The Cleveland Browns and the Houston Texans meet in week 16 NFL action from the NRG Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Two teams in the midst of the wild card hunt in the AFC, who gets a pivotal win in regards to the playoff hunt? Let’s dive in and find out with our Browns vs. Texans Prediction.

Cleveland Browns Team Preview

The Cleveland Browns come into this game looking to build on their 9-5 record after a 20-17 win over the Bears last time out. Joe Flacco has thrown for 939 yards, 7 touchdowns and 5 interceptions on 61.4% passing while Jerome Ford leads Cleveland’s ground attack with 718 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns. Kareem Hunt has 369 rushing yards and 7 scores. Amari Cooper leads the Browns’ receiving group with 985 yards and David Njoku has 704 receiving yards and 5 TDs with 69 grabs of his own. Elijah Moore has 560 receiving yards as well this season. On defense, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah leads the Browns’ defense with 84 total tackles while Myles Garrett has a team-high 13 sacks and Martin Emerson Jr. has a team-high 4 interceptions.

Cleveland Browns Team Facts

• The Browns have won each of their last nine games against AFC South opponents.
• The Browns have failed to cover the spread in nine of their last 10 games as road favorites against AFC opponents.
• The Browns have scored the first touchdown in each of their last eight games against AFC South opponents.
• The Browns have lost the first quarter in each of their last six games as road favorites following a win.
• The favorites have won the first half in 11 of the Browns’ last 12 games.

Houston Texans Team Preview

The Houston Texans will look to build on their 19-16 OT win over Tennessee last time out. C.J. Stroud has thrown for 3,631 yards, 20 touchdowns and 5 interceptions on 62.4% passing but is still doubtful for this game with an injury while Devin Singletary has a team-high 711 rushing yards and Dameon Pierce has 394 rushing yards as well. Nico Collins leads Houston’s receiving group with 60 grabs for 1,004 yards and 6 TDs while Tank Dell has 47 receptions for 709 yards and 7 scores, but is out for the year with an injury. Noah Brown has 521 receiving yards and Dalton Schultz has 513 receiving yards with 44 receptions and 5 touchdowns. On defense, Blake Cashman has a team-high 87 total tackles while Jonathan Greenard has a team-high 12.5 sacks. Steven Nelson also has a team-high 4 interceptions as well this season.

Houston Texans Team Facts

• The Texans have won four of their last five games as underdogs against AFC opponents.
• The Texans have failed to cover the spread in each of their last five games following an overtime win.
• The Texans have won the first half in six of their last seven games against teams that held a winning record.
• The Texans have won the first quarter in each of their last three December games as home underdogs against AFC opponents.
• Seven of the Texans’ last eight Sunday games as home underdogs have gone UNDER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Texans rank 1st in the NFL in Q2 opponent points per game this season (3.6).
• The Texans rank T31st in the NFL in Q3 opponent points per game this season (6.7).
• The Browns rank 1st in the NFL in yards allowed per game this season (261.1).
• The Browns rank 1st in the NFL in passing yards allowed per game this season (158.9).

Browns vs. Texans Prediction

I’m on the Browns here. I’ll commend the Texans for getting by with Case Keenum last week, but that was against a Titans team that has simply quit on the season. The Browns are right in the thick of things and won’t be giving anything up to the Texans here, and I think the clock strikes 12 on Houston in this game.