***SWAMPA CLAUS XMAS - PITT @ HOU***
***PITTSBURGH STEELERS @ HOUSTON TEXANS***
First things first, wishing a very Merry Xmas and Happy Holidays from the SwampMan to you and yours! We have some modest games on tap but hey, it's football on Xmas am I right? Any game is better than no game and I'm more than happy to tune in. That being said, first up we have the 4-10 Houston Texans with nothing to play for as they host the 11-3 Pittsburgh Steelers, who can clinch a very important first round bye week in the playoffs with a win today on the road. I won't go into too much detail here for the sake of my time and yours, so let's just keep this one simple and call it for exactly what it is, a complete mismatch in all phases of the game, physically and mentally. At this point, the only reasoning the Texans have to get up for this game is that it's on National TV and to avoid complete embarrassment. However the fact that today in particular falls on a Holiday such as Christmas, I feel as though a whole other batch of distractions are likely in play here to pull away from the little motivation and focus that the Texans may have. We all know the Steelers are incredibly talented, and they like to show it, especially in the spotlight. So far this season PItt has been in that Prime Time spotlight 5 times! They won and covered against both the Lions and Titans as favorites, before rattling off three straight win but no covers against the Packers, Bengals, and Ravens. Today, against an opponent they know they have the clear edge against, I think they will be looking to take advantage of that opportunity to show off a bit here in front of the world on Christmas. Even with WR Antonio Brown, the Steelers have plenty of weapons to choose from with fellow divas WR Martavis Bryant and Rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster who have been known to enjoy the big stage themselves. Even if Pitt gameplans to keep things on the ground here and focus on pounding the rock with RB Le'Veon Bell, they can do so and it shouldn't matter as I believe they can beat the battered Houston defense both through the air and ground so long as they account for the Texans athletic freak Jadeveon Clowney who will be looking to showcase his talents as well I'm sure. That being said, I feel as though Pitt will be ready to handle business and use this game and next week against the winless Browns to fine tune themselves and work out any remaining kinks before the playoffs begin.
On the other hand the Texans will be playing with nothing to lose, and do have some talent on the offensive side of the ball, mainly WR DeAndre Hopkins. Backup QB TJ Yates is now the man behind center for the Texans and he is actually the better option over Tom Savage in my opinion and if there is any weakness on Pittsburgh, it is there secondary. That being said, I wouldn't be surprised to see Houston not hesitate to let it rip and take shots deep downfield to Hopkins to put some points up themselves. In a nutshell, I foresee a fun back and forth scoring type of game, and the Steelers eventually proving to be too much, pulling away in the second half to cover the number here. It should also be fun to see Pittsburgh Rookie DE TJ Watt and how he fares in the house of his older brother, JJ Watt. I'm sure he wouldn't mind having himself a big game. Big Ben & Bell hold down the Steelers and get it done here. STEELERS-8.5
