Houston Texans: An expert guide to betting the Texans in week one
By David Graf
The Houston Texans take on the New England Patriots in Week 1. Here’s your expert guide on how to make money while rooting for your Texans.
The Houston Texans take on the New England Patriots in Week 1 of the NFL season, and Nevada no longer holds a monopoly on the sports gambling business. Full-scale legalized sports betting is now available in Mississippi, West Virginia, New Jersey, and Delaware, too.
It is 6 hours and 22 minutes from NRG Stadium to Biloxi, MS if you’re interested in making a quick road trip before Sunday’s game to place your legal wagers. As a result of sports gambling no longer being in the shadows, I would like to give you some advice on how to wager on the Texans’ game each Sunday. Always remember to never bet more than you can afford to lose, and please, gamble responsibly.
Matchup: at New England Patriots
The Texans have faced off against the Patriots 10 times in their history, and they are dreadful against them. The Texans have gone 1-9 and have covered the spread in only 3 of those games.
Related Story. 5 reasons why the Texans will beat the Patriots. light
The most disappointing defeat came at the hands of Jacoby Brissett besting Brock Osweiler in Week 3 of the 2016 season on Thursday Night Football. The Patriots won 27-0 in Brissett’s first career start, and it was the last time we saw J.J. Watt for the season that year.
For this matchup, the Patriots will be without wide receiver Julian Edelman, who was suspended four games due to a violation of the policy against performance-enhancing drugs. As a result of this suspension, it leaves a hole at wide receiver for the Pats, but they still have big, bad tight end Rob Gronkowski.
New England still has Tom Brady at quarterback. Brady’s only loss to the Texans came in Week 17 of the 2009 season when Wes Welker tore his ACL and MCL in the first quarter. In last year’s matchup, Brady engineered a game-winning drive by scoring a touchdown with 23 seconds left with a great 25-yard pass to Brandin Cooks, who is now a Los Angeles Ram. He finished the game passing for 378 yards and 5 touchdowns.
On defense, the Patriots let go of safety Malcolm Butler after inexplicably benching him in the Super Bowl, and they are expecting major contributions at the linebacker position from 5th-rounder Ja’Whaun Bentley out of Purdue. Matt Patricia, the rocket scientist defensive coordinator, is now the head coach of the Detroit Lions, so that’s another loss to account for.
The Patriots still have Bill Belichick at the helm, and he always seems to have something under the hoodie. He’s led the Pats to 2-2 in their last four Week 1 games, and it’s no secret that the time to play New England is at the beginning of the season.
Line: New England -6 and Total: 49.5
The Texans would have beat the Patriots last season if Bill O’Brien hadn’t played so conservatively on the final drive, and if the defense could have made Tom Brady feel any kind of pressure whatsoever. O’Brien should be more comfortable letting it rip with Deshaun Watson in year two and having the more talented roster in this matchup.
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With Clowney, Watt, and Mercilus, all healthy and ready to ball, they should be able to get after Tom Brady. Outside of Gronkowski, the usual cast for the Patriots on offense isn’t there, and this matchup couldn’t be coming at a better time for them. They are healthy on both sides of the ball, and the Patriots are seemingly in the middle of a rebuilding year with a 41-year old quarterback.
The Texans are still 1-9 against the Patriots in team history, and the total has gone over in 8 out of 10 of those games. I see a close back and forth game again like last year, and the conservative nature of Bill O’Brien costs the Texans a victory again.
Watson will put the team in a great position again, but Tom Brady will do what he does best to the Texans and break their hearts. This doesn’t mean that he will cover the spread though!
Pick: Patriots 31-27
Next. Week one preview against the Patriots. dark
This is sure to be a great game regardless of the outcome. It would be nice to see the Texans come out with the victory but, Brady does Brady things.
All odds are courtesy of Oddshark.com.