Offense

1) Chipping away: Way back in Week One of the 2008 season, the Ravens successfully executed a chip-blocking scheme against the Cincinnati Bengals. As the man-to-man pass blocking from the offensive line has improved, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron has not had his extra blockers chip as much since then, but the plan should be revisited this Sunday.

By chipping incoming pass rushers, not only did the backs and the tight ends do an excellent job of slowing down the rush, but they also became instant outlet receivers for Flacco to turn to. There were a number of instances when fullbacks Le’Ron McClain and Lorenzo Neal laid an initial block and then released into vacant spaces in the flat area.

Look for the same game plan to be utilized by the coaches against Houston. The Texans front is aggressive and it gets up the field in a hurry. If Flacco is able to stay patient and take the checkdowns underneath, the backs could have another productive outing as pass catchers.

2): On Edge: Houston has an undersized front seven that can be pushed around. There is little doubt that Baltimore will try to impose a power rush attack against the front on Sunday.

The Houston unit is a fast flowing group that can get penetration to snuff out of the run. Tackles Travis Johnson and Amobi Okoye (doubtful for Sunday) are disruptive gap shooters, while the inside backer, DeMeco Ryans, plays with incredible anticipation and timing.

If the Ravens want to run the ball effectively, they may need to run away from this interior triangle and opt to test the perimeter. Outside backers Marlon Greenwood and Chaun Thompson are undersized and they struggle to shed blocks.

3) Testing Williams: Clearly, the emphasis for the offense will be to target Mario Williams. The electric pass rusher has been nearly unblockable since last season. There are a couple of ways that the Ravens can try to slow him down. 

One, the team will likely run at the 2006 No.1 pick. Look for more unbalanced formations, with either Adam Terry or Willie Anderson pulled to the left side.

Two, when the Ravens show pass from the shotgun set, expect the use of draws and delays to keep Williams honest. If Williams bites too hard upfield to get to Flacco, either Ray Rice or Willis McGahee will have room to operate.

Defense

1) Zone blitz: The Houston line has forever been a sore spot but the group has played better in ‘08. Still, the Ravens will need to design plays to get consistent pressure on quarterback Sage Rosenfels on Sunday.

To disrupt this group, the best bet for the Ravens will be to use plenty of bait-and-switch maneuvers. In other words, the backers will need to move around a lot before and after the snap to keep the line from getting a good read on where the rush is coming from.

This will be a good opportunity for the edge rushers – Terrell Suggs and Jarret Johnson – to run exchange plays. Given that both players have the ability to rush out a three-point stance, they should show that look, only to drop into zone pockets once the ball is snapped. There should be a consistent interplay between the two at the line to get the lineman to make the wrong pre-snap decisions when they figure out their blocking assignments.

2) Checking Slaton: For a long period of time, the Houston Texans have been unable to find a feature back who had the ability to dominate games. In rookie runner Steve Slaton, the Houston coaches have a multi-dimensional back with big-play ability.

The Ravens have been the Great Wall against every back they have faced but Slaton presents a different challenge. He won’t need to touch the ball too many times to make an impact. He can gain yards in chunks if he is able to get past the first layer of defense.

The backers will need to take the right angles and corral Slaton when he is in the open field. He is equally devastating as a pass-catcher, so the defenders will need to be cognizant of their tackling technique when they are isolated against him in open space.

3) Prepare for the Spread: With Rosenfels at the helm, the Texans are a more unpredictable offense, capable of exploding through the air. Rosenfels is a backup for a reason; he is simply too streaky to be counted on to be the go-to signal caller every weeek.

However, when he’s in rhythm, Rosenfels is a capable deep ball thrower and operator from the spread offense. He has a quick release and does not need much time to set up, which is why he can function out of primary passing formations.

The Baltimore secondary will be attacked, and they will give up yardage in the passing game. The Texans have an array of weapons for Rosenfels to spray the ball to. The key for the Ravens will be to keep the big gains to a minimum and to tackle well when the wideouts make their catches in the open field.

One-on-one Matchup to Watch: Jared Gaither versus Mario Williams: This battle had to be shelved for eight weeks but will finally be on display. The importance of slowing down Williams was touched on earlier and it will be up to Gaither to handle the job. The two tussled in college and Gaither was able to limit Williams’ effectiveness when the two were ACC foes. Gaither will need to seal the edge and more importantly, react well to double moves from Williams when he looks to slide inside.