Linebacker, Daryl Smith took advantage of a poorly-timed throw by Matt Schaub on Houston’s next possession, running back his first-ever pick-six to put the Ravens up, 10-6.

The Ravens offense wouldn’t touch the ball again in the half, as Houston was forced to punt on their next possession and Tanden Doss tip-toed his way 82 yards down the side line to a touchdown on the return.

With the Ravens leading 17-6 and less than two minutes in the half, Matt Schaub again led his team down the field. But time wasn’t on their side and the Texans, for a third time in as many tries, settled for three points as time expired in the half with the Ravens on top, 17-9.

The lone highlights of the third quarter featured several penalties by Houston, Flacco to Torrey Smith with a couple of nice passes and Pierce walking into the end zone with a one-yard touchdown, putting the Ravens up 24-9.

Baltimore added three more points six minutes into the fourth quarter on a Justin Tucker field goal, making it 27-9. The Texans, down by 18 points, were forced to go for it on fourth and two from the 50 yard line, turning the ball over on downs with five minutes to play in the game.

The Ravens added three more for good measure, routing Houston 30-9, improving to 2-1 on the season.

Key stat of the game: The Ravens defense hasn’t allowed a touchdown since their loss to Denver.