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Texans Saints Spread

The Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints are set to collide on Sunday, September 25th in the Superdome. This will only be the third-ever meeting between these two franchises, and they’ve split the first two contests. Houston won the most recent matchup at home 23-10 in 2007. Both franchises have come a long way since that meeting. The Saints have won a Super Bowl, and the Texans are certainly a contender if the first two weeks of the season mean anything.

According to the week 3 NFL lines, New Orleans is a 4-point home favorite with a total set of 53 points.

New Orleans

The Saints lost 34-42 on opening night to the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers, but responded with a dominant 30-13 home victory over the Chicago Bears last week. Through two games, the Saints (1-1) rank fifth in the league in total offense (429.5 yards/game) and scoring (32.0 points/game). They have put up a whopping 128 combined points in their last five home games, winning four of them.

Drew Brees has been sharp again this season, throwing for 689 yards and six touchdowns with no interceptions while completing 67.4 percent of his passes. Brees is averaging 313.5 yards with 15 touchdown passes during a 5-1 stretch at home against AFC foes. He threw for 270 yards and three touchdowns against Chicago last week, finding Devery Henderson three times for 103 yards and a 79-yard touchdown.

Marques Colston remains out with a broken collarbone. Henderson has picked up the slack with 10 catches for 203 yards and two touchdowns through the first two weeks. Brees is finding Jimmy Graham quite a bit, as the young tight end has 10 receptions for 135 yards and a score. Rookie Mark Ingram has been held in check thus far, rushing 27 times for 91 yards. Pierre Thomas has been the more effective back, rushing for 72 yards on only 14 carries. Defensively, the Saints have only allowed one 100-yard rusher in their last 15 regular-season games. They limited Chicago to just 60 yards on the ground last week.

Houston

The Texans will be seeking their first 3-0 start in franchise history Sunday. Houston crushed the Indianapolis Colts 34-7 in their opener, and then put away Miami 23-13 on the road last week. This is an up-and-coming team that finished with a franchise-record nine wins in 2009. They dropped to 6-10 last season, but injuries and poor play defensively were a big reason why.

Houston features one of the best defenses in the league to this point. Under new coordinator Wade Phillips, the Texans lead the league in total defense (271.0 yards/game) and scoring defense (10.0 points/game). To compare, the Texans yielded 442.0 yards and 25.5 points through their first two games ag year ago, and finished with the league’s 30th-ranked defense.

Matt Schaub is completing 71.7 percent of his passes for 450 yards and three touchdowns to two interceptions. Arian Foster continues to miss time due to a hamstring injury, and he carried only 10 times for 33 yards last week before sitting most of the second half. His status remains uncertain against New Orleans. Ben Tate has filled in admirably for Foster, rushing for 219 yards and a touchdown on 47 carries. He carried nine times for 95 yards and a score in Houston’s 27-14 preseason victory over the Saints on August 20. Andre Johnson continues to prove that he’s one of the top receivers in the game, catching 14 balls for 188 yards and two touchdowns.

Betting Trends

Houston is just 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games as an underdog, including 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a road dog. The Texans are also 4-9-2 ATS in their last 15 games following an ATS win.

The Saints have responded well after a dominant defensive performance, going 8-1 ATS in their last 9 games after allowing less than 250 total yards in their previous game. They are also 5-1 ATS in their last 6 home games vs. a team with a winning road record. However, they have not responded well after a blowout victory. New Orleans is 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games following a SU win of more than 14 points.

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