NFL Week 1: Houston Texans vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

It’s zone blocking vs. the zone blitz in an AFC showdown

Texans vs. Steelers Overview:

Week 1 of the NFL can be a key week of NFL football, especially in the cutthroat AFC. Loaded with many Super Bowl contenders the AFC is a battleground with every game factoring into the road to the playoffs. The AFC South is often regarded as the best division in football and is represented by the Houston Texans. The AFC North has become one of the top NFL divisions when it comes to physical toughness and smashmouth football. No AFC North team represents this more than the Pittsburgh Steelers. The two AFC divisions will meet in a ferocious battle in NFL Week 1 to set the pace for the rest of the NFL season.

Houston Texans Offense:

The Houston Texans offensive line appears to finally be a solid corps. With the additions of LT Duane Brown and C Chris Meyers in the offseason, the Houston Texans offensive line is set to implement Alex Gibbs’ Zone Blocking scheme that churned out 1,000-yard rushers for the Denver Broncos in years past. Rookie RB Steve Slaton may start if Ahman Green cannot shake his injuries. QB Matt Schaub will also be protected and will get ample time to thrash the Pittsburgh Steelers secondary. Matt Schaub will have great targets in WR Andre Johnson and TE Owen Daniels along with budding WR Kevin Walter.

Houston Texans Defense:

DE Mario Williams is the key to the Houston Texans defense. Sure to draw double or even triple blockers on every play, Mario Williams will pay dividends in drawing blockers and will open up the Pittsburgh Steelers to blitzes. DT Amobi Okoye will also be a factor from his three-technique position. MLB DeMeco Ryans will be a powerful force in the middle and will rack up tackles. The question marks in the Houston Texans secondary will glare brightly, but the Houston Texans defensive line should provide enough pressure to protect the shaky unit led by FS Will Demps.

Pittsburgh Steelers Offense:

Always a run-first team the Pittsburgh Steelers will be blessed with the most talent at the running back position they have had since their Super Bowl victory. RB “Fast” Willie Parker will be a blazing weapon while rookie Rashard Mendenhall will bring the power to the power run of the Pittsburgh Steelers offense. QB Ben Roethlisberger will have a chance to use his big arm and has a great collection of weapons in wideouts Hines Ward, Limas Sweed, Santonio Holmes, and TE Heath Miller. The Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line will be the biggest question as they struggled to protect Big Ben in the preseason.

Pittsburgh Steelers Defense:

The 3-4 alignment of the Pittsburgh Steelers has boggled the mind of opponents for more than a decade. With expert defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau running his zone blitz system to perfection the Pittsburgh Steelers defense can be hard to stop. Young LBs Lawrence Timmons and LaMar Woodley provide speed to go along with the experience of LBs Larry Foote and James Farrior. The return of SS Troy Polamalu to the Pittsburgh Steelers secondary will be a difference maker that can turn the whole defense around. NT Casey Hampton must return to form to clog the middle of the field. 

Houston Texans Keys to Victory:

The porous and unreliable offensive line of the Pittsburgh Steelers will have to be the center of the Houston Texans attack. DE Mario Williams should be able to manhandle RT Willie Colon and will force protection to be slided his way. Ideally the Houston Texans would like to force the Pittsburgh Steelers to keep TE Heath Miller in to block. The Houston Texans must get pressure with their front four in order to protect CB Jacques Reeves, who has proved to be a liability in coverage and will be overmatched by Santonio Holmes.

The Houston Texans offense must establish the run. With young players on the offensive line and at running back, the zone-blitzing schemes of the Pittsburgh Steelers will be a big threat to overcome. RB Steve Slaton will be asked to carry the load at running back and should be moved all over the field much like Reggie Bush with the New Orleans Saints. The match-up problems caused by Steve Slaton and WR Andre Johnson should open up the Pittsburgh Steelers to aerial attack.  

Pittsburgh Steelers Keys to Victory

The Pittsburgh Steelers defense must use every blitz in their bag of tricks to confuse the young offensive line of the Houston Texans. Constant motion of the front seven of the Pittsburgh Steelers will be key to throwing off the zone-blocking assignments of the Houston Texans. Casey Hampton must collapse the pocket and open holes for LaMarr Woodley and Lawrence Timmons to blitz from all directions. The health of SS Troy Polamalu will be tested as he will be responsible for containing Andre Johnson deep, Owen Daniels in the flat, and Steve Slaton on the screen.

The Pittsburgh Steelers will waste no time in cramming the ball down the Houston Texans throat with the running game. With a pair of undersized DTs in the center of their defensive line the Houston Texans will be vulnerable up the gut. The good push up front will also keep DeMeco Ryans in check with blockers on him all game. If the Houston Texans can stop the rushing attack of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ben Roethlisberger could be in for a long day as Mario Williams hunts him down. If Big Ben can be protected, he should have no trouble shredding the suspect Houston Texans secondary.    

Steelers vs. Texans Outlook

The Houston Texans have made gigantic strides in the past few seasons and have come on as a top team. Even with great talent in the front seven the Houston Texans are small in size. Mario Williams will be a troublemaker, but DTs Amobi Okoye and Travis Johnson are not great run stoppers, and DeMeco Ryans could be left exposed. The running game of the Pittsburgh Steelers should also open the Houston Texans up to a well-executed passing attack. With a poor secondary that must be protected, a strong running game is something the Houston Texans do not want to have to face.

The Houston Texans and Pittsburgh Steelers have equal talent, but the schemes of the Pittsburgh Steelers give them a slight edge over the Houston Texans. The Houston Texans should put up impressive numbers on offense, but the secondary of the Houston Texans will leave the defense hopelessly exposed. The battle between the schemes of Dick LeBeau and Alex Gibbs could be the most interesting football story of week one of the NFL 2008 season.