Before the Game – Texans at Jaguars

The Texans travel to Florida for a showdown with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Sunday November 14, 2010 – 12:00pm CST – TV broadcast on CBS – Comcast 11 (Houston)

What to Watch –

• The Texans passing offense against the Jaguars pass rush. The Jaguars will be without Aaron Kampman, so watch to see how much time Schaub has in the pocket.
• I know it’s hard to watch, but the Texans defense is bound for a big day. Even the worst of defenses have at least a couple good games. Plus, they’re not going against a top offense this time.
• Also watch the Texans defense against Maurice Jones-Drew. This guy has destroyed them in the past. Even though the Texans run defense if much better than their pass defense, he could still be a problem.
• Can Arian Foster gash up this Jaguars defense? I think so. However, the Texans will need to give him opportunities. Watch to see what the Texans plan is for him on their first couple offensive drives.

Position Comparisons –

Texans

Chargers

The Game –

Both the Texans and Jaguars seems to be disappointing people after they both got off to quick starts early this season. Arian Foster is still going strong for the Texans while the Jaguars offense has been off and on throughout the season.

Matt Schaub will play in this game, but like Andre Johnson, he is nursing injuries from past weeks. Because of this, I believe the Texans should and will give the ball to Arian Foster early. If they get their run game going against the Jaguars, the Texans should take this game.

On the other side of the ball, the Texans pass game has less to worry about after the news that Jaguars defensive end Aaron Kampman will miss the rest of the season after tearing his ACL on Thursday. For the first time in a few weeks, Matt Schaub should have a decent passing matchup. With Schaub being a bit banged up heading into this game, it’s a good think knowing that a big part of the Jaguars pass rush won’t be there.

Jaguars quarterback David Garrard has had a some good weeks and some bad weeks. Mike Sims-Walker hasn’t been the same reciever he was last year. The Texans defense may give them that opportunity, but I don’t expect any more than 250 passing yards from the Jaguars in this game.

For the Texans sake, they better hope they can stop the Jaguars running game early if they want a chance at avoiding a shootout. The Texans need to avoid turnovers and concentrate on getting productive drives out of their offense. If Arian Foster can get some big running gains early, it should open up a lot of things for the Texans later on in the game.

Texans win 30-24