Texans Locked in Tie With Ravens At Halftime

The Houston Texans special teams have told the story of the first half against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.

It's best not to hit the "Sims" button entering the second half. 

The Houston Texans are locked in a 10-10 tie with the Baltimore Ravens at the half following thanks to a 67-yard punt return for a touchdown by Steven Sims. Baltimore will receive the ball to begin the third quarter.

After Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson evaded a pair of defenders on third down, Texans second-year linebacker Christian Harris wrapped up and forced a stop. Sims, who was elevated from the practice squad earlier this week in place of Noah Brown, took off after finding a crease. 

Houston's return man went untouched for the score, marking the trifecta of touchdowns this postseason. Houston scored touchdowns on offense and defense in its 45-14 wild-card round win over the Cleveland Browns last week. 

Jackson, the favorite to win the NFL's MVP, guided Baltimore on an 11-play, 76-yard drive to break a 3-3 tie thanks to his mobility. On the drive's opening play, Jackson took off for a gain of 23 yards, putting the Ravens at midfield.

Jackson evaded a sack against Will Anderson Jr. for a gain of 15 to push the Ravens into the red zone. The sixth-year starter found Nelson Agholor for a 3-yard touchdown pass with 9:23 remaining in the half. 

Jackson finished 7 of 11 for 52 yards and a touchdown while also leading the team in rushing with 50 rushing yards. Zay Flowers finished with 25 receiving yards on two catches. 

Penalties plagued Houston during the first quarter. Against the Browns, the Texans committed three penalties for 20 yards, with the first coming with two minutes left in the second quarter. Stroud was flagged also flagged for an intentional grounding and a delay of game call. 

Houston hauled in five flags within the first 15 minutes for a loss of 30 yards and eight total, including four false starts that pushed the offense out of field goal range. 

Texans rookie C.J. Stroud, who became the fourth rookie passer to throw for 200-plus yards and three touchdowns in last weekend's win, struggled to create opportunities. Under duress, Stroud was 3 of 8 on third-down conversions. 

Stroud finished 11 of 20 for 131 yards. Nico Collins finished with a team-high 58  receiving yards on seven targets. 

The Texans pushed deep into Ravens' territory thanks to first-down pickups from Collins, but Ka'imi Fairbairn missed a 47-yard field goal with 35 seconds remaining. 

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Harris and Blake Cashman recorded back-to-back sacks on the ensuing drive to force another punt from Baltimore just before halftime. 

Houston has never advanced past the divisional round of the postseason. Should the Texans pull off the upset, they'll head to either Buffalo or Kansas City for a shot at claiming their first conference title.