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Teh One Who Knocks
01-08-2013, 02:16 PM
Houston (13-4) at New England (12-4)

When: 4:30 p.m. ET Sunday

Reviewing Round 1: In a rematch of a 2011 first-round playoff game, the Texans notched their second consecutive home victory over Cincinnati. Running back Arian Foster was the star of last Saturday’s 19-13 win. He rushed 32 times for 140 yards and a touchdown while adding another 34 yards on eight catches. As usual, Texans defensive J.J. Watt paced his unit by terrorizing Cincinnati’s offensive line. Watt had five tackles (two for losses), a sack and two quarterback hurries as the Bengals were held to 198 total yards. Houston controlled the clock for almost 39 minutes but the failure to score touchdowns inside the red-zone kept Cincinnati within one score until the end.

Last meeting: One of the NFL’s most highly anticipated prime-time showdowns of the regular season was a dud as New England rolled to a 42-14 home victory in Week 14. The game marked the beginning of a late-season slide that cost Houston the AFC’s top playoff seed and a first-round bye. The Patriots secured a bye and No. 2 playoff seed by virtue of winning the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Texans.

Texans player to watch: Tight end Owen Daniels. He created a coverage nightmare, especially against Bengals middle linebacker Rey Maualuga on crossing routes, to catch a team-high nine passes for 91 yards. Daniels could provide similar problems against a Patriots defense that has struggled to defend the middle of the field on patterns down the seams. Tight end Garrett Graham and H-back James Casey also are favorite targets of quarterback Matt Schaub. The Daniels-Graham-Casey triumvirate combined for 140 of Schaub’s 262 passing yards against Cincinnati.

Patriots player to watch: Quarterback Tom Brady. The Texans had no answer for Brady earlier this season. He picked apart Houston’s defense for four touchdowns without an interception on 21-of-35 passing before ceding mop-up duty to Ryan Mallett. Brady won’t be winning NFL Most Valuable Player honors — the award is going to Peterson or Manning — but enjoyed another outstanding season with 4,827 passing yards, 34 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He also has a 10-2 career postseason record at Gillette Stadium.

Summary: By installing Houston as an early 9.5-point underdog, oddsmakers have little faith that the Texans will provide much more of challenge than in their first game at New England. Schaub has thrown only one touchdown pass in the past five games, but his confidence should be buoyed by getting past the Bengals in the first playoff start of his nine-year NFL career. Houston’s defense must account for New England’s own impressive tight end tandem of Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski. Hernandez had a team-high eight catches and two touchdowns against Houston in Week 14 while Gronkowski was sidelined with a broken forearm. Gronkowski returned on a limited basis in Week 17 against Miami but should have an expanded role Sunday.

Teh One Who Knocks
01-08-2013, 02:18 PM
The Moneyline was used to set the odds for this game.

RBP
01-09-2013, 01:39 AM
New England

KevinD
01-09-2013, 03:56 PM
Gonna buck the trend and bet Houston.

RBP
01-09-2013, 03:59 PM
Gonna buck the trend and bet Houston.

You better!

KevinD
01-09-2013, 04:16 PM
I did. I don't seriously think they can beat the Pats, but stranger stuff has happened, and I think it would be the upset of the playoffs.

Teh One Who Knocks
01-09-2013, 04:17 PM
It'll pay off well if the upset happens :lol:

KevinD
01-09-2013, 04:28 PM
I'm still trying to figure out what the Odds mean here..

Texans 15/4 So that's 5.25/1
Patriots 10/53 F this is 1.19/1 but what is "F"?

Teh One Who Knocks
01-09-2013, 04:30 PM
I'm still trying to figure out what the Odds mean here..

Texans 15/4 So that's 5.25/1
Patriots 10/53 F this is 1.19/1 but what is "F"?

Favorite :facepalm:

RBP
01-09-2013, 04:36 PM
F stands for going to fucking lose. :nana:

KevinD
01-09-2013, 04:45 PM
Favorite :facepalm:

Well slap me silly ...duh....lol