Ravens vs. Texans: Breaking Down Baltimore's Keys to the Game

When the Baltimore Ravens head to Texas to take on the Houston Texans, they'll have the opportunity to clinch a playoff spot with a win.

Entering Week 16, Baltimore sits at No. 6 in the AFC playoff picture. That's just one game ahead of the 8-6 Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills and San Diego Chargers for one of the two wild-card spots. Baltimore also trails the 9-4-1 Cincinnati Bengals by just a half-game for the AFC North lead. 

The Ravens can clinch a playoff spot if they win and the Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers both lose this week. They can also clinch with a win and losses by both the Chiefs and Chargers. 

While no NFL team can be taken lightly, the 7-7 Texans are just 4-6 in their past 10 games after a 3-1 start to the year. Their past four wins have come against teams with a combined 11-31 record, including two wins versus 2-12 Tennessee Titans over that span. 

If Baltimore can just bring their "A" game, they should win easily in this one, even though it's at Houston. Here's a look at how Baltimore should game-plan to beat the Texans.

Use the Pass to Set Up the Run

USA TODAY Sports

The Texans have a struggling defense when it comes to stopping the pass. As a team, the Texans rank 26th in pass defense, allowing 257.1 yards per game. They aren't much better when it comes to stopping the run, ranking 14th in that category by allowing 109.1 yards per game.

Simply put, teams typically have the best offensive success when they're able to use the pass game to set up the run game. 

Baltimore will need Joe Flacco and the Ravens receivers to connect for some big plays to open up running lanes for Justin Forsett and the rest of the Ravens ground game.

Forsett is currently fifth in the NFL in rushing yards (1,128), and Baltimore is fifth in rushing offense (132.6 yards per game). However, Baltimore is ranked 14th in passing offense (239.4 yards per game).

Flacco and the passing game haven't been as good in recent weeks, highlighted by Torrey Smith dealing with a knee injury that's limited his snaps over the past three weeks. 

Smith has been the best receiver at catching deep balls to keep defenses from boxing up at the line to stop the run. His 15.6 yards per catch leads the team and is 16th in the NFL. 

Smith and the rest of the Ravens pass-catchers need to come up big in this game to open up running lanes. That will allow Baltimore to hit Houston with a balanced attack they'll have a difficult time stopping. 

Don't Let Arian Foster Beat You

AJ Mast/Associated Press

Texans running back Arian Foster is once again one of the game's best backs. Despite missing three games with a hip issue, Foster is second in the NFL in rushing yards per game (102.5).

He's also third in 20-plus yard runs (eight) and fourth in rushing scores (eight). Foster is the MVP of the Texans offense, and stopping him is key to shutting them down. 

In four of the Texans' seven losses, Foster either didn't play or rushed for under 100 yards. The Ravens run defense ranks third in the league (84.3 yards per game), but this is arguably their biggest test of the year.

Another reason Baltimore must stop Foster and the ground game is because of Houston's situation at quarterback. Ryan Fitzpatrick broke his leg last week, and after going on injured reserve, head coach Bill O'Brien isn't ready to name the starter versus the Ravens. 

USA TODAY Sports

The QB battle in Houston comes down to journeymen Case Keenum and Thad Lewis; Lewis is 2-4 in his career as a starting QB, while Keenum is 0-8.

Baltimore would be wise to try to force one of those QBs to beat them instead of the All-Pro Foster. With such a short week to prepare a new QB, the Texans will probably use a conservative game plan that features a lot of runs and some short passes.

If Baltimore can just contain Foster, they should be able to hold the Texans offense down enough to win this game.