NFL: TENNESSEE at HOUSTON (8:35 PM ET, ESPN)

Houston will have had 15 days off to either ponder its heartbreaking loss at Indy, or to prepare to make its first franchise run toward the postseason. Oddsmakers at Sportsbook.com have installed the well-rested Texans as 4-point favorites, with a total o

2009-11-24

Houston will have had 15 days off to either ponder its heartbreaking loss at Indy, or to prepare to make its first franchise run toward the postseason. Oddsmakers at Sportsbook.com have installed the well-rested Texans as 4-point favorites, with a total of 48. Of course, there will be a whole host of other wagering options, including in-game’s and props, that are open to players every Monday night. Visit the LIVE ODDS page for the latest.

How the Texans come out on Monday night vs. Tennessee will say a lot about how much they’ve grown. They have won two straight vs. Tennessee, but only by a combined 4 points. At home, they are just 1-3 SU & ATS in the L4 meetings. Tennessee is looking for its fourth straight win and ironically, as bad as they started in ’09 with six straight losses, a win here by the Titans and only one game will separate the teams. HC Jeff Fisher’s club is just 1-5 SU & ATS in its L6 divisional games though, formerly a strong suit. Home teams own a record of 6-0 SU & 5-1 ATS in HOUSTON post-bye week games since '03.

Two weeks after the Texans were passed silly by Peyton Manning in a hard-fought 20-17 defeat in Indianapolis, their run defense will be put to the test by league rushing leader Chris Johnson, who had a career day in Tennessee’s Week 2 home loss to them with 284 total yards and three touchdowns. But Johnson, who rushed for 197 yards and two scores and caught a 69-yard touchdown pass from Kerry Collins that day, had the spotlight stolen from him by Matt Schaub (357 yards, four touchdown passes) as Houston won for just the second time in Nashville in eight tries.

Prior to their bye, the Texans saw Manning throw 25 passes within 15 minutes—the most in an opening quarter since 1991—and 50 times for the game but they rallied from a 13-point deficit and took the lead on the first snap of the fourth. Joseph Addai’s touchdown run put the Colts back in front for good and they moved three-and-a-half games ahead of Houston when Kris Brown’s potential game-tying 42-yard field-goal attempt at the gun sailed wide left.

Despite the missed opportunity to keep the AFC South perch in sight, the Texans are still over .500 (5-4) and couldn’t have asked for a better time to recharge the batteries for a stretch run that begins against a suddenly lively Tennessee squad on Monday night. The Titans, spiraling out of control in October with six losses in as many games, have captured three in a row in November with Vince Young at quarterback.

Young’s leapfrogging of Collins on the depth chart was the vision of owner Bud Adams, who during the team’s bye after a 59-0 loss in New England urged head coach Jeff Fisher to turn the offensive keys over to the former first-round pick. In three starts, Young has been efficient (44-for-62, 507 yards, two touchdowns, one interception).

Houston’s ground attack changed legs recently as slippery hands cost Steve Slaton the feature back job—at least for the interim. Ryan Moats was promoted early in the team’s Week 9 game in Buffalo after Slaton fumbled, and Moats responded with 126 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-10 win. Against Indianapolis, Moats had merely 38 yards on 16 carries along with a costly fumble and Slaton (six carries, 17 yards) had the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter.

PREDICTION
Everyone who was kicking dirt on the Titans a month ago should have a new level of respect for Fisher, who rolled with the hand he was dealt by Adams. With the nation watching this week, expect them to give the Texans all they can handle. HOUSTON 24, TENNESSEE 20

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