NFL Playoffs: Texans Can Upset Kansas City’s Applecart
By Charles Jay
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Let’s face it – if you are part of reality show, America gets to know you very quickly. The Houston Texans were a franchise that, even in the words of head coach Bill O’Brien in the first scene of HBO’s “Hard Knocks,” nobody really cared about. But they are trying to change that. They were able to weather a very rough start to the season, where they lost four of their first five games, and no doubt evoked many expletives from their colorful head coach. But they came on my gangbusters, taking advantage of a rather weak AFC South division to claim the crown and get a home playoff game on the AFC side of things. However, it might not be their good fortune that they are catching a Kansas City Chiefs squad that is working on a 10-game winning streak at the moment. These teams will tangle at 4:35 PM ET on Saturday at NRG Stadium in Houston, and Vietbet customers can follow along with all the excitement as they place wagers in real time through the facilities of Live Betting Extra.
Buccaneers vs Panthers – Vietbet NFL BETTING LINE:
In the football betting odds posted on this game by the people at Vietbet, Kansas City is laying points:
Kansas City Chiefs -3.5 (-105)
Houston Texans +3.5 (-115)
Over 40 points -110
Under 40 points -110
Houston was 9-7, both straight-up and against the football pointspread, and they won and covered seven of their last nine games. Perhaps the turning point was a loss they suffered in Miami, where they were down 41-0 before scoring some garbage points to make the final 44-26. They went on a four-game winning streak in which they allowed only 35 points, then, after losses to Buffalo and New England, finished up with three straight victories, in which the yielded 22 points and 112 rushing yards. That’s some pretty good defense.
And while they will not be facing the most explosive offense in the world on Saturday, they will be going up against a team that likes to minimize turnovers. That creates a specific challenge, as does the fact that Kansas City will be looking to tax the Houston defensive front in a way in which most of the Texans’ previous opponents were not able to.
There was some instability at the quarterback position for the Texans, almost from the outset. Brian Hoyer was named the starter in training camp, as O’Brien coveted his experience, but after some miscues in the opener, against the same Kansas City team, he was yanked in favor of Ryan Mallett, who led something of a comeback, as Houston rebounded from a 21-point deficit to make the final score a little more competitive (27-20). So there was something of a quarterback controversy for a while, but Mallett eventually faltered, and was later cut when he missed the team flight. Hoyer was sidelined a couple of times, at which point people like TJ Yates and Brandon Weeden (yes, THAT Brandon Weeden, who was cut by Dallas) came in and did a serviceable job. But make no bones about it; Hoyer is the guy who will take them as far as they are going to go. He threw 18 touchdown passes with only six interceptions, so although he is not spectacular, he has a steady hand.
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If Vietbet patrons are looking for potential trouble spot for Houston, it’s that injuries might come back to bite them. Of course, Arian Foster has been missing since early in the season. The former rushing champion left a big void, and the team has been trying to fill it ever since. If there is something encouraging, it’s that they have averaged 137 rushing yards over the last six games, where they registered only 91 per game in their first 10. Left tackle Duane Brown, a Pro Bowl performer, is out of this game with a thigh injury. And even though DeAndre Hopkins gave this team a season worthy of All-Pro recognition (104 receptions, 1432 yards), they are hard-pressed for dependable targets beyond him. Cecil Shorts and Nate Washington are the only other wideouts of note, and they are nursing injuries. Both of them hope to play on Saturday.
Defensively, Houston has shined, especially lately, as they have not given up a touchdown in the last nine quarters of play. JJ Watt is, of course, the best defensive lineman on earth, and he racked up 17.5 sacks. He got a lot of support from his colleague, Whitney Mercilus, who had a dozen. Jadeveon Clowney, the #1 draft choice from 2014, may or may not play here, as he has a foot injury, but it would be great to have his athleticism in there. As a side story, remember that defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel was the former head coach in Kansas City, replaced by the current head man, Andy Reid.
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