As for the Jacksonville Jaguars, they were blown out for a second straight week. This time, it came at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys. As bad as these teams have been recently, they are still tied for first place in the AFC South, which makes this a very important contest for playoff positioning.

NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis

The Texans don’t fare well as a road dog of 3.5-7 points as they are just 3-5 ATS and 2-6 SU in their last eight in that spot. As a dog of 3.5 to 9.5, they are 4-8 ATS and 2-10 SU in their last 12.

While the Jags are at home, it hasn’t delivered a huge edge in this series. They are just 8-8 against Houston in their last 16 meetings in Jacksonville while the Texans have covered 10 of those games.

Houston Texans

The Texans have won three straight and are 3-3, but it’s nearly impossible to have narrower margins. They beat the Indianapolis Colts in overtime in Week 4 when the Colts went for it on fourth down on their own side of the field for no reason. Then in overtime a week later, the Dallas Cowboys decide to punt from the Texans’ 40 instead of going for it on fourth down, and that allowed the Texans to win. Last week, the Texans blew a 10-0 lead to the Bills and needed a miracle to tie the game at the end before Nathan Peterman threw a pick-six to seal it.

The main issue for Houston is that Deshaun Watson has become a turnover machine. He’s had at least one in every week, tossing seven interceptions and fumbling four times. Houston is having a tough time running the ball (3.9 yards per carry) and it’s putting too much work on Watson’s shoulders. If that happens again this week in Jacksonville, they’ll probably lose.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars have imploded the last two weeks, losing by a combined score of 70-21. That’s downright shocking as the Jags had allowed just 56 points through their first four games. Quarterback Blake Bortles has been nothing short of a mess as he has 10 turnovers this season in just six games. That includes five interceptions in the last two weeks. The good news is that Houston isn’t particularly strong with interceptions as they have just five on the year – two of which came against Peterman.

What should help the Jags in this spot is they’ll be facing one of the worst offensive lines. After facing two of the best in Kansas City and Dallas, beating up the Texans offensive line – which has allowed the second-most sacks in the NFL – should give them a reprieve. Their defense will get back on track.

Texans vs. Jaguars Prediction