Carolina Panthers (2-0) vs. Houston Texans (1-1)
September 23, 2021 8:20 pm EDT
The Line: Houston Texans +7.5 / Carolina Panthers -7.5; Over/Under: 44
(Get latest betting odds)
The Houston Texans meet the Carolina Panthers Thursday in week 3 NFL Thursday Night Football action at NRG Stadium. The Carolina Panthers look for their first 3-0 start since the 2015 NFL season. The Houston Texans look for a big home win to get a game above a .500 record.
The Carolina Panthers have lost four of their last five road games. Sam Darnold is completing 68.5 percent of his passes for 584 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. DJ Moore and Christian McCaffrey have combined for 313 receiving yards and one touchdown while Robby Anderson has four receptions. The Carolina Panthers ground game is averaging 100 yards per contest, and McCaffrey leads the way with 170 yards and one touchdown. Defensively, Carolina is allowing 10.5 points and 190 yards per game. Shaq Thompson leads the Carolina Panthers with 14 tackles, Haason Reddick has three sacks and Jaycee Horn has one interception.
The Houston Texans have lost six of their last nine home games. Tyrod Taylor is completing 70.5 percent of his passes for 416 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Brandin Cooks and Pharaoh Brown have combined for 277 receiving yards and one touchdown while Danny Amendola has six receptions. The Houston Texans ground game is averaging 121 yards per contest, and Mark Ingram II leads the way with 126 yards and one touchdown. Defensively, Houston is allowing 26 points and 375 yards per game. Zach Cunningham leads the Houston Texans with 13 tackles, Whitney Mercilus has one sack and Justin Reid has two interceptions.
The Panthers are 7-0 ATS in their last 7 road games and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Texans are 3-9 ATS in their last 12 Thursday games and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The under is 5-0 in Panthers last 5 games overall. The over is 4-0 in Texans last 4 games overall. The underdog is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 meetings.
The Carolina Panthers are off to a terrific start and have the best defense in the league across the board through two games. However, I wouldn’t say the Jets and Saints are the best competition in the world, and this will be the first road test for the Panthers. The Houston Texans have played about a game and a half of solid football and Taylor has actually looked respectable at quarterback. The Panthers are the better team here, but this is a ton of points to lay with a road team on short rest. The Panthers are also 3-7-1 against the spread in their last 11 games as a favorite of five or more points. I like the Texans and the boatload of points.
Update: Even with Taylor now ruled out for this game, I’m not thrilled about laying more than a touchdown with the Panthers on the road with short rest. This is a game I’d probably pass on personally, but it’s Texans and the points or pass for me.
