Texans Fall Out of Top 10 Super Bowl Contenders After Bad Loss to Ravens
- After Sunday’s 41-7 rout by the Baltimore Ravens, the Houston Texans are out of the top-10 contenders in the Super Bowl 54 odds
- Books list the Texans at +5000 to win the Super Bowl
- Last week, Houston’s average odds to win the big game were +2233
Was Sunday’s 41-7 thrashing at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens just a bad week for the Houston Texans? Or, as former NFL coach Dennis Green once infamously expressed, are the Texans who we thought they were after that embarrassing loss?
Certainly, Houston’s Super Bowl odds reflect the latter position.
Books moved the Texans out of the top ten Super Bowl 54 contenders, listing them at odds of +5000.
Super Bowl 54 Odds
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| New England Patriots | +250 |
| Baltimore Ravens | +550 |
| New Orleans Saints | +600 |
| San Francisco 49ers | +700 |
| Green Bay Packers | +1200 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | +1200 |
| Minnesota Vikings | +1600 |
| Seattle Seahawks | +1600 |
| Dallas Cowboys | +2000 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | +2500 |
| Los Angeles Rams | +3300 |
| Oakland Raiders | +4000 |
| Houston Texans | +5000 |
| Indianapolis Colts | +5000 |
Odds taken November 18th
Last week, Houston’s average Super Bowl odds were +2233. Books pegged the Texans at +2500 in their Super Bowl 54 future book.
Houston, We Have a Problem
How awful were the Texans on Sunday? Let’s count the ways.
Houston was shut out in the first half, the first time that’s ever happened with Deshaun Watson at quarterback. Watson didn’t pass for a single touchdown and was sacked six times.
This is the 7th game over the past 2 seasons in which Deshaun Watson has been sacked 6 times in a game.
That’s more than twice as many as the next closest quarterbacks (Wilson, Mariota, Rosen), who each had 3 such games in that span. pic.twitter.com/zTBpVeZIDV
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 17, 2019
He’s hit the turf 31 times this season, the most of any AFC QB. Watson is one of four QBs to be sacked at least 30 times this season. The other three – Jameis Winston of the Buccaneers (3-7), Daniel Jones of the Giants (2-8) and Kyler Murray of the Cardinals – have a combined record of 8-22-1.
In other words, good teams don’t allow their QB to be hit that much.
Mark Ingram made the Texans defense look like swiss cheese 🧀pic.twitter.com/qcn532m5sl
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) November 17, 2019
The Houston defense hadn’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in 25 games but Gus Edwards sliced and diced the Texans for 112 yards. Baltimore finished with 263 yards on the ground, an average of 7.3 yards per carry.
Sunday’s debacle emphasized how precarious Houston’s hold on a playoff position truly is at the moment. The 6-4 Texans are the #6 seed in the AFC but only because they hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the 6-4 Oakland Raiders.
However, books are offering better odds on the Raiders (+4000) winning Super Bowl 54 than the Texans.
Well, It Was Pass Interference
Houston players and coach Bill O’Brien spent the post game grousing about a non-call, and they had a point. DeAndre Hopkins was interfered with in the end zone by Marlon Humphrey.
Despite Houston's challenge, Marlon Humphrey was not called for pass interference on this play. pic.twitter.com/1PI4bB3WS9
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) November 17, 2019
So the final score should’ve been 41-14. Not exactly a game changer.
This would be like sitting in one of the lifeboats from the Titanic and pointing out that the food on the ship wasn’t all that tasty. Even Congressional Republicans felt this was an effort to deflect attention from the real issue.
Out of The Frying Pan
Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of how easily Houston was manhandled by the Ravens is the fact that the Texans were coming off their bye week. They had two weeks to plan for Baltimore, and couldn’t accomplish a thing on either side of the ball.
Good thing Texans had two weeks to prepare. No telling what the score would have been.
— John McClain (@McClain_on_NFL) November 17, 2019
There will be no such luxury this time around. The Texans face the 6-4 Indianapolis Colts on Thursday with leadership of the AFC South on the line. Indy’s already beaten Houston once this season, so a loss would virtually finish any hopes the Texans might hold of winning the division.
Houston’s erratic season is perhaps best emphasized in the bouncing ball that is this team’s Super Bowl odds. The Texans were +4100 on Oct. 11. By Oct. 20, they’d dropped to a season-low +1733.
.@MAndrews_81 with room to run… 51-yard gain! #RavensFlock
📺: CBS
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app
Watch free on mobile: https://t.co/414bcK9I5b pic.twitter.com/REnoSBLNNT— NFL (@NFL) November 17, 2019
Should you bet on the Texans to win Super Bowl 54?
No. Not now. Not ever.
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
