I've always been a numbers guy, especially during a football season, so let's dive into my season-long weekly By the Numbers for this matchup at Baltimore.
0 - The Texans have never won at Baltimore so I'm all for ending that streak on Sunday.
0 - The number of preseason snaps Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson took during the 2023 preseason. Jackson hasn't taken a live rep in…
280 - …Nine months and six days, a total of 280 days, by Sunday. He was injured in the Ravens 10-9 win over the Denver Broncos on December 4th, 2022 and hasn't taken a snap since. He practiced all training camp, but was held out of all three preseason games.
574 - Likewise, it's been 574 days since Ravens WR Odell Beckham Jr. has seen game action. After scoring a TD for the Rams in Super Bowl LV, he tore his ACL in that game and hasn't played a down of real football since that day in LA. Like Jackson, he didn't take a snap in either of the three preseason games.
4 - The Texans could realistically start as many as four rookies on Sunday against the Ravens on both sides of the ball, depending on the starting package on offense (Tank Dell) and defense (Henry To'oTo'o). Three are listed as starters on the depth chart (C.J. Stroud, Jarrett Patterson and Will Anderson Jr.)
9 - The Texans have nine rookies on the 53-man roster - QB C.J. Stroud, IOL Jarrett Patterson, DE Will Anderson Jr., WR Tank Dell, DE Dylan Horton, LB Henry To'o To'o, IOL Nick Broeker, WR Xavier Hutchinson, CB Alex Austin.
0 - The Ravens could realistically start the game without a rookie on the field, until WR Zay Flowers enters the game. He may start, but if he doesn't, the Ravens will start a lineup with no rookies.
4 - The Ravens have just four rookies on the 53-man roster and…
3 - …three of them are unlikely to be starters or major contributors on either side of the ball as rookies.
**I put that note to show the difference in each team. The Ravens have TWO different starters from the 2022 season on offense (OBJ & LG John Simpson) and as many as THREE on the defensive side of the ball (CB Rock Ya-Sin, CB Ronald Darby and OLB David Ojabo).
The Texans will more than likely have SEVEN on offense alone, plus FIVE, more than likely on defense.
The point is that the Texans are facing one of the most stable organizations on Sunday with very little change on their roster. As a result of so little movement over the years, it's an experienced roster that's been together for a while.
4 - Texans rookie QB C.J. Stroud threw four TD passes in his first start for Ohio State in 2021 against the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Here's hoping for that many on Sunday!
That's going to do it for your number fix this weekend. Time to go to Baltimore and take care of business. See ya then, everyone!!
