Houston Texans running back Arian Foster (23) runs against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the second quarter. (Dale Zanine-US PRESSWIRE)

The Houston Texans are hungry. They want to chew clock and spit it out when the game is over, particularly on the road. That’s part of the reason why they’re 2-0 and the 6th best running team in the league entering the third week of the season against the Denver Broncos.

“We ran the ball last week well on the road which in this business, when you go on the road, you’ve got to protect the ball and build a run,” Texans head coach Gary Kubiak said in a conference call Wednesday.

In week one, the Texans held onto the ball for 34 minutes 44 seconds in their 30-10 win over the Miami Dolphins. In week two, they possessed the ball for 43 minutes 17 seconds in their 27-7 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“We feel like they’re one of the better run teams in this league,” Broncos linebacker Keith Brooking said. “They’ve been in that system a long time, especially their core players.”

Arian Foster was a top tier back in 2011, averaging 94.2 yards per contest. He led the Texans in rushing week one with 79 yards on 26 carries and 2 touchdowns. He also put up 110 yards on 28 carries and one touchdown in week two. It’s hard to believe that Foster went undrafted.

“I just think sometimes good players like that will slip through the cracks, probably no better example than T.D. (Terrell Davis) when we were there in Denver,” Kubiak said. “T.D.’s senior year was not what he had expected or Georgia had expected. He goes and plays in a blue-grey game. We’re watching him and we say ‘This is a good-looking player.’ He ends up being a 6th round draft choice. I just think that you’ve got to do your work on everybody, and then I think there are guys that are really driven and maybe don’t have the success in college, but they have the abililty to show at the next level, ‘I can do this.’”

The guy that helped propel the Texans up the board in the running game in week two was third year back out of Auburn, Ben Tate. Tate had 74 yards on 12 carries and 2 touchdowns.

This combination presents a deadly threat for the Broncos who have been relatively good at stopping the run. The Texans employ a successful zone-blocking scheme. Brooking is very familiar with the style of ground game because Mike Shanahan’s Washington Redskins have run it in the past when Brooking was a Dallas Cowboy.

“You have to be patient,” Brooking said. “The gaps move quickly ,so you have to be sound in your responsibility. You have to know where you’re leverage is as far as your help is in the run game, as far as if you’re bringing the safety down or you’re not. More than anything is just attacking. They want to kind of get you running sideways and then cut down hill, so you have to take the attack to them.”

The Texans are great at getting to the edge and bursting for big gains, but then again, they haven’t taken on a run defense as strong as the Broncos this season. Denver is 7th against the run, giving up 71.0 yards per game.

“They’re one of the best defenses in the NFL,” Foster said. “They’re so quick and fast. They’re fun to watch.”

Fun is a relative term, especially come Sunday.

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Robert Ayers hurries Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub in December 2010. (Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE)

Now that the Denver Broncos schedule has been released, we are going to take a game-by-game look at the regular season that the Broncos have in front of them.

The Denver Broncos host their first afternoon game of the season when the Houston Texans come to town. The Texans are coming off games against the Miami Dolphins and the Jacksonville Jaguars. The team went 10-6 in 2011, but they lost their last three regular season games. They skidded into the playoffs beating the Cincinnati Bengals in the wildcard round and then lost to the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round.

The last time the Broncos and Texans played each other was in December 2010. The Broncos won 24-23 behind Tim Tebow’s 308 yards, one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown.

Last season the Texans were 11th on offense (2nd in rushing and 18th in passing). Obviously, their strength lies in their running game with Arian Foster. Once things balance out they could be one of the top ranking offenses in the league.

On defense, the Texans were ranked 4th in points allowed (17.4) and they had a 3rd ranked passing defense and a 4th ranked rushing defense. Mario Williams left for Buffalo, but they still retained a lot of key starters.

Some moves they made in free agency include losing right tackle Eric Winston and tight end Joel Dreeseen (who was signed by the Broncos). Of course, losing Williams was a huge hit. They acquired Bradie James from the Dallas Cowboys, but his best days appear to be behind him.

Early Prediction: Broncos – 27 Texans – 17. This is the game where things really click for Peyton Manning and the Broncos offense. Manning can pick apart the Texans defense while the Broncos defense can apply a lot of pressure to Matt Schaub who is playing from behind.

Texans’Leaders in 2011:

Matt Schaub – 178-for-292 (61.0%), 2,479 passing yards, 15 TDs, 6 INTs. 

Arian Foster – 1,224 yards (94.2 yards per game), 10 TDs, 5 Fumbles

Owen Daniels – 54 receptions, 677 yards, 3 TDs

Brian Cushing – 114 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 INTs

Jason Allen – 4 INTs, 45 tackles

Connor Barwin – 11.5 sacks, 47 tackles

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And no place feels like home more than Denver for Texans offensive coordinator Rick Dennison. Dennison has more history with the Denver Broncos than almost anybody. He played for the team from ’82-90 as a linebacker  and special teams player. Then he was an assistant coach from 1995-2009.

John Elway confirmed today on Twitter that the Broncos have reached out to the Texans about Dennison. No interview is scheduled as of yet.

Based on Elway’s description of wanting to hire a head coach that realizes how much the team means to its fans, Dennison looks to be the front-runner.
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