Jacksonville Jaguars (2-5) vs. Houston Texans (4-3)
Time/Date: 4:15 PM EST, October 30, 2011
Venue: Reliant Stadium
Broadcast: CBS
Jaguars vs. Texans Gambling Odds from JustBet
Spread: Texans -9.5
Moneyline: Texans (-425) Jaguars (+345)
Over/Under: 41
Jacksonville shined bright in the spotlight of Monday Night Football last week. The Jaguars pulled off a shocking 12-7 win over the Baltimore Ravens. Now, they’ll have to travel west to Houston and take on an impressive Texans team on short rest. Houston has high hopes for this season, and this is precisely the type of game they cannot afford to lose if they are going to get into the playoffs.
The Jaguars have turned to rookie Blaine Gabbert as their starting quarterback. The reviews on Gabbert’s performance in his first few games in the NFL have been mixed. Gabbert has only thrown two interceptions, but he also has completed just 48% of his passes. Maurice Jones-Drew had issues with fumbling last week, but he has had a very solid start to the season. MJD is averaging 4.6 yards per carry, which is particularly impressive considering the opponent is constantly loading the box against Jacksonville’s offense. Gabbert doesn’t have a very good group of receivers. Jacksonville really needs to find a play maker to stretch the defense on the outside.
Jacksonville’s defense played an amazing game last Monday night. Now, they’ll have to face a very tough Texans offense. The Jaguars don’t have too many stars on defense, but they do have a lot of players who play their position wisely. This is a unit that has no clear cut strengths or weaknesses. The play of Tyson Alualu has been a nice surprise in the middle of the defensive line. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Houston is committed to shedding the image of a team that chokes away its playoff chances. Every year the experts believe this team is going to get over the top, but they find a way to miss the playoffs. The team is much more well-rounded this year than they have ever been before. The signing of Johnathan Joseph has really helped their secondary. Houston had the worst secondary in football at this time last year, but this year they rank eighth in the NFL against the pass. Brian Cushing is the team’s main play maker in the middle of the defense, and J.J. Watt has provided another good pass-rusher on the outside.
Matt Schaub has been a solid quarterback for the last few years, and he is off to another good start this year. Schaub has thrown 12 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions. He has a quarterback rating of 96.8. Andre Johnson may well be the best receiver in the NFL, but he has missed the last two games. He is listed as a game-time decision in this one. Arian Foster is healthy again, and he is doing damage both in the running and passing game. Foster is averaging 4.1 yards per carry, and he also has 21 receptions already this year.
Jacksonville’s defense is solid, but I can’t see their offense putting up too many points in this one. Houston should load up the box and make Gabbert beat them through the air. This should stay low scoring.
Free NFL Pick: Jaguars/Texans under 41
