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NFL Free Pick: Bengals vs. Texans Betting Odds & Handicapping Preview

Week 12: Cincinnati vs Houston Expert Preview

Week 12 of the NFL season we will feature a match-up between the Cincinnati Bengals (6-3-1) and the Houston Texans (5-5) at Lambeau Field. Cappers Picks will provide free NFL picks all season.

This is a big game for both teams as a pair of AFC playoff hopefuls will square of Sunday afternoon when the Bengals travel to Texas to take on the Houston Texans.

Bet on NFL Week 12 Football!

Cincinnati vs. Houston
When: Sunday, Nov. 23 2014 at 1:00 pm ET
Where: NRG Stadium
TV: CBS
NFL Week 12 ATS Gambling Line: Texans -1
NFL Week 11 Gambling O/U Line: 43.5
***2014 BONUSES***
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Click here to view today’s… ATS Matchup Insight | CP Insider Gambling Preview

As mentioned above and just taking a quick glance at these teams’ records, both the Bengals and Texans are still very much in the running for a playoff spot.

In a span of three weeks the Bengals went from first in the AFC North, to last and back into first.

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The Texans started the season 3-1 before losing three straight games but have righted the ship to an extent to get their record back to .500 last week with a win over previous AFC North leaders Cleveland.

Bengals

There are only a few teams left in the NFL that I still don’t feel as though I have a firm grasp on what they are and the Bengals are one of them. At times they look like the 11-5 Bengals that cruised to a pretty uncontested division title a year ago, and at other times they look like the infamous “Bungles” who just seem to find ways to shoot themselves in the foot and make life difficult on themselves.

QB Andy Dalton had a shaky two week stretch where he threw five picks (two TD, two INT, two sacks against Jacksonville and 86 yards with no TDs and three INTS in a lopsided 24-3 loss to the Browns).

Bengals fans were really questioning whether the big money man was really the guy to lead this team for the coming years.

Dalton quickly silenced the critics last week, going 16/22 through the air for 220 yards and three TDs in a 27-10 win over the Saints in the Superdome which is (supposed to be) a nearly impossible place to win for road teams.

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While Dalton was efficient it was the defense that ruled the day last week and kept what is a pretty potent Saints offense, especially at home, in check for the majority of the day.

Cinci all but nullified the run game of New Orleans, holding them to just 75 yards and kept the Saints to 330 yards of offense. 330 is a bit of a bulky number but the bend and don’t break style worked, limiting the Saints to a mere 10 points.

Texans

Houston also went on the road and earned a pretty impressive win last week. It’s a sign of the times and parity in the NFL when you’re considering a win over the Cleveland Browns to be impressive. The Texans also used stifling defense to carry them to victory last week and made the Browns look pretty bad.

Now Browns QB Brian Hoyer played a big role in that as he was wildly inaccurate, going 20/50 on the day for 330 yards, one TD and one INT.

It looks as though the Texans could be without star running back Arian Foster once again this week as he is still nursing a groin ailment, but he is listed as questionable.

Ryan Mallet wasn’t exactly jaw dropping a week ago, but the Texans boast a very effective run game and it doesn’t really matter who is taking first team reps (Alfred Blue got the ball 36 times last week and turned that into 156 yards on the ground).

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The Bengals are giving up over 135 rushing yards per game so expect the Texans to try to exploit that with another week of continuous ground attack, regardless of who is lining up behind Mallet.

Week 12 Bengals vs.Texans 4* Free Pick

This is essentially a pick’em game with just a one point spread leaning towards Houston.

The Bengals did a better job shutting down the run last week but that was against a Saints team that is happy to let Drew Brees throw the ball 96,000 times a year.

Houston has not won a game at home yet this season against a team with a winning record  and in their last two home games against Indy and Philly they’ve given up 33 and 31 points respectively.

I like the Bengals to keep it rolling this week and come out of Houston with the win.

Check out our Updated NFL Week 12 Odds.

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By Matt Durnan

A (self-proclaimed) fantasy sports guru since 2004 and a journalist since 2007. He has been offering unsolicited sports gambling advice to his circle of friends for years and has now put himself at the mercy of online readers everywhere. "It's not whether you win or lose, it's how much fun you have"... His hockey coach told him that when he was 7. His team lost every game that year.