Colts vs. Texans Prediction
Without Deshaun Watson under center, are the Texans still a smart play on Sunday against the Colts?
Game Info
Who: Colts (2-6) at Texans (3-4)
When: 1:00 p.m. ET, Sunday, November 5
Where: NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
Who Oddsmakers Like: Houston. According to oddsmakers from online sports book Bovada.lv, the Texans are now 6.5-point home favorites versus the Colts after opening as an 11-point favorite. The drop in the point spread occurred when Watson tore his ACL at practice on Thursday. As for the total, the number hit the board at 48 but was bet down to 45.5.
Who the Public Likes: Indianapolis. Bettors know how badly it hurt the Texans to lose Watson and are backing the Colts at a 52% clip right now.
Who the Trends Like: Indianapolis. The Colts are 3-0-1 against the spread in their last four trips to Houston and are 5-2-2 against the number in their last nine games versus the Texans overall. The underdog is also 3-0-2 at the betting window in the last six meetings between these two teams while the road squad has covered in 4 of the last 6 meetings with two pushes.
Who We Like: Indianapolis. Remember when Tom Savage started Week 1 for the Texans? Bill O’Brien would love to forget. The veteran was horrible in the first half of that game againt the Jaguars, finishing 7-of-13 passing for just 62 yards. He absorbed six sacks in the first half alone, including 3.5 by Calais Campbell. Savage also lost a fumble, which was returned for a touchdown.
Granted, Indianapolis is not Jacksonville. The Colts rank near the bottom of the league in every major statistical category on defense. Still, Savage has zero mobility, takes forever to make decisions, and the Texans just traded his left tackle to Seattle when they sent Duane Brown to the Seahawks at the trade deadline. Good luck, Tom.
The Colts, meanwhile, are coming off a competitive effort in Cincinnati against the Bengals last week. That’s all I’m asking. Be competitive, Indy.
NFL WEEK 9 PREDICTIONS: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS +7 (Buy the Hook)