Texans All AccessINSTANT AUDIO: Vandy and Andre Ware dive into an incredible Texans season after playoff run ends in Baltimore
It was a season we will never forget. And now it's over comes to a screeching halt in Maryland as the Texans bow to Baltimore thirty four to ten. It was tied to ten at the break and Coke memorable moments. We've had so many this season. But let's recap this game. Nothing like you, your friends, your family, listening to and watching Texans football brought to you by Coca Cola. Coca Cola together tastes better.
All right.
After three and out, Texans took the ball to start the game. Wanted to see if they could strike first on offense.
They couldn't do it.
Three and out Ravens drive, but the defense stiffens and holds Baltimore to a fifty three yard field goal by Tucker.
Three nothing Ravens.
Eventually Texans tie it up Fairbaird fifty yardfield goal.
We're knotted up at three and that looks pretty good.
The Ravens put together their only touchdown drive on the first half after that, Lamar Jackson to Nelson Aguilor and it's ten to three. Baltimore ahead by seven. Texans can't move it. They make another stop. Baltimore punts and Houston gets on the board with this Texans down seven, about to get the rock back.
Steven Sims back deep. Here's the snap to stout.
The punter gets it off, Sims tracking forward and he makes the catch at the thirty four, starts right, cuts up the middle forty forty five to fifty. Sims still going, he breaks a tackle, angles to his left, forty thirty twenty ten. He's gonna score rock and roll touchdown.
Steven Simms to the house.
And that was awesome because the Texans tied it up with the extra point.
We are knotted up at ten.
Now Houston would eventually get back into field goal range forty seven yarder by Fairbairn.
No good, Why right?
We went to the break ten ten In the second half, all Ravens all the time. They opened with the ball, big kickoff return to their forty five fifty five yard drive. After that, Lamar Jackson fifteen yard touchdown, runs seventeen to ten.
Baltimore Texans couldn't move it. Ravens got it back.
Johnston pins them inside the tent at the Ravens seven. Could you make a stop and get the ball back? No? Ninety three yard drive in seven plus minutes, Jackson another touchdown pass and it's up twenty four to ten for the Baltimore Ravens and it was just all Baltimore after that, Texans couldn't move it again. Ravens put together an eleven play touchdown drive thirty one ten. After that, Tucker added the late field goal thirty four to ten, and just to paint the picture a little more, time of possession was ridiculous here, fifteen minute advantage for the Baltimore Ravens thirty seven, thirty five to twenty two to twenty five for the Houston Texans. And on the ground they were rolling in the second half two hundred and twenty nine rushing yards in this game. Jackson eleven carries, one hundred yards, two rushing touchdowns, and he also threw it for one fifty two and two touchdown passes, while Jay Flowers had four catches for forty one.
Meanwhile, CJ.
Stroud nineteen of thirty three, one hundred and seventy five yards, no tds, no picks, and Devin Singletary only twenty two yards on nine carries. Nico had five catches, Singletary had five, Schultz had five. But the Texans. You get the picture, could not move the football three hundred and fifty two total yards to two thirteen, and Houston.
Bows out of the playoffs. Andre, what's that pass rush report telling us?
Yep, the Texans our AHB sack report. The Texans had three sacks in today's game. Kirk Heinis had one. He got it started Blake Cashman and Desmond King. As part of Sacks for Hunger, AHB will donate one thousand dollars to the Houston Food Bank every time the Texans sacked the quarterback. The AHIB sack attack. It's brought to you by EGb, the official tailgate headquarters of the Houston Texans.
So, Andre, late in the first half, pass rush starts to work, they make stops, they get the ball back. They missed the field goal, but okay, you're tied ten ten at a half. Second half, the Ravens were not running every play, but it felt like that the ground game really made the difference.
Yeah.
I mean, he only had a couple of passes in the second half, especially the early in the second half, and then the ground game just took over. When the Texans went for it on fourth down and failed to convert. They were in it eight times in a row before completion to Ze Flowers and then right went right back into running the football and Lamar ultimately got himself into the end zone. It's uh, some work needs kinda have to be done in the in the offseason terms of stopping the run and maybe even shoring up the offensive line a little bit more. Titus Howard will be back at left guard, You get Juice Scruggs to move back to his natural position of center, and then you kind of go from there and see if you can build some depth and maybe some help at wide.
Receiver for CJ to go along with it.
But we got a long way to go, and uh, and it's it's only it's been encouraging to see what this year brought. I'm I'm super excited about the future this team, in the organization.
No question, You've mentioned it before.
This has been the most fun we've had in a long time, maybe ever, calling these games.
So many unforgettable wins.
When you look at beating Jacksonville the first time down there, the first meeting down there, Pittsburgh dominating win JJ Watt toime Tampa go bowally kicks a field goal even last week Cee Jada Tank last week beating the Titans in the oiler uniforms up there beating them again Colts, the Colts two weeks ago, an amazing win to send you to the playoffs to win the division for the first time in four years. Countless moments and memories we have this season. Is just painful to see it end this way today. Had the Texans, with the Texans season ending tonight, I never thought it would happen quite like this, with a twenty four point loss where you just couldn't get the ball in the second half.
Part when you did get it, you couldn't do anything.
I think because of the way the season has played out, it would have hurt no matter what the score was. But maybe you live it a little bit better when if it's a one score game and you didn't have the hidden yardage in terms of penalties, the negative hidden yardage. Those hurt because you're on a drive and then all of a sudden you're backing up because of a false start. Then that takes you out a field goal rangeer punting instead of lining up kicking a field goal to add points to an already tied game, or maybe even you know, taking a lead at some.
Point going into half.
When Kayami misses his first field goal on the road, that would have been huge because it puts all types of pressure on Lamar Jackson and the Ravens to come out of the locker room and do exactly what they did. Now without the pressure, they go down. I don't think it's quite as easy as if they're trailing thirteen to ten as if it's or when it's tied up ten apiece.
Every little bit helps.
Eleven penalties against the Texans seventy yards, that's a lot of yards and against.
The time of possession, and then you keep giving them that spells not being able to stop the run two hundred plus yards on the ground, giving up.
I mean that that's a hard way to go down.
Reliant power player of the game, forget about that.
Let's do the wrong. Reliant power player of the season. And I think there's no question about who this is going to be. From the official energy provider of the Houston Texans, relied dray CJ. Stroud has given the organization so much early success in his career.
In Dmiico Ryan's career, his first year as head.
Coach, making the playoffs and winning a playoff game, winning the division.
But CJ.
Stroud, despite what we saw here tonight with the offense unable to get the ball into the TDCU red zone, the future is so bright. You've got the most important position in sports taken care of, and that is such a good thing.
Yeah, no doubt about it.
I mean, he gives this, He gives you reason for hope, gives you reason for it to know there's promise with his team. I think when they were looking when the McNair's were looking for a head coach, they got it right there with me Ko Ryans and then obviously with CJ. Stroud, And I think that's gonna line this organization up for success for some time, for quite some time. He he's been, He's had a heck of a season, one that I don't think he could have even dreamed of coming into the NFL and and being a part of this, this team and this organization. The way he's taken a leadership role in the season, I mean all the way through. He I watched after the game and just how many Ravens players were approaching CJ and giving him hugs and and congratulating him on in an outstanding season that's respect already as a rookie. The future is very, very bright in Houston, especially at the quarterback spot.
Got to the Divisional round. Through one half, you were tied with the best team in football. In the second half, they took over and they're gonna be a tough team to beat, especially right here in this building. They will host the AFC Championship game next week.
What's up for next year? Thoughts?
Here from Baltimore where the Houston Texans season comes to an end thirty four to ten. The Ravens beat the Texans and they march on to the AFC Championship Game here in Baltimore next week, while the Texans get ready for twenty twenty four Prime Sport Tale of the Tape brought to you by Primesport. Visit primesport dot com for your VIP experience. Needs Well, it's painful to think about now because it is so fresh, but the offseason arrives and the Houston Texans with a lot of cap space, obviously the draft capital there. They've got the better pick in the Houston Cleveland swap deal with Arizona, so they'll get the Browns pick and we'll find out exactly what happens soon enough in the months to come. And then next year, Drey these Baltimore Ravens at NRG Stadium. Right, you're gonna go to Kansas City, you're playing the AFC East, and you're gonna go to New England, and you're also gonna go to the New York Jets while Buffalo and Miami invade NRG Stadium and it's just gonna back for New York.
Huh, NFC North.
You're gonna go to Minnesota and go to Green Bay and we'll find out maybe you have an international game there. Don't even know because the NFC has the nine home games, so you have eight home games in the regular season, nine road games, and who knows how they line all these up, how many times you're in primetime. But the future is so bright. It's very exciting to think about the schedule.
Yeah, it really is, and the future is bright.
You feel like you have a shot each and every time number seven is under center, and it's just such a luxury to have that part of it taken care of, where you don't go into an offseason wondering what you're gonna do at quarterback. You get tankdlle back next year, that's another weapon. I think they can add another receiver. I think you start working on the defensive side of the ball along with the offensive line, where you maybe start thinking cornerback, another corner where you can bump somebody down inside to play the play over the slot and be a little more aggressive next year off offensively. So there's a lot of ways this can go In the offseason. There's gonna be a lot of speculation here and there, but this is a good football team that's going to continue to build.
I think Johnny said something like this down to stretch. But you got every possible ounce of achievement out of this team that you could.
They did right, squeezed all the juice side of the orange, so to speak. And I think you got a lot of guys to play hard, play well. Derek Barnett coming in as a in season pickup and played, I mean, he played some outstanding football. Khalil Davis another guy that played outstanding, played well, no doubt about it, stepping in at safety because the injuries there. So you got the most out of this football team, I think.
No question about that.
My friend.
It's always a pleasure to call theway games. I can't believe it's over for this year, but I can't wait for August.
When we get going again.
Ye same here and looking forward to Draft night. And that's the kind of first shoe to drop, so to speak. And we'll take it from there.
We will take it from there, indeed, And we want to thank our partners at Odyssey Radio flagship station Sports Radio six ten of the Bowl one hundred point three FM, and I know many of our affiliates are iHeart too, so thank you all for being a part of the Houston Texans network. And we want to thank everybody at the Houston Texans for their support, their help Texans pr in allowing us, aiding us, enabling us to get the interviews, get everything we need to put these games and shows together for you all season long. And we can't wait for August when the Texans play in the preseason and get twenty twenty four fired up in campaign number two for Damico Ryans and c J.
Stroud. That's going to do it.
From the booth, we want to thank everyone who worked on this broadcast. Our producer and halftime host Robert Hensley, our engineer Aaron Rabeld, Ryan Rockett, the maestro doing so well for us all the time at network control. Chris Santiago with the highlight work, Johnny Harris with the sideline reporting duties, Andre Ware with game analysis. I'm Mark VanderMeer thanking you all for listening to all the games in the twenty twenty three season, and we are done here in Baltimore.
A sad inning to it.
Otherwise, bright and wonderful season for the Houston Texans. The final score from Maryland the Baltimore Ravens thirty four. The Houston Texans ten have a great offseason. This is Texans Radio.
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