The Houston Texans prepare to welcome the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night, as the AFC South foes will meet for the second time this season. The Colts won the first matchup, 30-23, up in Indianapolis on October 20. Houston has a 6-4 record coming in, after taking a 41-7 shellacking from the Baltimore Ravens last week. Indianapolis is also 6-4, after they brought a two-game skid to an end at home last week, delivering a 33-13 rout of the Jacksonville Jaguars, with Jacoby Brissett returning to the starting lineup. Can Indianapolis complete the season sweep? Or will the Texans make a stand in the division? We have your sports betting preview of this divisional tilt right here.
Colts vs Texans 2019 NFL Week 12 Odds, Game Info & Pick
With today’s walk-through, Monday’s injury report is only an estimation of a player’s participation if there was a practice. pic.twitter.com/0FBTtOmvLT
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) November 18, 2019
- When: Thursday, November 21, 2019, 8:20 pm ET
- Where: NRG Stadium, Houston
- TV: FOX / NFL Network
- Radio: Westwood One
- Live Stream: ESPN+
- NFL Odds: Houston -3.5 / O/U 45.5
Why should you bet on the Colts?
Indianapolis has dropped two of three, but those two losses came as a result of having to start Brian Hoyer at quarterback due to Jacoby Brissett’s knee injury. With Brissett at the helm, the Colts have won six of their last seven, only losing to the Raiders back in Week 4. The fact that Indianapolis is 3-0 in AFC South play gives the Colts an advantage even if they lose and end up tied with Houston in the standings down the stretch.
The Colts have gotten 1,797 passing yards and a 15:4 TD:INT ratio out of Brissett, and tailback Marlon Mack has picked up 862 yards and four rushing touchdowns on the season. He only threw for 148 yards against the Jaguars, but Mack combined with Jonathan Williams for 225 yards of running. Given that Baltimore ran for 263 yards against Houston the week before, the Colts could follow that blueprint — although the Colts do not have the running weapon at quarterback that the Ravens do in Lamar Jackson, and Houston was a top-ten defensive unit against the rush before last week. Indianapolis has been a road underdog four times this year, posting a 2-1-1 record against the spread, and they have the more consistent season if you exclude games in which Brissett did not appear at quarterback.
Why should you put your money on the Texans?
I would not look at the beating Houston took at the hands of the Ravens as a sign that the team is heading downhill. The Ravens only have one loss on the season and look to be trending upward as Lamar Jackson plays with more and more confidence. Houston has beaten Jacksonville by 23, won at Kansas City and hung 53 points on the Atlanta Falcons. The Texans are 6-4 but have a 5-1 record at NRG Stadium.
Deshaun Watson has had a solid season this year, averaging almost 290 yards in the passing game per week and posting an 18:6 TD:INT ratio. DeAndre Hopkins has caught 75 of Watson’s passes for 745 yards and four scores; his yardage ranks second in the league. Carlos Hyde has brought balance in the running game, running for almost 77 yards per contest. With all of this said, Houston has just covered once in four home games this season and just once in three AFC South matchups.
Final Score Prediction
Deshaun Watson has made the transition from college phenom to NFL signal-caller very smoothly, and the Texans have benefited from his leadership. The edge that the Texans have in this game comes from their slightly superior offense, particularly in the passing game. If the Texans can limit the Colts’ running opportunities and give them a lot of third-and-long situations, they should win this game. If Indianapolis can get the sort of pass rush that Baltimore did last week, they would have the edge. I see Houston winning in a nailbiter, 31-27.
