NFL Week 17 Betting Chicago Bears at Houston Texans
The Bears tried to kill themselves last week, showing even less imagination of offense than they normally do, but they stayed with it and took advantage of Packer mistakes to keep themselves alive for another week.
They also had some incredible luck.
Will that luck continue, as Chicago heads into the final week having to win, and hope for Minnesota and/or other teams to stumble?
BetUS NFL betting odds: HOUSTON -3, Total 46.5
NOTABLE STAT: Bears have allowed 3.4 yards per rushing attempt
KEY NFL FOOTBALL BETTING TREND: Chicago has played seven of its last eight road games under the total
In the BetUS NFL football betting odds, the Texans are listed as a three-point favorite, with a posted total of 46.5 points.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* CHI is 2-5-1 ATS in its last eight games
* CHI has won four of its last five games SU
* CHI has played five of its last seven games UNDER the total
* CHI has lost seven of its last ten road games SU
* CHI has played seven of its last eight road games UNDER the total
* HOU has won four of its last five games SU
* HOU has covered five of its last six games
* HOU has played four of its last five games UNDER the total
* HOU has covered eight of its last 11 home games
* HOU has won five of its last six home games SU
Kyle Orton was been respectable with 16 TD passes and 12 interceptions this year, but he’s been less impressive lately, with five TD’s and eight pickoffs in his last four games. The Bears just don’t do very well on offense under Lovie Smith; they rank 26th in the NFL in yards gained, and even with the insertion of Devin Hester (45 catches) into the lineup, they can’t improve their air attack. Seriously, if it weren’t for rookie Matt Forte, who’s had 1188 rushing yards and 452 receiving yards, this team would be sitting with about four wins. Thank God also for Danieal Manning, who has taken control of the kickoff return duties as Hester was pulled off, and chalked up 885 yards.
The Texans tripped badly against Oakland last week, indicating that are not ready for prime time. They let JaMarcus Russell to pass for 236 yards, and seemingly couldn’t handle the idea of beating the Titans the week before. Andre Johnson has caught 105 passes, and is hands down one of the NFL’s best at the wide out position. Steve Slaton has been even more sensational than Forte, with a 4.8 yard average and 1190 total rushing yards. Owen Daniels (67 catches, 825 yards) provides another dependable target for Matt Schaub (65%, 13 TD’s, 10 INT’s), who has bouts with inconsistency that may not rival those of Orton, but are pretty frustrating nonetheless.
Houston has played well enough at Reliant Stadium to have beaten teams like Miami and Tennessee, and would have put the Colts as a notch in their belt if not for a near-surreal late game collapse. But before we talk about this as a walk in the park for the Texans, let’s point out a few things.
One of those is that Houston, believe it or not, has been a less efficient offense than Chicago, when we look at it within the reference of “yards per point.” The Texans have had to gain 16.9 yards for every point they’ve scored, compared with just 12.6 for the Bears. That’s because Houston has been so bad in the red zone, scoring touchdowns only 44% of the time they have been down there. That’s tough against a capable defense. Houston also allows 4,5 yards per rushing attempt, so Forte is liable to have an easier time chewing up ground than fellow rookie Slaton.
Chicago’s desperation here should bring out something close to maximum effort, particularly on the defensive side, This is a tough call, but we’ll side with a desperate squad getting points, which means “Da Bears” plus “Da Points” in “Da BetUS NFL betting odds.
