The Houston Texans failed to kick off the new season with a bang after a 27-20 defeat to the Chiefs on Sunday. But they’ll have another chance to do so when they head to the Bank of America Stadium for a road battle with the Carolina Panthers, who managed to garner the victory in their Week 1 matchup with the Jaguars, 20-9.
Can the Texans come out with a major bounce back performance? Or will the Panthers be able to stay on the winning track? Read on below for an detailed breakdown of this Week 2 matchup.
And if you’re craving for more NFL action, check out our other Week 2 previews: Rams vs. Redskins and Jets vs. Colts.
Houston Texans vs. Carolina Panthers Preview
Where: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
When: Sunday, September 20, 1:00 PM ET
Line: Houston Texans (+3.5) at Carolina Panthers (-3.5); total: 40.5 – see all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: CBS
Betting on the Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are back to where they started in regard to their starting quarterback dilemma.
Brian Hoyer, who sealed the starting quarterback position thanks to an impressive preseason performance, didn’t pull through in their season opener versus the Kansas City Chiefs. Hoyer was simply awful, completing just 18-of-34 passes for 236 yards with a touchdown, an interception and four sacks registered to his name for the sorry 27-20 loss on Sunday.
[sc:NFL240banner ]As a result of this, Hoyer was benched and was replaced by Ryan Mallett with 6:10 remaining in the fourth quarter. Mallet engineered two scoring drives while converting 8-of-13 passes for 98 yards along with a touchdown, which at the very least made things a little interesting down the stretch. His performance should force head coach Bill O’Brien to reconsider him as the better starting quarterback than Hoyer.
While O’Brien mulls about this in the upcoming days, he also needs to figure out how to avoid another loss in Week 2 when they oppose the Carolina Panthers.
Houston is likely going to have to lean on their wide receiver, DeAndre Hopkins as it continues to fight through life without star running back in Arian Foster, whose status remains questionable for Week 2 due to an offseason groin surgery. Hopkins led the way for the Texans on offense by tallying nine receptions for 98 yards and two touchdowns in a losing effort.
As for the defense, J.J. Watt will be the main anchor. Watt had a record performance on Sunday as he delivered nine solo tackles, including six for a loss to tie his career high from three years ago. He also garnered two sacks on Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith, which prolonged his streak of having at least a sack to six straight games—the second-longest active streak in the NFL.
Watt should be able to extend his streak further against a suspect Panthers O-line. His ability to put pressure on Cam Newton will be crucial in slowing down an already limited Panthers offense.
Houston is 2-3 SU and 2-2-1 ATS in its previous five games as the underdogs.
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Betting on the Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers were able to notch the 20-9 win on Sunday against the Jaguars, but it wasn’t a pretty one at all. Nonetheless, they’ll look to achieve the same result with a stronger performance when they strive for a 2-0 record on the season at the expense of the visiting Houston Texans for their Week 2 showdown.
Quarterback Cam Newton will need to have better showing than the one on Sunday, during which he was limited by Jacksonville to 175 yards passing, a touchdown throw and a pick despite capturing a season a opener victory for the first time in his career. It wasn’t just Newton, though, who had an off night, as the offense as a whole seemed sluggish from the start. Luckily, the defense stepped up big time for Carolina to help them pull out the ugly win.
Cornerback Josh Norman came up with an insane performance that included a 30-yard interception returned for a touchdown right around the third period. Then outside linebacker Thomas Davis made his own noise as well with a second half sack and an interception to help the Panthers eventually fend off the Jaguars at the very end.
The defense alone won’t be enough to give the Panthers the win against Houston, though. That defense could also be dealt a major blow with star linebacker Luke Kuechly a significant doubt to play after suffering a concussion against Jacksonville.
Their offense will need to wake up from its slumber even without their prized wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin who is out for the season. The trio of Jonathan Stewart, Jerricho Cotchery and Ted Ginn Jr. will have to continue filling the void left by Benjamin. Stewart and Cotchery combined for eight receptions and 70 yards, while Ginn registered 54 yards on two receptions.
Also, Carolina hopes to receive a better output from Greg Olsen, who is considered as one of the top tight ends in the league. Olsen only had one reception for 11 yards on Sunday, but a breakout performance could come anytime as he is coming off a career season in 2014, during which he had a career-high of 84 catches for a total of 1,008 yards.
The Panthers are 9-1 SU and 5-4-1 ATS in their last 10 games as the favorites.
Writer’s Prediction
Carolina (-3.5) wins, 27-21.
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