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The Houston Texans are coming off back-to-back losses after they won against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 5. The Texans are set to face no less than the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles at NRG Stadium during Week 9 of the 2022 NFL season. A win here can potentially push the Texans up to third place in the AFC South. Here are our Houston Texans Week 9 predictions as they take on the Eagles.
The Philadelphia Eagles, the NFL's only unbeaten club, are scheduled to face the Houston Texans, who may finish dead last this season and hold the top overall pick in the 2023 draft. Recall that Houston was run over by Derrick Henry and the Titans in their previous game. King Henry rushed for 219 yards and two scores, dropping the Texans to 1-5-1 on the season.
Meanwhile, the Eagles returned from their bye week and continued to look like a Super Bowl contender, defeating the Steelers by 22 points.
With all these in mind, here are our four bold predictions for the Houston Texans in their Week 9 game against the Eagles.
Making its debut this Thursday… pic.twitter.com/hPxdOH9BwV
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) October 31, 2022
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4. Jerry Hughes finds Jalen Hurts for a big sack
Despite continuous trade speculations, the Texans are unwilling to part ways with veteran Jerry Hughes. Even at the age of 34, he remains a very productive player. Hughes has 5 sacks, 14 total tackles, 8 pressures, 1 forced fumble, and 1 interception for the Texans this season, earning a Pro Football Focus rating of 73.8.
Hughes is coming off a game where he sacked Titans QB Ryan Tannehill. The seasoned defensive end will do the same here. We expect him to find Jalen Hurts, who has been sacked a total of 18 times already this season. Put Hughes up for a sack and a tackle for loss in this matchup.
3. Dameon Pierce goes over 100 yards from scrimmage
Texans RB Dameon Pierce had gone over 80 yards rushing in four straight games heading into last Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. However, the Tennessee defense was able to shut him down on the ground. By the game's end, Pierce had carried the ball 15 times for 35 yards. However, he was the recipient of Davis Mills' lone touchdown pass of that contest.
That said, Pierce is still coming off his second-lowest running effort of the season. Still, we see him bouncing back strong in Week 9 against an Eagles defense that allowed 144 rushing yards to the Pittsburgh Steelers last week.
Pierce should have a total of at least 100 yards from scrimmage against Philly. That will make him their best weapon on offense here.
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2. Davis Mills does better here compared to Week 8
Texans QB Davis Mills completed 17 of his 29 pass attempts for 152 yards, one touchdown, and one interception last week. He added eight rushing yards on three attempts in a 17-10 loss to the Titans.
Recall that Mills was intercepted on a pass to Brevin Jordan on the team’s first drive of the game. The 24-year-old has now tossed at least one interception in four of the team’s seven games this season. Needless to say, the second-year quarterback will have a tough test against the Eagles Thursday night. Keep in mind that the Eagles have already recorded 10 interceptions this year. That's good for a second-place tie with the Patriots so far.
The Eagles have also allowed the fewest total air yards after eight weeks of action (1,284). Still, we feel like Mills should do a better job here compared to how he played in Week 8. Against the Eagles, we have him going for over 180 yards total with one touchdown and one INT.
1. Texans get blown out of their own arena
The Texans gained a measly 3.2 yards per play against the Titans in Week 8. That's rather unfortunate considering that Tennessee has one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Now, they face an Eagles defense that has allowed the second-fewest yards per play on a short week. The Texans will certainly need all the luck they can muster.
Houston should expect the Eagles to use much more of their rushing offense here. That won't be good news since the Texans allow 5.6 yards per carry. That's second-most in the league next to the 32nd-ranked Chargers.
Even if the Texans have some luck stopping the Eagles, though, Philly is really good at converting third downs. That's actually one of the most impressive parts of the Eagles' offense. In fact, they rank fourth in third down conversion rate. They convert on 45.5 percent of their third down opportunities. The Texans, on the other hand, rank 30th in that category.
Houston just doesn't really stack up well in this matchup. That's not surprising since their win-loss records pretty much reflect the gap between these two teams. Maybe the only thing going for the Texans is playing at home. Still, the Eagles are head and shoulders above the Texans here. We don't see any reason this will be close. Hurts should lead Philadelphia to their eighth win and preserve their unbeaten run.
