5 Key Matchups in Houston Texans Week 1

Nico Collins vs Rock Ya-Sin, Brandon Stephens and/or Ronald Darby

Collins has been called a breakout candidate all summer long. Many believe he could and will become the Texans' number one wide receiver and have a big year. If that is going to be the case, it has to start now. He has the matchup that a number one should be able to exploit.

It sounds more and more likely that Marlon Humphrey will be out, which means it'll be Collins against Ya-Sin, Stephens, and/or Darby. Collins should be able to feast as long as Stroud has enough time to find him.

If both Collins and Dell can win their respective matchups, the Texans might have a passing game that can help them move the chains and put up some points. Of course, this is all dependent on the very first matchup I mentioned with the offensive line. If they can be decent in their performance, the Texans should be able to make some plays in the passing game.

Will Anderson Jr. vs Lamar Jackson

It's going to be a tall task for the Texans' offense to move the ball and score points because I don't have a lot of faith in Houston's offensive line. For this reason, Will Anderson will need to have a big game in his NFL debut.

Getting Lamar Jackson on the ground is not easy though, but Anderson has the speed and athleticism to make some big plays against Jackson. Houston needs their defense to create some game-changing plays, maybe a pick-six generated from pressure by Anderson or perhaps recovery of a strip sack for six.

In the end, I picked the Ravens to win this game but there is a path for the Texans to pull off the upset, as outlined in my five key matchups. I'm looking forward to this game and excited to see the Texans on the field finally and some of the rookies finally get their NFL debut.

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