Cardinals vs. Texans Final Score Prediction for NFL Week 15 (Can Houston Cover?)

The Houston Texans are big home favorites against the Cardinals in Week 15.

The Houston Texans are big home favorites against the Cardinals in Week 15. / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Houston Texans are starting to gain some respect around the AFC. They’ve won five wins in a row, including three straight upsets against the Bills, Colts, and Chiefs.

On the flip side, the Arizona Cardinals are just waiting for the season to end. They’ve lost five straight games, including a 45-17 drubbing at home against the Rams on Sunday.

The oddsmakers have the Texans as big home favorites at the best betting sites for this matchup.

This season, the SI Betting team is sharing a final score prediction for every game as a fun way to help bettors decide on spread and total bets. 

Using the latest odds and analysis, here’s where I’m leaning for this Week 15 matchup.

Cardinals vs. Texans Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread

• Cardinals +10 (-110)
• Texans -10 (-110)

Moneyline

• Cardinals: +440
• Texans: -600

Total

• 42.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

The spread has moved from -7.5 to -10 since the odds opened for this one, perhaps due to the Texans’ win in Kansas City. The total is still at 42.5, though.

Can the Texans cover as big home favorites?

Cardinals vs. Texans Final Score Prediction

SI Betting’s Iain MacMillan broke down this game in his weekly Road to 272 Bets column:

There's a very strong argument to be made that the Texans have the best defense in the NFL, but for them to cover the 10-point spread, their offense is going to have to put up some points as well. Do we have enough faith in them to do that? Their offense is 24th in EPA per play, 29th in success rate, and 24th in DVOA. Covering a 10-point spread is hard enough, even if it's against a bad team like the Cardinals, but covering that team while having a bottom-10 offense is even harder.

Pick: Cardinals +10 (-115)

Iain’s right: the Texans will have to put up a bunch of points to cover a double-digit spread, while also holding a Cardinals offense in check. Arizona is averaging a very respectable 21.7 points per game, right behind Houston at 21.8.

Maybe the Texans defense can force enough turnovers to turn this into a blowout, but a one-score game could be in the cards here for Houston.

Final Score Prediction: Texans 23, Cardinals 17

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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