Pundit Picks: 'Ravens Will Deliver Their Fans the Best Christmas Gift ...

Jonas Shaffer Ravens 28, Texans 13 “Even if the Ravens have only a slight advantage on offense, their defense should have no trouble harassing Houston. Quarterback C.J. Stroud has a shabby offensive line protecting him and, thanks to more bad injury luck, only two legitimate receivers to target: wide receiver Nico Collins and tight end Dalton Schultz. At the end of a three-games-in-11-days stretch, the deeper, healthier team is always the safer bet.” Kyle Goon Ravens 27, Texans 17 “The strength-on-strength matchup of the Ravens’ offense against the Texans’ defense should be compelling. Houston has given up just 9 rushing TDs and plucked 19 interceptions. Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry will need to be at their best. But on the other end, Baltimore’s defensive improvement dovetails well with the Texans’ inability to score. As long as the secondary manages to keep a lid on Nico Collins, Baltimore should show itself to be a higher class of contender than Houston for a second straight year.” Giana Han Ravens 28, Texans 17 “The Ravens’ offense is humming again, and Derrick Henry tends to get better as the season goes on. Buoyed by their long-awaited win over the Steelers, the Ravens will deliver their fans the best Christmas gift they’ve got: a win.” Paul Mancano Ravens 30, Texans 20 “In his nine NFL seasons, Henry averages 5.14 yards per carry in the final month of the calendar year. With Justice Hill expected to be sidelined Wednesday, Henry’s attempts could reach the 20-25 mark for the second straight week. Oh, and Henry loves playing against the Texans. In 14 career games against Houston, he’s racked up a whopping 1,431 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns.” DeMeco Ryans’ unit has been stellar against the run all season, but they haven’t faced a rushing attack like this.” Brandon Weigel Ravens 27, Texans 20 “Part of the Texans’ shortcomings are due to health, with Diggs, wide receiver Tank Dell, safety Jalen Pitre and safety Jimmie Ward all landing on injured reserve. That should give the Ravens an edge, even if key contributors Zay Flowers and Justice Hill, who haven’t practiced as of this writing, are not able to go. Baltimore is more battle-tested, and it looks like they’re starting to live up to their potential on both offense and defense.”