NFL Handicapping – Titans vs Texans Betting Spread / Matchup
The Titans (1-2) got their first win of the season last week and Jake Locker had the best game of his career with 378 passing yards with 2 TD. However, he is not getting much help from RB Chris Johnson and they will be facing a Houston defense that ranks in the top 5 on the league in both pass and run defense.
Venue/ Stadium: Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Time/Date: 1 PM EST Sunday, September 30, 2012
NFL Odds From: TopBet
Moneyline: Titans -500 / Texans +700
Spread: Texans -11.5
Over/Under: 45
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Tennessee Titans vs. Houston Texans Preview
NFL lines have the Texans as big 11.5-home favorites with a total of 45.
In their last games the Titans beat the Detroit Lions 44-41 and the Texans beat the Denver Broncos 31-25.
On the season the Titans are 1-2 AYS with an Over/Under record of 2-1 and the Texans are 3-0 ATS with an Over/Under record of 1-2.
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Matt Schaub only leads the Texans and their 17th ranked passing offense, but with the Houston D and rushing offense he does not have to do much. Still, he has star WR Andre Johnson and stud TE Owen Daniels and they will be facing a Titans’ pass D that only ranks 30th in the league.
Not only has the Tennessee pass defense, but also their run defense has as well only ranking 29th in the league. That is not good since Texans’ RB Adrian Foster has rushed for over 100 yards in his last 2 games. If the Titans cannot keep Foster from having a good game they will have to count on their offense to bail them out.
Locker was stellar in the win over the Lions, but Detroit does not have a good pass defense while the Texans have one. He has a decent WR corps, but the key in this game may be the offensive line that has to protect their 2nd year QB and open up holes for the rushing attack. They really need to key on LB J.J. Watt, who has 5.5 sacks this season and has 2.5 in the win over the Broncos. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
What the hell is up with Johnson, as the guy who rushed for over 2,000 2 years back and over 1,000 last season only has 45 yards on 33 carries only averaging a paltry 1.4 yards per carry. He has to get on track, as Locker will probably not be able to carry Tennessee with his arm facing a great Houston defense.
These 2 AFC South rivals have split the last 4 games they have faced each other.
In some betting trends for this AFC South match up the Titans are 1-5-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall, 1-3-1 ATS vs. a team with a winning record, and they have an Under record of 9-3-1 in their last 13 games.
The Texans are 4-1-2 ATS in their last 7 home games, 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a ATS win, and they have an Under record of 7-3 in their last 10 games.
Jason’s Pick: Hard to go with a team giving 11.5 points, but have to do it, as I think the Texans will shut down the Titans’ offense and their offense will torch the weak Tennessee D.
