Ghost's Opponent Insider: Houston Texans

The New York Football Giants fly to Houston this week to face the red hot 3-1 Texans. The last time these two teams played was in 2006 with the Giants stealing a 14-10 win at home. But let's face the facts, this is NOT that 12.5 point underdog. Houston's only loss this year came off a Dallas must win. And let's not forget, they beat the Colts. So Let's get out our football scalpel and slice this week 5 match up to bits.

The Texans run a fairly balanced offense but rely a little more on the pass. Quarterback Matt Schaub is quickly making a name for himself in this league. This year alone, he has passed for 1037 yards, 7 TDs, 4 INTs for a 95.6 passer rating. Not to Schaubby. Ick! I know, a horribly stretched pun. If he continues on this pace, we're looking at 4,000 yards passing and 28 tds. Matt spreads the ball around but his main targets tend to be receivers Andre Johnson (1 TD, 255 yds) and Kevin Walter (3 TDs, 242 yds). Johnson has been hurt so I'm anxious to see how much he will contribute. 

The Giants front four needs to put pressure on Schaub and force him into "Cutler's panic". Schaub has been sacked 11 times for 63 yards. If Tuck, Osi and Co. do half as well as last week and the secondary does it's job, It will be a long day for Matt. On average, NY's pass defense has only given up 139 yards per game. This battle will give us a good idea where the Giants stand defensively.

The true test will come on NY's ability to contain running back Arian Foster. He is the lead horse for Houston averaging 134 yards per game, 6.3 yards a carry and 4 TDs. Houston will surely be looking to take advantage of NY on the ground as they've given up nearly 4 yards a carry. Not huge numbers but enough to make this a grind game and covert 3rd's to 1st's. Again, this game will be won or lost in the trenches so it is imminent that Big Blue applies consistent pressure and containment. If they can shut down Foster, they'll be forced into long throwing situations.

Watch & Exploit:

Watch out for Houston's Mario Williams and Bernard Pollard. Pollard leads the team in tackles with 41 but he is a safety.  Usually a hint: Safeties who lead the team in tackles= poor rush defense. But that's not the case here. Houston has held opponents to 281 yards rushing in 4 games but they are very shaky against the pass, giving up 337 yards a game. This would explain why Pollard has so many tackles. 

Giant's offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride needs change it up a bit. For one: prepare and be creative. Exploit Houston's secondary by utilizing 3 WR sets and decoys to distract Pollard away from the ball. I recommend short 8-10 yard dump offs that will give Pollard less time to come over and help his corners. Create 1 on 1 match ups and spread out the offense. Once the Texans adjust, I see many opportunities for the long ball. Giant WRs will be open all day, so get them the ball, frequent and early. Especially Nicks. he is a game breaker and does well in 1 on 1 situations.

NY's O-line will have their hands full. Defensive End Mario Williams is a beast and has already registered 5 sacks for the year. Keep him away from Eli and he should be able to throw for 350+ yards on that tattered Texan secondary. Keep in mind, establish the run but don't force it. The Giant's have the tendency to keep using something that isn't working. If the run game isn't working early, don't worry. Think backwards this week: Pass to set up the run. 

Fun little facts: Houston is 50% on 3rd down conversions and they usually pass on first down. Giant's defensive coordinator Perry Fewell knows this. So Perry, make sure throw some strange looks at Houston on first down. Start by faking the blitz on first forcing Shaub to audible run. Perhaps, reel Houston into believing that it's man coverage on first, switch to zone and send Ross in on a blitz. Play minds games and remember Houston is hot but they're newly hot. 

In closing remember, pressure Schaub, contain Foster, be creative on defense and offense, exploit Houston's secondary, pass to set up the run and don't play like sissies.