Thursday night football continues this week with another thrilling matchup between two potential playoff contenders, or at least that’s what we thought before the season started. The Cincinnati Bengals and Houston Texans were both thought to be dangerous in their division before the season began, but their Week 1 losses has left most US sportsbooks questioning their status as potential playoff teams.
https://twitter.com/Bengals/status/907367552531255296
Houston Texans vs. Cincinnati Bengals – Thursday, September 14th
Venue: Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati
Start Time: 8:25 pm ET
TV Broadcast: NFL Network
Online Streaming Options: NFL.com, NFL Game Pass
Nevertheless, sportsbook online players will get to see more out of both these teams this Thursday when the Bengals host the Texans. As aforementioned, both teams underperformed this past Sunday and it’s fair to say that their fan bases are expecting a strong rebound.
https://twitter.com/HoustonTexans/status/907385773657169920
It’s difficult to say which team needs this win more. Andy Dalton, the Bengals’ quarterback, just had the one of the worst games an NFL quarterback can have. On the other hand, the Texans had to bench their starting quarterback halfway through the game. That said, Deshaun Watson – who stepped in for the benched Savage (what a great sentence), was able to lead the Texans to their only touchdown in his first series. With that in mind, maybe the Bengals need a stronger rebound this Thursday.
Sportsbook Online Betting Odds:
Houston Texans +4 (-105) 38 ½ (-105) +170
Cincinnati Bengals -4 (-115) 38 ½ (-115) -200
Ironically enough, US sportsbooks are favoring the Bengals over the Texans. The odds do seem a bit too lopsided considering how poorly Houston’s offense performed against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Betting Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals faced their AFC North rival the Baltimore Ravens this past week to kick in their 2017 season. Cincinnati started slow and never found their speed, finishing the day with 221 total yards on offense. The Bengals defense actually held their own, holding Joe Flacco and company to a meager 268 yards. However, the 5 turnovers Cincinnati committed – 4 picks and a lone fumble, would be the death of them.
Obviously the play at quarterback was the biggest setback the Bengals suffered. There’s not much to say other than we’ll see how Dalton performs in Week 2.
Betting Houston Texans
The Texans faced the Jacksonville Jaguars in their 2017 opener and everybody and their mothers were picking Houston over their NFC South opponent. However, the Jaguars ended up shocking the world with their 29-7 triumph over Houston.
As previously mentioned, the Texans swapped their veteran quarterback Tom Savage for their rookie, Deshaun Watson, at the half. Watson didn’t have the greatest NFL debut but he still showed signs of potential. Either way, Houston should stick with the rookie in order to improve their chances down the stretch.
Best Sportsbook Bets to Make: Accurately predicting who will rebound this week is a tough US sportsbook bet to make. However, accounting for both teams’ situations, there is plenty of value on the Texans to cash in on. After all, a Bengal victory is far from a guarantee.
