The Houston Texans and Denver Broncos will go at it on the grass at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. CBS owns the TV rights and the game is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. ET.
Houston Texans vs. Denver Broncos Betting Preview
In this Sunday AFC matchup, Denver has been projected as the favorite and is currently giving up 3 points. The Texans are also receiving +130 moneyline odds while the Broncos are -150. Should one squad catches a lucky break in the early stages it’ll create a nice betting scenario in-game. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 46 points.
The early action has swayed toward both the Broncos and the under. This opening line was originally -2 and the game’s total was initially placed at 47.
The Texans have gained 0.3 units so far in 2018 and are 3-4-1 against the spread (ATS). They’ve been a decent under bet and have posted an Over-Under record of 3-5. The Broncos are down 2.1 units this season. The team is 3-4-1 ATS and also has an O/U record of 3-5.
The Texans are 5-3 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Broncos are 3-5 SU.
The Texans are coming off a resounding 42-23 win over Miami last week. Deshaun Watson completed 16 passes on 20 attempts for 239 yards and five touchdowns. Lamar Miller (133 rushing yards on 18 attempts, one TD) and Alfred Blue (42 yards on 15 carries) led the ground attack while DeAndre Hopkins (six receptions, 82 yards, two TDs) and Will Fuller V (five catches, 124 yards, one TD) handled the receiving duties in the win.
In Week 8, Kansas City got the victory against this Denver team by a score of 30-23. The Broncos defensive secondary let the Chiefs air it out for 303 yards and four touchdowns. Sammy Watkins had a productive outing in the win for Kansas City, recording 107 yards and two touchdowns on eight catches. For Denver, Case Keenum completed 23-of-34 passes for 262 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Phillip Lindsay (95 yards on 18 rush attempts, one TD) and Devontae Booker (78 yards on nine carries) spearheaded the running game as Booker (four receptions, 23 yards) and Emmanuel Sanders (four catches, 57 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
Houston has run the ball on 47.9 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Denver has an overall rush percentage of 41.0 percent. The Texans have run for 123 yards per game and have four touchdowns on the ground this year. The Broncos are putting up 133 rush yards per game and have nine total rushing TDs.
It appears that the Broncos ought to have an advantage when it comes to quarterback protection, as their offensive line has given up just 22 sacks while their D-line has registered 24 sacks. The Texans O-line has given up 26 sacks and their defense has got to opposing signal-callerss on just 21 occasions.
The Texans offensive scheme has logged 272 yards per contest through the air overall and has 15 passing TDs so far. The Broncos have recorded 267 pass yards per game and have 11 total pass scores.
On the defensive side of the ball, Houston has allowed 95 rush yards and 259 pass yards per game. The Denver D has allowed 257.9 yards per game to opposing passers and 135.8 yards per game to opposing runners. Both teams allow similar adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) to opponents, as the Texans have given up an ANY/A of 6.12 to opposing QBs, while the Broncos are allowing an ANY/A of 6.13.
Offensively, Watson has put up 2,037 passing yards on the year, and has connected on 66 percent of his 237 attempts with 14 scores through the air and seven interceptions. He’s got a 7.18 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number is 10.89 over the last two outings.
Lamar Miller (404 rushing yards, one rush TD, one receiving touchdown this season), Will Fuller V (435 receiving yards, four receiving TDs) and DeAndre Hopkins (739 receiving yards, five TDs) have each played significant roles of late.
In the hosts’ locker room, Case Keenum has completed 170-of-267 passes for 1,949 yards, nine TDs and nine INTs. Keenum’s ANY/A stands at 5.50 for the season and 5.52 over his last two games.
Phillip Lindsay (441 rushing yards, two rush TDs, one receiving touchdown on the year), Emmanuel Sanders (558 receiving yards, two receiving TDs) and Courtland Sutton (296 receiving yards, one receiving TD) have combined to account for 467 total yards and four touchdowns over the last couple of games.
RELATED: Week 9 NFL Betting Odds and Predictions
Betting Prediction: Texans at Broncos
SU Winner – Broncos, ATS Winner – Broncos, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Trends
The Texans offense has recorded three pass plays of 40+ yards, while the Broncos have accounted for seven such plays.
Both defenses have allowed six pass plays of 40 or more yards. The Houston defense has given up 11 pass plays of 30+ yards while Denver has given up 10 such plays.
The Houston offense has created two rushing plays of 20+ yards, while Denver has created seven such runs.
The Texans defense has allowed one rushing play of 20 or more yards, while the Broncos have given up 10 such runs.
The Denver defense has sacked opposing quarterbacks 24 times this season. Houston has produced 21 sacks.
Houston has averaged 4.2 yards per rush attempt over its past three outings and 4.6 over its last two.
Denver has averaged 4.9 yards per carry over its last three contests and 5.2 over its past two.
Over its last three matchups, Denver is 3-0 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
The O/U for Houston’s previous game going into it was 45.5. The over cashed in the team’s 42-23 win over Miami.
Over its last three matchups, Houston is 2-1 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
The O/U for Denver’s last matchup was 53.5. The under cashed in the 30-23 defeat to Kansas City.
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