NFL Preseason Picks – New Orleans Saints vs. Houston Texans

New Orleans Saints vs. Houston Texans 8:00 ET

Two teams that got off to a tremendous start to their preseasons match wits at Reliant Stadium when the New Orleans Saints (1-0, 1-0 ATS) take on the Houston Texans (1-0, 1-0 ATS). The Saints are coming off of a 17-7 triumph of the Bengals in the Bayou, while the Texans defeated the Chiefs 16-10 at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 1 of the preseason.

Tonight, oddsmakers lined the hosts at -3 (-115) with a game ‘total’ of 38.5. You can find NFL betting lines on this and the rest of the Week 2 NFL preseason betting action at BetOnline.com right now!

The Saints played it pretty close to the vest in their game against Cincinnati last week. QB Drew Brees got off to a good start to the ’09 season after throwing for a whopping 5,069 yards last year. He completed six of his nine passes for 88 yards, which included a 22-yard touchdown strike to TE Jeremy Shockey on the first drive of the 2nd quarter. The running game didn’t really find its way until late when second year RB Lynell Hamilton ran the ball 15 times for 48 yards. Former Tennessee WR Robert Meachem showed a lot of promise in his first game of the ’09 preseason, hauling in a team-high three passes for 77 yards and a touchdown. HC Sean Payton’s only potential complaint would be about the play of his pass defense against Cincinnati. Getting torched for 133 yards on 7/11 passing by Carson Palmer seems acceptable, but letting the combination of JT O’Sullivan and Jordan Palmer go 16/22 for 159 yards is inexcusable. New Orleans has covered the spread in six straight preseason road games and is 5-1 SU in those contests.

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That pass defense should once again be tested by the combination of QBs Matt Schaub, Dan Orlovsky, and Rex Grossman. Schaub kicked off his ’09 in style, completing all seven of his passes for 70 yards. After that, Orlovsky only completed nine of 20 passes for 121 yards. Grossman only threw one pass in his quest to earn a roster spot. RB Chris Brown scored Houston’s lone touchdown of the night. He ended the day rushing for 25 yards on six carries. Former Louisiana Tech superstar RB Ryan Moats carried the ball 10 times for 52 yards. Rookie DE Connor Barwin has made an immediate impact, recording his first professional sack and several pressures on Kansas City’s quarterbacks. Houston’s defense forced three turnovers in the effort. The Texans are now 5-2-1 ATS in their L/8 preseason games.

These two teams competed in last year’s preseason as well. The Texans won a shootout 31-27 in New Orleans. If history repeats itself, a lot more of the same can probably be expected. Houston has played seven of its L/9 preseason games over the closing ‘total’. Look to see good efforts from both teams’ backup quarterbacks with the end result finding both teams surpassing the 20-point plateau on the scoreboard.

Rose’s Recommendation: 2* New Orleans/Houston Over 38.5

(Rating Scale: 1* – 5*)