Texans 'Not Backing Down' in Opener vs. Ravens
Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans knows what his team is up against in Week 1. He's making his head coaching debut, while both quarterback C.J. Stroud and edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. are playing in their first NFL games. And none of them will get to ease into the NFL, as their first game will be on the road in Baltimore against a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
Despite being 10-point underdogs -- easily the largest spread of the week -- Ryans says the Texans are going to be prepared to meet the moment Sunday afternoon.
"It's going to be tough," Ryans acknowledged. "It's always going to be tough playing that defense."
"[We have a] rookie quarterback, [so it's] going to be a tough challenge for us," Ryans continued. "But we're not going to back down from the challenge."
Lamar Jackson, Odell Beckham and the Baltimore Ravens will host the Houston Texans in Week 1. (Mitch Stringer/USA Today)
Of course, the best result for the Texans would be a win, and who knows, anything can happen in Week 1. But for a Texans team that has won just 11 games over the last three seasons, covering the spread while getting strong debuts from Stroud and Anderson would be a step in the right direction.
The reality is that the Ravens -- even in perhaps the deepest AFC ever -- look like a team primed to make a deep playoff run. Quarterback Lamar Jackson is healthy and his contractual status is no longer an issue.
New offensive coordinator Todd Monken figures to open up the passing game more than it has been at any point during Jackson's career, and the former MVP will enter 2023 with the best receiving corps he's ever had. Rookie Zay Flowers and veterans Odell Beckham Jr. and Nelson Agholor will join a receivers room that already includes Rashod Bateman, Devin Duvernay and tight end Mark Andrews.
Again, a win would be the best-case scenario for Ryans in Week 1 against John Harbaugh and the Ravens. But if the Ravens don't immediately jump to the forefront of the Super Bowl conversation after Sunday, it will have been a relatively successful start to the season for Houston.
