Raiders Texans Betting – Texans Ride Foster To Victory Over Raiders

Online sports betting players have an annual question to deal with: are the Houston Texans for real? The Texans are off to a fantastic start as they prepare to welcome Oakland to town, but they’re going into the game without their biggest weapon. But they can fall back on one of the best running backs in the league and a much-improved defense to carry them to victory.

What: NFL Betting
When: Sunday, October 8th, 1:00 PM ET
Where: Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Pick: Houston Texans -6

Why Bet On Oakland Raiders (2-2 SU, 3-1 ATS)

The Raiders shot themselves in the foot in a 31-19 loss at home to New England, committing a pair of turnovers (including a red-zone pick late in the first half) and nine penalties along the way. They also allowed the Patriots, who aren’t a good running team, to rush for 183 yards and New England also converted on three of their four trips to the red zone in a brutally efficient game (meanwhile, the Raiders were 2-of-5 inside the 20-yard-line). Jason Campbell was 25-of-39 for 344 yards and a touchdown, but he also threw a couple of picks, and the red-zone pick was inexcusable as there were no receivers in the area.

It was a performance that warranted a win for the Raiders as they put up 504 yards, but those yards are meaningless if you’re going to give the ball to the other team. The Raiders still ran for 160 yards, although they had to go away from Darren McFadden in the second half as they were playing catch-up. Darrius Heyward-Bey had four catches for 115 yards for the second 100-yard game of his career, and the Raiders are finally taking advantage of his speed. Oakland was great on third down, converting eight of their 13 chances and should have put more points on the board, but again….turnovers and penalties. It’s been a theme with the Raiders for years now, and their NFL betting odds won’t improve until they sort out those aspects of their games. For this week’s injury watch, running back Michael Bush (ankle) was hurt against the Patriots, but that just means more carries for McFadden, which is never a negative.

Why Bet On Houston Texans (3-1 SU, 3-1 ATS)

The Texans lost star receiver Andre Johnson in the second quarter, but still won a tough 17-10 game at home against Pittsburgh and even though the Steelers may not be as good as we’re used to seeing, this was an important game for Houston’s psyche as it showed they were a tough team who could survive without going to the air. Arian Foster put the offense on his back, rushing 30 times for 155 yards, including a 42-yard score which proved to be the difference in the fourth quarter. Matt Schaub was only 14-of-21 for 138 yards and a touchdown, but he didn’t make many mistakes. But you have to give a call to arguably the most improved defense in the league as the Texans sacked Ben Roethlisberger five times and put him on his back even more, to the point that the Pittsburgh pivot may have to sit this week out with a foot injury. Under coordinator Wade Phillips, the Texans swarm to the ball and they’re much better against the pass, where they got destroyed consistently in 2010.

Houston committed nine penalties, which turned into two first downs for the Steelers, so they’ll be looking to avoid those mistakes. But the worst thing to come out of the Pittsburgh game is obviously the injury to Johnson (hamstring), and all signs are pointing towards the Texans’ all-world receiver sitting this game out. Even though they still have Foster and tight end Owen Daniels, losing a player like Johnson (arguably the best receiver in the league) is going to cause head coach Gary Kubiak to make some adjustments for the offense, and that likely means a whole lot of Foster.

How It Will Play Out

NFL betting odds have the Texans as a 6-point favorite at home against the Raiders, who are 1-4 SU and ATS in their last five meetings with Houston, with two games going over the posted total along with a pair of pushes. Four of those games went down in Oakland, but in Houston in 2009, the Texans rolled to a 29-6 win.

The Raiders have had a difficult time stopping the run and that’s not a good thing heading into a meeting with last year’s leading rusher. Look for the Texans to grind out a victory with Foster leading the way, while the Raiders make a few more mistakes that will keep them from moving to the next level, at least for the next year. Wager on Houston to cover in your online betting picks.