Mission: Houston Texans

The 8-4 Bucs get to take on the 5-7 Houston Texans this week, for only the second time in franchise history. The Bucs lead the all time series, 1-0. The Bucs only need to win one more game to clinch the NFC South. But the biggest question for them will again be the health of QB Jeff Garcia. Garcia doesn’t want to miss any more games, but it’s really not up to him.

Getting a break from the powerful Saints offense, the Bucs will have a new test with the Texans, whom they are not really familiar with. The Texans are 9th in the league in total yards per game, and 6th in the league in passing yards per game. Of course, the majority of the passing plays goes to the QB Matt Schaub, who is out for Sunday’s game. Instead, the Bucs will get Sage Rosenfels, who has played a good amount this year. Surprisingly enough, the Texans are 4th in the league in fourth down conversions. They are 9th in total offensive yards, 8th in average yards per offensive play, 6th in total passing yards, 5th in average yards per passing play, 4th in interceptions, and 5th in defensive touchdowns. The offense may be hurting with Schaub out, but don’t count out Rosenfels. They have a good run game in Ron Dayne, but he is questionable for Sunday’s game with an ankle injury. The biggest receiver threats are in Owen Danielsand Kevin Walter, who have 666 yards and 652 yards, respectively. Their defense is led by DeMeco Ryans, who has 108 tackles on the season. But the Bucs also have to watch out for corner Fred Bennett, who leads the Texans with 3 interceptions.

The Bucs offensive numbers came back, due to the explosive performance of Luke McCown last week. The Bucs are 9th in the league in average yards per offensive play, 5th in average yards per rushing play, 7th in rushing touchdowns, and 8th in average yards per passing play. The defense is continuing their stellar play, forcing another two fumbles in last week’s victory over New Orleans. Out of the 19 forced fumbles on the season, they have recovered 13 of them. They also have 12 interceptions as a team, nothing to be ashamed of. The Bucs D is 2nd in the league in total touchdowns allowed, and ranks in the top 10 in many defensive categories. Barrett Ruud, who has led the defense in tackles pretty much all season, is now in a tie for 1st on the team with tackles, tied with Derrick Brooks.

The Bucs are riding a 4-game win streak, while the Texans are on a 2-game win streak. This will be the Bucs last matchup against an AFC team this season. As I said before, the Bucs need only one victory on the rest of the season to clinch the NFC South. The Texans, are last in their division, so they really have nothing to lose.