The Buffalo Bills have rarely gone into the playoffs the past two decades, but they will play in one to begin the new decade when they pay Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans on the road for a wild-card showdown. Read on for more about this game below.
The Bills head into the playoffs on a not-so solid footing, having both of their last two games. In Week 17, they absorbed a 13-6 home loss to the New York Jets, though, it was a game in which Buffalo barely played their starters, as the result was inconsequential to their future. Josh Allen is the current face of the Bills, as one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL. Allen has a cannon of an arm, but the Bills are far from fully capitalizing it because they don’t have an elite group of receivers. Nevertheless, they have done relatively well in the passing attack despite a wide receiver corps that is only being led by the likes of Cole Beasley and Jon Brown, who are both solid downfield playmakers but wouldn’t be treated as WR1 in most other offenses. The Bills’ rushing attack, meanwhile, provides a path to success in the Texans game. The Bills are eighth in the NFL with 128.4 rushing yards per game. They will be matched up against Houston’s run defense that is only 27th in the NFL with 4.8 rushing yards per carry. Buffalo’s defense is the team’s best asset, though, as the Bills are allowing just 16.2 points per game.
The Bills are 5-4-1 against the spread (ATS) in their last 10 games.
Betting on the Houston Texans (10-6)
The Texans’ regular season ended in a flop, as they lost to the Tennessee Titans at home, 35-14, but that didn’t hurt their playoff chances, as they still emerged as the AFC South division champions. The Texans have an exciting young quarterback of their own in Deshaun Watson, who will enter the playoffs with 3,852 passing yards and 26 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on the season. He also has 413 rushing yards and a team-leading seven rushing scores. The Bills may be missing some pieces on defense, including cornerback Levi Wallace, and if he does miss the game, that will be a big plus for the Texans’ passing attack that feeds off a balanced symbiosis downfield between DeAndre Hopkins, Will Fuller, and Kenny Stills. Fuller, however, may not be ready to play due to a groin injury, but Texans head coach Bill O’Brien has said that the wide receiver is “headed in the right direction” in terms of Fuller’s availability in the wild card round. Watson’s ability to run the ball and running back Carlos Hyde’s effectiveness on the ground will present trouble for even the Bills’ stout defense.
The over is 3-0 in the Texans’ last three home games.
