Clash of the Cappers – 2016 Week 14

By Josh Mansilla (@Manzilla36)

Throughout the 2016 NFL season, NFL handicapper Josh Mansilla will be providing his weekly plays, along with a brief write-up on how he sees the games playing out. We’ll track his picks alongside those of our other capper, Dan Urda, to see who best assisted our readers throughout the season. Dan’s picks for Week 14 can be found in this week’s podcast.

Season Records

Josh Mansilla: 7-5

Dan Urda: 27-37-3

Texans +6.5

It was a tough loss last week as the Bills got off to a great start and then just completely fell apart. I’m now 7-5 on the season and looking to bounce back here.

This weekend, I like the Texans to hang tough on the road against the Colts. Everyone saw Indianapolis on Monday Night Football go on the road and destroy the Jets; that result definitely inflated this line, along with the fact that the Texans are currently on a 3-game losing streak.

These two teams, along with the Titans, all currently sit at 6-6 in the division and I expect these remaining divisional games to be very close down the stretch. Houston currently holds a 3-0 record against teams in their division and I believe this is just too many points for the Colts to be laying.

Houston has run for the 6th-highest number of yards in the NFL and will be up against an Indianapolis defense that rates 31st in the league in rushing defense, per Football Outsiders. The Colts will also be missing defensive signal caller D’Qwell Jackson, who is suspended four games for violating the substance abuse policy.

I’ve said this before, but being able to run the football is how you win on the road in the NFL. Luck looked like he couldn’t be stopped last week, but that was against a Jets team who is awful in the secondary. Houston is an above average defense and I look for their strong pass rush to expose the weaknesses in the Colts’ offensive line.

I actually think this game comes down to the last drive and I believe Luck and the Colts will sneak out the victory. Still, I feel comfortable taking the 6.5 points.

Prediction: 23-20, Colts

Good luck.