Houston Texans vs. Denver Broncos, 8:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, ESPN
The Texans win if…
Brock Osweiler and the passing game is able to open up with aggressiveness.
There’s no avoiding the fact that the Texans offensive attack hasn’t exactly been lethal. Now, that’s not to say that they need to be even in the top-half of the league’s passing production rates to succeed this season, rather if they want to win games against defenses like Denver’s, they’ll need to throw the ball to win. What’s there to gain by sticking with a vanilla plan on Monday night? It’s time for Houston to take calculated shots downfield and prove that Osweiler can, indeed, push the ball down the field and gain big chunks when it is needed.
The Broncos win if…
The pass rush and defensive front is disruptive.
Though the offense might not be among the league’s top gainers, there’s still little doubt this Broncos defense can produce enough to lead Denver to a postseason berth. In this game, that basic idea is a simple storyline. The Houston offense is exploitable and prone to mistakes when pressed. For the Denver front-seven, disruption at the point of attack should be enough to put the team over the top on Monday night. Win in the trenches, win the game.
Broncos topple Texans on Monday Night Football, 17-13.