Powered by:
Morning Coffee: Houston could be a problem in the AFC
Published
The Buffalo Bills are the class of the AFC East.
In fact, no team has been more dominant inside their own division over the past four seasons than Buffalo.
The Bills beat the Miami Dolphins 31-10 on Thursday Night Football to improve to 11-1 straight up in their last 12 head-to-head meetings.
It was Buffalo’s 17th win by double-digits in a division game since they drafted Josh Allen back in 2018 – tied for the most such division wins in the NFL over that span.
Despite winning the AFC East in four straight seasons, the Bills were the second choice to win the division at FanDuel behind the New York Jets entering Week 1.
Following a 2-0 start, Buffalo is now the favourite.
Meanwhile, the Bills were a 2.5-point underdog and +114 to win outright against the Dolphins last night.
Buffalo beat Miami by 21 points for its largest win as an underdog since Week 17 of the 2020 season.
Anybody who thought that the Bills would suddenly fall off – at least to the degree that they wouldn’t contend for a division title – likely won’t feel the same way after their first two games.
It’s a much different story for the Dolphins, as it’s hard to imagine last night’s loss going much worse than it did for them.
Tua Tagovailoa is 26-years-old and he has already had success at every level of football throughout his career.
He has nothing left to prove.
Whatever he decides to do next, I hope it ultimately turns out to be the best decision for Tua and his family.
This is the Morning Coffee for Friday September 13th, 2024.
Houston Could Be A Problem In The AFC
The Kansas City Chiefs are my pick to win the Super Bowl.
The Bills are expected to present one of their biggest obstacles to winning another AFC Championship.
I’m not sure how many other AFC teams have a case to contend with Kansas City on the road to the Super Bowl.
The Baltimore Ravens fell just short in back-to-back losses to the Chiefs in last year’s AFC Championship Game and then again in their season opener.
Neither the New York Jets nor the Cincinnati Bengals looked like legitimate Super Bowl contenders in Week 1.
The Dolphins never even looked like they had a chance against the Bills last night and now they could be without their franchise quarterback for the foreseeable future.
That leaves the one remaining team among the top seven choices to win the AFC Championship to talk about.
The Houston Texans are +700 as the fourth choice to win the AFC Championship at FanDuel.
Only Kansas City, Buffalo, and Baltimore have shorter odds to reach the Super Bowl among AFC teams.
The Texans are up from -5.5 to -6.5 for their Week 2 clash with the Chicago Bears on Sunday Night Football.
I’m already on Houston -5.5 and a two-team parlay that features the Texans and Chiefs to win outright.
I also recommended the Chiefs -5.5 against the Bengals as a FanDuel Best Bet for Week 2.
Additionally, I jumped on the Los Angeles Rams at +102 to beat the Arizona Cardinals as another FanDuel Best Bet.
I’m ready to add to that list with two more plays this morning.
First, I’ll parlay Houston and the Philadelphia Eagles to both win outright on a traditional parlay at -130.
The Texans are my pick to win the AFC South.
Houston is currently -150 to win its division at FanDuel this morning and I’m banking on them to improve to 2-0 with a convincing win over the Bears on Sunday.
Chicago beat the Tennessee Titans without scoring an offensive touchdown in Week 1.
Don’t expect a similar result from them on Sunday.
Rookie QB Caleb Williams is set for his first prime time game on the road in a hostile environment.
Looking at his Week 1 tape, it seems like he will need at least a couple of weeks to adjust to the speed of the NFL.
Wide receiver Rome Odunze is injured while veteran Keenan Allen didn’t practice either on Thursday.
C.J. Stroud is the reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and he appears primed to take another step forward as a legitimate MVP contender in Year Two with a loaded cast of weapons that include Nico Collins, Tank Dell, Stefon Diggs, and Joe Mixon.
The Texans are on a short list of teams that have a legitimate chance to contend for an AFC title this season.
As long as they stay healthy, Houston will be in the mix.
I like them to win and cover at home against Chicago.
Meanwhile, I’m also going to lock in a Same Game Parlay with Zay Flowers to record 40+ receiving yards and the Baltimore Ravens to beat the Las Vegas Raiders at -134.
Flowers burned me on the opening night of the season when I took him for 40+ and he finished with six catches for 37 yards on 10 targets in a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
He might not get 10 targets again this week against the Raiders, but I expect him to get me the 40 yards I need in a bounce back win for the Ravens at home.
Have a great weekend, everyone!