The Houston Texans will travel to Highmark Stadium to take on the Buffalo Bills this Sunday afternoon in NFL action.
The Houston Texans lost their 2nd straight game and dropped to 1-2 on the season after being defeated by the Carolina Panthers, 24-9, this past Sunday. Houston trailed by just a 7-6 margin at halftime, however, the defense struggled in the 2nd half and could not fight back after a 7-yard TD run by the Panthers Tommy Tremble gave the Panthers a 14-6 lead midway through the 3rd quarter. Houston was outgained by a 407-193 margin and didn’t force a turnover in the loss. Leading the way for the Texans was WR Brendon Cooks who had 9 receptions for 112 yards.
On the season, Houston is averaging 22.3 ppg on 323.3 total yards per game (228.7 passing yds/g; 94.7 rushing yds/g). Houston will not have Tyrod Taylor available this week due to hamstring injury and will continue to roll with Davis Mills who has completed 58.7% of his passes for 270 yards, 2 TD, & 1 INT. The top receiving threats for the Texans have been Brandin Cooks (23 rec, 322 yards, TD), Pharaoh Brown (4 rec, 67 yards), Jordan Atkins (5 rec, 49 yards), & Danny Amendola (6 rec, 43 yards, TD). Leading the way for the Houston backfield has been Mark Ingram II who has 147 rushing yards & 1 TD on 46 carries.
Defensively, Houston is allowing their opponents to average 25.3 ppg on 399.3 total yards per game (283.0 passing yds/g; 116.3 rushing yds/g).
The Buffalo Bills won their 2nd straight game and improved to 2-1 on the season after defeating the Washington Football Team, 43-21, this past Sunday. Buffalo had no trouble piling up the offense against the tough Washington defense and pulled away in the 3rd quarter after a 5-yard TD reception by Emmanuel Sanders gave Buffalo a 33-14 lead. Buffalo outgained Washington by a 481-290 margin and won the turnover battle by a 3-0 margin in the victory. Leading the way for the Bills was QB Josh Allen who completed 32 of 43 passes for 358 yards & 4 TD’s while also adding a rushing TD.
On the season, Buffalo is averaging 31.3 ppg on 396.7 total yards per game (269.3 passing yds/g; 127.3 rushing yds/g). Offensively, Buffalo has been led by Josh Allen who has completed 62.2% of his passes for 807 yards, 7 TD & 1 INT while also rushing for 88 yards & 1 TD. The top receiving threats for Allen and the Bills have been Emmanuel Sanders (11 rec, 194 yards, 2 TD), Cole Beasley (23 rec, 194 yards), Stefon Diggs (19 rec, 191 yards, TD), & Dawson Knox (10 rec, 107 yards, 2 TD). Leading the way for the Buffalo backfield has been the duo of Devin Singletary (35 att, 180 yards, TD) & Zack Moss (21 att, 86 yards, 2 TD).
Defensively, Buffalo is holding their opponents to an average of 14.7 ppg on 268.7 total yards per game (194.0 passing yds/g; 74.7 rushing yds/g).
The Texans are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 road games, however, are just 1-5 ATS in their last 6 October games. The Bills are 4-0 ATS vs. a team with a losing record and 11-3 ATS in their last 14 games overall.
This is a monster spread for the NFL, however, it’s hard to imagine that the Texans will be able to make this game competitive. Houston has struggled slowing down opposing passing attacks this season which is never good when going up against Josh Allen & Stefon Diggs and it’s hard to see the Houston offense, which has basically just one impact player in Brandon Cooks, to find success in one of the toughest road environments in Buffalo. Buffalo has been great ATS against the weaker teams in the NFL and as I see Buffalo scoring about 35-40 points in this one, I think they do enough to cover the spread. Good Luck!
AUTHOR: Brett Nault
Mitch's Take...
