NFL Preseason Betting – Houston Texans vs. Kansas City Chiefs

NFL PRESEASON BETTING – Game Match-Up 8/15

Houston Texans vs. Kansas City Chiefs 8:00 ET

A pair of young AFC squads hoping to make an impact on the playoff chase do battle at Arrowhead Stadium when the Houston Texans (8-8, 8-8 ATS in 2008) match wits with the Kansas City Chiefs (2-14, 8-8 ATS in 2008). The Texans matched their best record in franchise history last season when they finished at .500. The Chiefs remained competitive in a lot of games last year, evidenced by them going 8-8 ATS for football betting fanatics against the closing BetOnline NFL betting lines. However, they never quite figured out how to pick up the outright ‘W’s.

You can find the Chiefs favored by two-points and a ‘total’ of 37.5 for this NFLX betting match-up at BetOnline Sportsbook right now!

Join BetOnline Sportsbook Today!

HC Gary Kubiak has been preaching a five-year plan in Houston since his arrival. So far, the Texans have made major strides and clearly had their best team in franchise history last season. A young defense will be bolstered by the additions of rookie LB Brian Cushing and free agent signings DE Antonio Smith and LB Cato June. The secondary is still full of question marks. There really aren’t any huge names in this unit, and GM Rick Smith didn’t go out and make any notable improvements there this offseason. The offense has plenty of up and coming skill players, most notably WR Andre Johnson and RB Steve Slaton. The trick for the offense is going to be keeping QB Matt Schaub healthy. With backup QB Sage Rosenfels getting traded to Minnesota in the offseason, the competition for the backup role is going to be crowded. Both Dan Orlovsky and Rex Grossman think that they are the right man for the job, but Washington State product Alex Brink will get a good look as well.

Out with the old and in with the new. That’s the motto for the Chiefs in 2009. Former HC Herm Edwards was replaced by HC Todd Haley, but the bigger change came when Scott Pioli came over from New England to take over the GM role. He brought over former Patriots LB Mike Vrabel and QB Matt Cassel. Cassel will try to resurrect a passing attack that was absolutely putrid under a host of KC quarterbacks last year. A young defense was helped when the Chiefs drafted DE Tyson Jackson, who will be reunited on the same defensive line with his former LSU teammate DT Glenn Dorsey. Veteran LB Zach Thomas will be given the task of improving a defense that surrendered at least 30 points in six of the Chiefs 16 games last season.

Historically, Houston is a team that can put up a lot of points in the preseason. Last year, the average Texans’ preseason game reached 40.0 points. The Chiefs only scored 62 points in four games, but they did surrender 88. Still, for the first week of the preseason, 37.5 is an awfully high number. Expect to see this game stick in the low-30s and cash a winning ticket for ‘under’ bettors.

Rose’s Recommendation: 2* Houston/Kansas City Under 37.5

(Rating Scale: 1* – 5*)