Raiders vs Texans Picks, Splits & Starters (Preseason Week 2)
By Eric Rosales in NFL News
Published:
- The Las Vegas Raiders are slight 1.5-point favorites in Week 2 preseason action vs the Houston Texans
- For a second straight week, Houston will be sitting its starters out
- See below for the Raiders vs Texans odds, betting splits, picks, and who should be playing
The Houston Texans might be the toughest team to figure out in the 2026 NFL season.
Not so much in the preseason though, as they will again be a shell of themselves in Week 2 when they host the Las Vegas Raiders, after announcing they’d be sitting their starters for a second straight week.
Even though Vegas has yet to announce their roster plans, Houston’s news means they are the betting favorites in the NFL odds.
Action gets underway Thursday night at 8pm ET from Reliant Stadium in Houston, with ESPN providing the broadcast coverage.
Raiders vs Texans Odds and Betting Splits
Odds as of August 20th from bet365. Click here for a bet365 Sportsbook promo code to bet on for NFL this season.
This is a pretty tight matchup when looking at the odds. Las Vegas is only a slight moneyline favorite, getting -115 odds, with the Texans sitting as the favorite at -105 odds.
The Texans are getting 1.5 points on the spread, yet their odds to cover are at a reasonable -115. The Raiders, meanwhile, are getting -105 odds, even though they have to win by at least two points.
The total is set at 37.5 points, with both ends of the betting spectrum offering -110 odds.
Looking at the NFL public betting trends, and the public is hammering the home team on the moneyline with 90% of the money on the Texans to win outright, while taking 67% of the bets. They’re only slight favorites on the spread, where they are getting 55% of the stake on 60% of the wagers.
The public sees this one as a low-scoring affair, with a large 70% of the bets on the Under, taking 65% of all bets.
Raiders vs Texans Picks
- Under 37.5 points (-110 at bet365)
CJ Stroud might rank just inside the Top 20 in the current NFL MVP odds, but the Houston pivot is the guy that can sink or catapult the team’s chances to win it all, as they currently rank 11th in the Super Bowl odds.
Without him you saw just how anemic this offense can be particularly in the preseason, where they were handled 27-7 by the LA Chargers in Week 1.
As a team, the Texans mustered just 209 total yards, including a paltry 98 yards passing, a paltry 4.1 yards per pass.
It’s expected that Vegas will deploy the same type of game plan in terms of playing their guys as they did in Week 1. That means starters should get a few reps, giving way to the evaluation phase, as teams try to sort out their roster as the kickoff to the regular season is just over 20 days away.
Top pick Fernando Mendoza should get plenty of reps, but after a fast start in Week 1 against Arizona, where he threw for 97 yards and a TD, the entire offense tapered off, scoring just seven more points the rest of the way.
They won’t be getting Houston’s Top D from a year ago, but with most of Vegas’ top stars getting as few as three series’ at most, I don’t see an offensive shootout materializing.
Both teams went Under the total in Week 1 (scoring a combined 21 points!), part of an overall league trend that saw the Over cash just four times in 12 preseason games, and 11 of the 16 games had a total below 38.
Expect much more of the same Thursday.
LV Raiders vs HOU Texans Who’s Playing
With no Houston starters and key Raiders players seeing very limited action in Week 2, we’ve rounded up notable players that should suit up and will be worth watching, as they try to win a position battle or latch onto a roster spot.
LV Raiders
- Fernando Mendoza (QB): The top pick of the 2026 Draft will likely lose out to Kirk Cousins, but he can still pry the starting job away with standout camp
- Caleb Rogers (G): An injury to incumbent Jackson Powers-Johnson leaves the door open for the 3rd Round pick in 2025 to show he can step in and do the job
- Mike Washington Jr (RB): Vegas already has top draft pick Ashton Jeanty in the starter role, but Washington could be a star in waiting
- Malik Benson (WR): Other than Brock Bowers, there’s not a lot of name recognition in the pass-catching room. Benson has a chance to make his mark as a rook.
HOU Texans
- Xavier Hutchinson (WR): With Jayden Higgins gone for the year with an ACL injury, Hutchinson can find himself a nice role behind Nico Collins, Jaylin Noel and Tank Dell
- Davis Mills (QB): He’s basically locked in as a backup, but does Mills have the moxie to step in if Stroud struggles? A couple of good preseason showings would be encouraging
- Marlin Klein (TE): The pass catching group has proven a little brittle, so a TE that can stretch the middle of the field would be helpful to CJ Stroud
- Dominique Robinson (DE): Will Anderson, Danielle Hunter and Jadaveon Clowney are a formidable EDGE group, and Robinson or Solomon Bird are competing to be the fourth
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Sports Writer & Editor
Having worked in and around sports since 1997, Eric is truly a knowledgeable expert. The two-time journalism grad specializes in all things NBA and NFL. From TSN.ca to CTV's Olympic Broadcast Consortium, Eric's work has appeared in local and national publications alike.
