Baltimore Ravens favourites to win evenly poised playoff tie against Houston Texans – NFL Preview
The Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans are up against each other for their first playoff game at the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Sunday, January 15, 2012.
It is certainly a rematch of their 2011 National Football League (NFL) regular season game, which has had fans unable to control their excitement and anticipation.
Ravens had won the home-game, with a score of 29 to 14 points.
They are playing in different situations altogether.
Both teams are coming out on the field on the weekend with almost a similar game record at their back.
The only difference between the two is that Houston Texans are playing in the playoffs for the first time and the Ravens have multiple experiences that will certainly back them during the contest.
Baltimore's coach, John Harbaugh’s side had been through to the postseason three times before this year and never went beyond the wild-card phase in all previous attempts.
The upcoming game may not be as different as both teams are through to playoff, facing each other in the postseason for the first time.
Ravens are coming through a wild-card game bye as the side was given the one-game skip, courtesy of their perfect record at home.
"It's one down and two to go in terms of championships", Harbaugh said. "They'll be no taking anything for granted, that's for sure".
Houston Texans have won their wild card game against the Cincinnati Bengals, with a difference of 31 to 10 points, on Saturday, January 07, 2012. They now face the Ravens in their first-ever playoff tie.
Both sides also have a similar division record. They are reigning champions of the American Football Conference (AFC) - North and South divisions, respectively.
Baltimore Ravens finished the regular season with the 12-4 points position on the league table while Houston Texans have ended the season at 10-6 on the NFL table.
The Ravens are slightly ahead of the Texans, given their perfect record in terms of home games.
They played eight games at home and won all of them. Their losses on the road are equal to their wins, with four wins and four losses, each.
Texans' home and road games record is identical as they played eight games on road and at home, respectively, and were winners in five and losers in three, each.
It will not make a big difference for them while going to Baltimore on the weekend.
They have played at the M&T Bank Stadium before and are aware of the home-ground advantage and pressure. They lost their regular game against the Ravens at the stadium.
"We've been there before, and it's not going to be anything new", Texans’ linebacker, Brian Cushing, said.
"I'm sure it'll be a bit louder, with the playoff environment. They'll be excited, coming off a bye. But we'll be ready. Going up there, it's going to be a fun, exciting challenge. We're ready for it".
This game will be played in different circumstances and conditions. The home crowd pressure will be more on the Ravens than on the visitors.
Higher fans expectations can make the hosts succumbed to the hype that has reached its peak before the match.
One of the major issues confronting the Texans is the injuries to their key players. Their quarterbacks, Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart, are out for good due to their respective injuries.
They are now down to the rookie QB, T.J.Yates. He has been inconsistent in his performance, apparently lacking experience of starts at the position.
In spite of the negatives of their own, the Ravens are going into the game as favourites, though an upset by the Texans remains on the card.
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