The Ravens will host the Houston Texans in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs on Jan. 20. The Ravens have won 11 of the 13 games between the two teams dating back to 2002. Here’s a look back at the memorable games between Baltimore and Houston …
POSTSEASON
Jan. 15, 2012: Ravens 20, Texans 13
The Ravens finished the 2011 season with a 12-4 regular-season mark, good enough for the No. 2 seed in the AFC and a first-round bye. The third-seeded Texans earned the right to go to Baltimore by defeating the Cincinnati Bengals, 31-10, in the wild-card round.
However, the Texans had to take on the Ravens without starting quarterback Matt Schaub, who had been lost for the season due to a Lisfranc injury suffered in November. T.J. Yates handled the quarterback duties for the rest of the season, including the playoff game in Baltimore.
The Ravens jumped out to a 17-3 first-quarter lead, with Joe Flacco throwing touchdown passes to Kris Wilson and Anquan Boldin. The first score was set up by a muffed punt by Texans returner Jacoby Jones deep in his own territory. Jones was released by Houston in the spring and went on to become part of Ravens postseason lore.
Baltimore’s offense went cold for the final three quarters, however. Flacco was sacked five times — J.J. Watt and Brooks Reed were each credited with 2.5 sacks — but he didn’t turn the ball over. A goal-line stand late in the third quarter also proved crucial in keeping the Texans in the game.
Fortunately for the Ravens, the Texans’ offense couldn’t get much going, either. Running back Arian Foster’s 1-yard touchdown in the second quarter made the score 17-13, and it remained that way until a fourth-quarter field goal by Billy Cundiff pushed the Ravens’ lead to 20-13. Two fourth-quarter interceptions by Yates thwarted Houston’s comeback attempt.
The star of the game for the Ravens was Lardarius Webb, who had two interceptions on the day. His first-quarter pickoff set up Boldin’s touchdown, while his fourth-quarter theft led to Cundiff’s final field goal. Ed Reed grabbed Yates’ third interception of the day.
Houston’s head coach that day was Gary Kubiak, who went on to serve as Baltimore’s offensive coordinator in 2014. The Texans are now coached by DeMeco Ryans, who made seven tackles in the January 2012 playoff game.
REGULAR SEASON
Dec. 15, 2002: Ravens 23, Texans 19
The first matchup between these two teams came during the Texans’ inaugural season. Ravens quarterback Jeff Blake completed 18 of 30 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Travis Taylor caught five passes for 96 yards and a score. Anthony Weaver, now the team’s defensive line coach, had a sack. Of particular note, Avion Black had the first-ever punt return touchdown in Texans history late in the third quarter (76 yards).
Nov. 9, 2008: Ravens 41, Texans 13
This game was originally scheduled for Week 2, but Hurricane Ike forced the contest to Week 10. Joe Flacco was 15 of 23 for 185 yards and two touchdowns and Willis McGahee ran 25 times for 112 yards and two scores. Baltimore’s defense picked off Houston quarterback Sage Rosenfels four times (Ray Lewis had two).
Dec. 13, 2010: Ravens 34, Texans 28 (OT)
Of the 13 games the Ravens and Texans have played, this is almost certainly the wildest one. David Reed returned the opening kickoff of the second half 103 yards for a 28-7 Baltimore lead … and then it was all Houston after that. The Texans scored 21 consecutive second-half points and dominated time of possession to force overtime. However, Baltimore’s Josh Wilson returned Matt Schaub’s second pass of overtime for a game-winning touchdown.
Oct. 21, 2012: Texans 43, Ravens 13
Heading into a Week 8 bye, the Ravens put together one of the worst efforts of the John Harbaugh era. Joe Flacco needed 43 passes to throw for 147 yards and was also picked off twice. The defense allowed the Texans to post 420 yards and pick up 27 first downs, even with 2011 Defensive Player of the Year Terrell Suggs making his return from an offseason Achilles tear. What happened after this game set the tone for a Super Bowl run.
Nov. 17, 2019: Ravens 41, Texans 7
This game was part of perhaps the most dominant month in Ravens history. In November 2019, the Ravens defeated New England, Cincinnati, Houston and the Los Angeles Rams by a combined score of 172-46, and on this day, the Texans were simply in the way. Lamar Jackson threw for four touchdowns, Gus Edwards ran for a score and the defense sacked Deshaun Watson six times. [Read more.]
Sept. 10, 2023: Ravens 25, Texans 9
The Ravens’ defense got the better of C.J. Stroud in the rookie quarterback’s regular-season debut, sacking him five times and recovering his lone fumble. Justin Madubuike, David Ojabo, Patrick Queen, Roquan Smith and Ar’Darius Washington all had sacks. Running back Justice Hill had two touchdowns for the Ravens, who lost J.K. Dobbins to a season-ending Achilles injury. [Read more.]
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