The Houston Texans will head to their showdown with New England with momentum on their side after eking past the Kansas City Chiefs, 19-12, on Sunday. It was another impressive victory for the Texans, who improved their season-record to 2-0. With the win, the Texans finally snapped their three-game losing streak to the Chiefs.
Key to Houston’s incredible start has been their superb defense. The Texans are third in the NFL in scoring defense, surrendering just 13 points per game this season. They forced three turnovers and recorded four sacks on Kansas City quarterback Alex Smith on Sunday. The Texans, who nabbed three defensive fumble recoveries in the first half for the first time in their franchise history, didn’t allow a single touchdown in the win against the Chiefs.
They will need to bring that same kind of defensive effort this coming Thursday if they are to inflict New England’s first defeat. The Texans’ secondary, in particular, needs to man up against New England’s aerial attack, one that’s averaging 280.5 yards per game through the air this season (ninth-best in the NFL). The Texans held Alex Smith to just 186 passing yards on Sunday.
Expected to lead the way for the Houston defense is J.J. Watt. He notched his first sacks (1.5) of 2016 in the win against the Chiefs. Watt had a solid all-around game against Kansas City, recording five tackles, two quarterback hits, and a fumble recovery. Two other Houston players had sacks in that contest, namely: John Simon (1.5) and Benardrick McKinney (1.0). They will be licking their chops at the prospect of facing a New England side that will have the inexperienced Jacoby Brissett as its starting quarterback this coming Thursday.
The Texans are 4-2 ATS in their last six road games.
The New England Patriots preserved their unbeaten record with a thrilling 31-24 victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday. The Pats survived a furious Miami rally to improve to 2-0 for the season. It was another solid win for the Patriots who recorded their eighth consecutive home victory over the Dolphins.
The victory came at a huge price, though, for New England as quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo departed the game with a right shoulder injury. Garoppolo was playing some excellent football prior to that injury, completing 18 of 27 passes for 234 yards and three scores. The injury to Garoppolo couldn’t have come at a worse time for head coach Bill Belichick. The Patriots are already without the services of Tom Brady who’s serving a four-game suspension because of Deflategate.
With Garoppolo and Brady sidelined, the pressure is on third-string quarterback Jacoby Brissett to deliver the goods for the Patriots this coming Thursday. The rookie finished 6-of-9 for 92 yards in his short stint against the Dolphins. The one thing Belichick can count on Brissett is his efficiency. In two seasons as the starter for the North Carolina State Wolfpack, Brissett threw 43 touchdowns and had only 11 picks. Brissett also showed that he can be a dual-threat weapon back in college, rushing for a combined 12 touchdowns for Florida and NC State. He will undoubtedly be put to the test, though, by a Houston defense that’s allowing just 274.5 yards per game this season, third-fewest in the NFL.
The Patriots are 9-1 SU and 6-1-3 ATS in their last 10 home games.
Writer’s Prediction
The Texans (-1) extend their winning streak to three games with a 21-17 victory over the Patriots.
