Plenty of local sites summarize for us what’s being said about the Ravens throughout the sports media world… and even if they didn’t, most of us die-hards would find plenty of time to check Power Rankings and other articles on the team at our leisure.

But for a quick twist, let’s take a look at what’s being said about the Texans  heading into this week … and a few added game thoughts …

ESPN ranks the Texans 24th… down four spots from 20th last week… and they note that tackling was a huge issue in their game against the Steelers, even after the coaches put extra focus on it.

SI has the Texans at 27th, down from 23rd… and  hints at picking the Ravens in Week 2.

The Sporting News  has the Texans at 24th, down from 19th… and says that the talent is there for the team, but the plays are not.

CBS Sportsline has the Texans at 24th as well, down from 22nd… and says those talking of Houston playoffs preseason look silly now.

FoxSports has the Texans at 22nd (and the Ravens at 25th)… and says that Houston has serious problems.

Most importantly, ExtremRavens has the Texans at  24th, down all the way from 17th… and we’re all curious why anyone thought this team could be good.

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Added commentary…

In a division with three of football’s best teams (Titans, Jags and Colts), the Texans need every last non-division win they can get to even remain competitive. Consecutive losses to the Ravens could outright sink their season and, while not making the playoffs may not be hugely disappointing, not even competing for them is painful. That puts some added pressure on these Texans and the Ravens might be the ones to pay for it.

All things considered however (at least when it comes to the players on the field), the Ravens stack up nicely here. While the Texans have a dominate pass rush, that’s about all they can boast. Their passing game relies solely on Andre Johnson, and will be facing an even-healthier (is there such a thing?) Ravens D… the same D that shut down Carson Palmer, TJ Housmandzadeh, and the man formerly known as Chad Johnson. Without sounding smug, Matt Shaub and Kevin Walter - even with Andre Johnson - just doesn’t ring as intimidating.

The Texans running game is also far from overpowering… as a team, the Texans have averaged about 1600 yards (100 ypg) for the last two seasons. As a Terps fan for the last 20 years, however, and having seen the last three MD-WVU games in person, Houston’s back-up Steve Slaton does give me a bit of a chill.

The biggest things going against the Ravens this week  are the intangibles… Hurricane Ike is messing with everything. Between putting the game in primetime (Ravens fans are hearing screeching violins) and on a Monday, most have a feeling history is against the team. Couple the primetime hysteria with afore-mentioned pressure on the Texans and you’ve got a nasty mix.

In reality, however, what worries me most is the travel schedule. Cam Cameron has said that NFL players are too professional to let things like travel schedules really bother them when game time comes around. I simply don’t believe it. I don’t expect the Ravens to be flying on Sunday with the storm’s uncertainty. That means a Monday morning arrival and Monday night game. It just doesn’t sound fun. I hope this team can do it, but it still doesn’t sound fun. Talk about breaking up pre-game routines.

From this analyst alone… Ravens 27, Texans 10.