Last season recap
For the Houston Texans, last NFL betting season was split up by their bye week in more ways than one. Not only did their bye in week 9 divide their 2015 season right in the middle of the campaign, but there was also a ‘before’ and ‘after’ vibe to the team. In the first eight weeks of competition, the Texans went 3-5 and lost by 27 points to the Atlanta Falcons and by 18 points to the Miami Dolphins. Starting with week 10 however, Houston won three in a row, lost two, and won another three to close the season with a 9-7 record and qualifying to the postseason – where they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 30-0 in the Wild Card round of the playoffs.
What’s new
The 2016 season will be the Texans’ 15th in the NFL and the third with head coach Bill O’Brien. Houston selected wide receiver Will Fuller as the 21st overall pick in the first round of the draft, center Nick Martin as the 50th pick in the second round, WR Braxton Miller as the 85th pick in the third round, running back Tyler Ervin as the 119th pick in the fourth round, and safety K.J. Dillon and defensive tackle D.J. Reader as the 159th and 166th (respectively) picks in the fifth round. Without taking anything away from those fine young men, the biggest arrival of the 2016 NFL betting season is that of 25 year old QB Brock Osweiler. In four years with the Denver Broncos, Osweiler recorded 187 completed passes of 305 (61.3%; 86.0 rating) for 2,126 yards and 11 touchdowns. Beyond mere numbers, however, the fact is that Osweiler spend those four years as the backup for the legendary Peyton Manning.
What to expect
Above all, Texans fans who bet on NFL will be crossing their fingers that some of the Manning Magic (TM) has rubbed off on their new starting QB. The brass in Houston certainly has faith in Osweiler, since they’re paying him $72 million over four years. Osweiler began to learn O’Brien and George Godsey’s offense pretty much as soon as he was signed in March and, adding the training camp plus the preseason, NFL betting fans could be justified in expecting to have mastered the offense by the time the regular season kicks off. Back to the aforementioned rookies, Martin will be competing for the center position with veteran Tony Bergstron, but chances are the latter will be a transitional player until the former is ready. And Fuller might take the same path as Kevin Johnson last season; baby steps at first and then slowly developing in a future starter. Finally, Texans fans can expect a very fast offensive line this season; let’s just hope they actually go somewhere instead of just running around willy-nilly. Super Bowl 51 will take place at NRG Stadium – will the Texans be the first team to play a championship game in their very own home field?
Odds to win Super Bowl 51: +4050
