Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans Picks and Odds Week 15
Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans Betting Preview
WagerTalk NFL handicapper Tony Mejia offers his Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans NFL Week 15 betting preview. At the time of posting, the Jaguars have climbed to a 5-point home favorite over their AFC South rivals, with the total sitting at 39.5 points.
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| NFL Week 15 | Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Jacksonville Jaguars -5 vs Houston Texans |
| Total: | 39.5 Points |
| Game Time: | 1:00pm ET / 10:00am PT on Sunday, December 19 |
| Stadium: | TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville |
| TV: | CBS |
Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans Predictions
The ghost of Urban Meyer will haunt this matchup between the AFC’s bottom two teams.
Late Wednesday night, Meyer was let go as Jags head coach by owner Shad Kahn, who pardoned him once already after the first-year pro coach opted not to fly home with his team following a Week 4 Thursday night loss in Cincinnati and was later caught on video having a much younger bar patron who wasn’t his wife dancing all up on him that weekend.
The footage resulted in a social media mishap that embarrassed the organization and ultimately drew more criticism over him not flying back with his troops after a loss more than anything else. The incident piled on to an ugly start for the college coaching legend, who hired a strength and conditioning coach that was let go by Iowa due to clashes with players and then was forced to let him go amid pressure.
Rumors of players being angry that they were being treated like college kids instead of pros started early, way back to the Tim Tebow addition at tight end. Just before last week’s 20-0 loss to Tennessee, NFL Network reported that assistants were offended by him berating them and creating a hostile working environment. Despite all the noise, owner Shad Kahn said he wasn’t mulling any moves.
Meyer rubbed his team the wrong way throughout his tenure and never struck a great relationship with No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence, so it’s no surprise that he’s now gone after former PK Josh Lambo divulged that Meyer kicked him earlier this season while getting on him over missed field goals. The incident was already well-known in Jags’ circles but the fact that it got out there was apparently the last straw for management. Meyer’s tenure lasted 13 games and produced just two victories.
Darrell Bevell will now take over on an interim basis and is doing so for the second straight season. He took over for the fired Matt Patricia with the Detroit Lions just after Thanksgiving in 2020 and won his debut before dropping his final four contests. The call here is that he’s going to persevere in his first game at the helm for a second year in a row since the visiting Texans look quite vulnerable.
Houston’s first-year head coach David Culley got no vote of confidence when GM Nick Caserio was asked about his future come season’s end and the Texans are 1-11 since opening the season with a 37-21 blowout of the Jags at NRG Stadium. The Jags were a favorite in that contest and will again be chalk for just the second time this season in this rematch.
Tyrod Taylor was excellent in that first contest but has since given way to rookie Davis Mills, who completed his first 14 passes last week against Seattle but couldn’t sustain that momentum in falling 33-13. Mills did throw for 331 yards and a score in his return to the starting lineup and will be the guy going forward so long as he stays healthy.
Lawrence remains the franchise cornerstone in Jacksonville, but the Jags turned the ball over four times and looked like they haven’t made any progress under Meyer entering Week 15. The 64 points they’ve scored in a 7-game span are the fewest in franchise history in that long a stretch. Jacksonville hasn’t scored more than 17 points in seven straight contests. Lawrence has failed to throw a TD pass in five of the last six games.
With Meyer gone, Jacksonville can collectively send a message that the team is thrilled that “ding dong the witch is dead” by performing well in this one. In front of their fan base, Lawrence needs to step up in a battle of rookie quarterbacks since it would be an awful look for the top pick to fall to a projected backup out of Stanford who wasn’t selected until the third round (pick No. 67).
Make no mistake, both of these teams stink, but we should see some backbone from the Jags at home, helping pick up a much-needed win over a Texans squad that has been outscored by 51 points over two December losses. Lay the points.
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— WagerTalk (@WagerTalk) December 17, 2021
Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans Analysis from GoldSheet
NFL Week 15 Prezidential Address
Looking for a 30-minute show that attacks NFL betting from every angle? The Prezidential Address is for you. Each week, Prez will go through the entire NFL schedule and offer his thoughts on bets against the spread, over/under totals, teaser options and player props. Prez breaks down this Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans clash at the 14:45 timestamp.
WagerTalk Live Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the moneylines, point spreads, first half lines and betting percentages for all of the NFL Week 15 games, including this Jacksonville Jaguars vs Houston Texans showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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