Philadelphia Eagles vs. Houston Texans Thursday Night Football Betting Preview

The Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans will open up Week 9 of the NFL season when they face off on Thursday Night Football. Philadelphia goes into the game as a 13.5-point favorite in Houston, as they look to remain undefeated on the season. But, the Texans have their sights set on an upset victory that would put an end to the Eagles unbeaten run.

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Philadelphia Eagles

Last week, the Philadelphia Eagles demolished the Pittsburgh Steelers, moving the ball through the air at will. Here, they aim for an eighth straight win to start this season, and will look for their running game to help them get there.

 The Eagles have a top-10 rushing attack in the NFL in terms of yards per game earned on the ground, and take on a Texans team that ranks dead last in rushing yards allowed.

Helping the Eagles running game is the fact that they have a dynamic quarterback that defenses also have to pay attention to. Jalen Hurts is coming off of a four-touchdown performance against the Steelers last week, as he managed to get the ball to A.J. Brown over and over again in the end zone.

 His presence prevents the Texans from being able to simply stack the box to try and stop the run, especially since Hurts is capable of running the ball himself.

Houston Texans

The Houston Texans are 1-5-1 this season, with their lone win coming against the Jacksonville Jaguars. They have lost two straight games since that victory, falling to the Las Vegas Raiders and Tennessee Titans in back to back weeks. 

Last game against the Titans, the Texans run defense really let the team down, allowing over 200 yards to Derrick Henry in a 17-10 loss, in a game where the Texans were able to stop rookie quarterback Malik Willis for the duration of the contest.

This week, run defense will be key for the Texans once again, as they need to stop a loaded Eagles ground game. If the Texans cannot stop the run, they will likely not be able to make things difficult on Hurts through the air either.

 Keep an eye on how the Texans perform on early downs, as that will be make or break for them defensively all night.

Keys To The Game

The biggest key to this game for the Eagles is going to be their discipline. As a huge favorite in this game, the Eagles are expected to win this contest without much of a fight. But, if they make mistakes such as penalties and turnovers, they could end up letting the Texans hang around or even steal this game.

For Houston, generating some passing offense is going to be very important. Davis Mills has shown the potential to play at a high level, but does not always deliver. If he can at least help his team put up some points and force the Eagles to score to keep up, the Texans could make things interesting on Thursday night.

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