Thursday night’s matchup between the New York Jets and the Buffalo Bills will mark the official start of Week 2’s online football betting action. Week 2 will feature plenty of interesting AFC matchups, one of which is the contest between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Houston Texans. Both teams are coming off a playoff season and are yearning to get back into 2016’s playoff conversation. So far both teams are undefeated and a win on Sunday will help either team advance in their division.
The Chiefs were actually the team to send the Texans home in last year’s Wild Card round. The Texans had won the AFC South and the Chiefs had clinched a Wild Card spot with an 11-5 record. Once in the playoffs the Chiefs made quick work of the Texans 30-0. Now these two teams will go head to head and while the stakes might not be the same, you can be certain the Texans have only one thing in mind: revenge.
The Texans are rolling high after a 23-14 victory over the Chicago Bears. The Bears are coming off a season that saw them go 6-10, which ranked them dead last in the NFC North. For that reason the online football betting odds predicted a Texans win and Houston did not disappoint. Although it was just Week 1, this game had huge implications for the Texans because they would be able to see if Brock Osweiler was worth the $72 million contract the former Bronco signed with Houston. In his debut Osweiler didn’t disappoint, but the impression he left didn’t shout ‘$72 million’. The young quarterback finished the day going 22/35 for 231 yards, 2 touchdowns, and one interception. Osweiler’s interception came on the opening drive and Chicago was able to score of the turnover. However, Osweiler was able to maintain his composure. Although the Bears were up 14-10 at the half, Osweiler was able to lead the Texans to 13 unanswered points in the second half which gave way to their 23-14 win. Osweiler finished the day with an 89.1 passer rating, a modest step in proving himself worthy to Houston fans.
The Chiefs, on the other hand, are coming off the biggest comeback in their 56-year franchise history. Kansas City was trailing 21-3 to their AFC West rival the San Diego Chargers at the half. However, Alex Smith was able to lead his team to a second half rallying that tied the game and sent it into overtime. Both the defense and offense came together in unison to accomplish this franchise record; the offense put up 24 points in the final half of the game while the defense held the revamped Chargers offense to a mere 6 points. The Chiefs ability to stay composed through 4 quarters of football, how they hung in the game, and ultimately how they pulled out from underneath the Chargers speaks volumes about this team’s playoff chances. Come Sunday the Chiefs will be looking to continue their road to the playoffs against the AFC South’s favorite. Let’s check the online NFL betting odds to see who the favorite is in this pairing.
Week 2 – Sunday September 18th
Chiefs +2 ½ (-105) 43 ½ (-110)
Texans -2 ½ (-115) 43 ½ (-110)
Alex Smith, the Chiefs quarterback, is a 12-year veteran and he’ll make sure to put Osweiler to the test. The Chiefs gave up 243 passing yards in their 2016 debut and they’ll be looking to improve on that figure against the Texans. The spread favors Houston in this matchup, but after seeing the Chiefs impressive comeback many online football betting critics are picking the Chiefs in this contest. Both teams will be looking to get ahead in their division and a win here would go a long way later on in the season.
