Panthers vs Texans Week 15 Gambling Preview
With their win last week the Texans (10-3) wrapped up their first ever AFC South title, but all is not well with Houston since defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, who has helped turn the Texans’ defense into a great one, is on a temporary medical leave of absence.
Venue/ Stadium: Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Time/Date: 1 PM EST Sunday, December 18, 2011
NCAA Odds From: BetOnline
Moneyline: Panthers +225 / Texans -265
Spread (ATS): Texans -6.5
Over/Under: 45
Carolina Panthers vs. Houston Texans Preview
The Panthers (4-9) blew a 16-point halftime lead in their last game and this season they are only 2-4 on the road. NFL lines have the Texans as 6.5-point home favorites with a total of 45.
In their last games the Texans won a thrilling 20-19 win over the Cincinnati Bengals while the Panthers lost to the Atlanta Falcons 31-23.
This season the Texans are 9-3-1 ATS and have an O/U record of 5-8 and the Panthers are 7-6 ATS with an O/U record of 8-5.
On top of Phillips being out for this game the Texans WR Andre Johnson is questionable with a hamstring injury and starting G Mike Brisiel is out with a broken leg.
Even without Johnson in the lineup 3rd string QB T.J. Yates passed for 300 yards in the win over the Bengals and TE Owen Daniels had 100 receiving yards and WR Kevin Walter had 76 receiving yards. The Panthers have the league’s 19th ranked pass defense, but what is more important in this game may be their 24th ranked run defense.
The RB duo of Adrian Foster and Ben Tate lead the Texans and their 2nd ranked rushing attack and if they have a big game the Texans will win. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Cam Newton has had a solid rookie season and passed for 276 yards with 2 TD and 2 INT in the loss to the Falcons last week. The INT is the key in this game, as in the previous 2 Panthers wins he had 0 INT. Turnovers are key in this game, as in the 4 wins Carolina has only have 1 turnover and in their 9 losses they have 20. Houston has the league’s 3rd ranked pass defense and they rank 5th in the league with 17 INT.
Carolina RB DeAngelo Williams must help Newton out and he had a solid game last week and while the Houston run defense ranks 4th in the league they gave up over 100 rushing yards last week to Cincinnati.
Betting Trends
The Panthers are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games as a road underdog, 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games facing a team with a winning record, and they have an Over record of 7-3-1 in their last 11 road games.
The Texans are 6-0-1 ATS in their last 7 games, 5-1-1 ATS in their last 7 home games, and have an Under record of 5-1 in their last 6 home games.
Jason’s Pick: Houston has already wrapped up the AFC South, but they still want to earn a bye in the first round of the playoffs. Look for Foster and Tate to carry the Texans to a win and they will also cover the 6.5-point spread.
