Monday Night Football was a success for the Baltimore Ravens with a 23-16 win over the Houston Texans. It wasn’t an ideal victory, but they managed to come out on top, keeping the team’s playoff hopes alive. 

Joe Flacco and the offense struggled to move the ball down the field and the crowd at M&T Bank Stadium wasn’t shy about expressing their disappointment with a chorus of boos in the fourth quarter. After 100 yards in penalties for amateur mistakes—we’re talking to you, Matt Judon—the defense still managed to force three turnovers that made all the difference in the game.

The real hero of the night was the special teams squad, aka the Wolfpack. Veteran punter Sam Koch set up the team’s first touchdown with a completion to wide receiver Chris Moore on a fake punt. Koch is now 2-for-2 on the season in completions on fake punts and 4/4 in his career with 48-yard and a quarterback rating of 116.7. Flacco says that he would make a pretty decent backup, backup QB if it ever came to it.

“He definitely has the ability to throw the football,” Flacco said in a post-game conference. “Whether he has any idea about what’s going on back there, who knows.” 

Koch also showed off his crazy accurate leg for the second week in a row by dropping five punts inside the 20-yard line forcing Houston to drive long distances to score. After Monday’s game, he was named AFC Special Teams Player of the week, leading the league with 29 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line and a net punt average that puts him just outside the top 10.

Fellow Wolfpack member Justin Tucker shined on Monday night, as well, making a 53-yard field goal look like a cakewalk. He was 8-for-8 in November for field goal attempts and was named AFC Special Teams Player for the month of November. It’s his fourth time earning that title in his six-year career. 

With the Ravens offense ranked 31st in the league (yikes!), Tucker has been the team’s primary scoring weapon. His seemingly bionic leg has an 88.5 success rate, making him the 12th best kicker in the league.

Going into Sunday’s game against Detroit, the Ravens and the Lions—which both have had slow starts and struggling offenses—don’t look all that dissimilar. Seems to be a safe best that the Wolfpack will make the difference once again.

“I’m glad we were able to have a good night on Monday night,” Tucker said. “That’s why you play the game . . . have a big night and get a win with your teammates.”

Ravens at Texans, Sunday Dec. 21, 1:00 p.m., NRG Stadium, CBS

Baltimore heads to the Lone Star State this week to play a reeling Houston team in the season’s penultimate regular season game. The Texans lost their starting quarterback for the season in a loss at Indianapolis last week, so they’ll be playing a backup against the Ravens. They are, however, mathematically still alive for a playoff spot. I’m a bit surprised that Baltimore is only a 4½-point favorite. I plan on betting on the Ravens, devouring a boatload of barbecue, and watching what offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak has in store for the team that fired him as its head coach after last season.

What to Eat: Texas loves its barbecue, and down there beef is the favored meat. Of course, true barbecue is smoked, which is notoriously tough to do at home without the right equipment. I found this recipe for Texas oven-roasted beef brisket that’s a worthy non-smoked substitute.

• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons dry mustard
• 1 bay leaf, crushed
• 4 pounds beef brisket, trimmed
• 1 1/2 cups beef stock

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Make a dry rub by combining chili powder, salt, garlic and onion powders, black pepper, sugar, dry mustard, and bay leaf. Season the raw brisket on both sides with the rub. Place in a roasting pan and roast, uncovered, for one hour. Add beef stock and enough water to yield about a half inch of liquid in the roasting pan. Lower oven to 300 degrees, cover pan tightly and continue cooking for three hours, or until fork-tender. Trim the fat and slice meat thinly across the grain. Top with juice from the pan.

As I wrote about in the fall, Baltimore is an up and coming barbecue city. Big Bad Wolf (5713 Harford Rd.) serves beef ribs, as does Midtown BBQ and Brew (15 E. Centre St.). Blue Pit BBQ (1601 Union Ave.) has been open since the summer, but just started serving a full menu, which includes Zeke’s-coffee-rubbed brisket, which I can’t wait to try.

What to Drink: One of the country’s most beloved beers comes from a little town of 2,069 residents about two hours west of Houston. Shiner Bock is a dark lager brewed with roasted barely malt and German specialty hops. It was originally a seasonal beer, but its popularity convinced the company to begin producing it year round in 1973.

If You Go: Houston is a sprawling metropolis of more than 2 million citizens, making it the country’s fourth-most populous city. Spread over nearly 600 square miles, it’s not the most walkable of cities. No matter how you get there, definitely check out the Saint Arnold Brewing Company. Texas’ oldest craft brewery offers tours on Saturdays between noon and 2 p.m., and its beer hall is a great place to sample Fancy Lawnmower, a German-style Kölsch.

In a city full of great barbecue restaurants, Gatlin’s stands out. If you make the pilgrimage, be prepared for lines out the door and some of the best ribs you’ve ever had.