Browns vs Texans Props: QBs Could Air It Out

· Jan 12 - 5 minutes read

When the season began, not many of those who bet online had the NFL playoffs starting with a matchup between the Cleveland Browns and Houston Texans. It wasn’t easy for either team but they are both part of the AFC playoff field and one offers an NFL best bet this week.

Houston hasn’t won a playoff game since 2019 with Cleveland eyeing its first playoff win in four years.

Browns vs Texans Props: QBs Could Air It Out

Visiting Cleveland is listed by NFL spreads this week as the two-point favorite.

Cleveland has been receiving some positive injury news this week with top receiver Amari Cooper, defensive end Myles Garrett, and quarterback Joe Flacco all expected to play. It is a little concerning that cornerback Denzel Ward injured a knee in practice to leave his availability up in the air.

#Browns CB Greg Newsome II & DE Myles Garrett react to CB Denzel Ward suffering a knee injury at practice Thursday pic.twitter.com/50LbACHjeq

— Daryl Ruiter (@RuiterWrongFAN) January 11, 2024

Receivers Noah Brown and Robert Woods are questionable for Houston.

When looking at best bets this week, both Houston quarterback CJ Stroud and Cleveland’s Joe Flacco could be enticing options when it comes to the player props in the first game of this season’s playoffs.

The playoff game will kick off shortly after 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. It will be the first game at NRG Stadium since Michigan topped Washington to win the College Football Playoff title game.

Here’s a look at some betting options going into the first of the six playoff games in the first week of the postseason.

Houston’s CJ Stroud To Pass for at Least 253 yards (+104)

It will be interesting to see how Houston’s Stroud fares in his first NFL postseason game.

He will be the first quarterback selected in the top five in the NFL Draft to appear in the playoffs as a rookie since Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow had 244 yards and two touchdown passes in a 26-19 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in 2021.

Houston may have to air it out against a Cleveland defense that allowed the fewest yards in the NFL this season.

He didn’t play in the regular-season loss to Cleveland so this will be the first look at the player listed by the NFL odds as one of the favorites to be the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Cleveland QB Joe Flacco To Throw for at Least 276 yards (-114)

What a ride it has been for former Super Bowl-winning quarterback Flacco.

It looked like Flacco’s time in the NFL came to an end when he appeared in five games with the New York Jets in 2022.

That changed when Cleveland starting quarterback Deshaun Watson was injured and both the players given the chance to step into the No. 1 QB role struggled.

Flacco has thrown for 1,616 yards and 13 touchdowns in five games.

Cleveland loves to run the ball but the Browns will have confidence in a quarterback that knows how to win at this time of the year.

Houston’s Will Anderson To Have a Sack (+150)

Houston traded a future No. 1 pick to move up and select former Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson in the three slot. This game is why the Texans made that move.

Anderson came through in big situations at Alabama with three sacks in two SEC Championship Game appearances and two more versus Cincinnati in the 2021 national semifinal game.

Flacco has been sacked once in his last two games. He did go down four times in a matchup with Chicago so look for Anderson to get to him at least once.

Cleveland WR Amari Cooper 88+ Receiving Yards (+106)

With Amari Cooper slowed by a heel injury, there is some risk involved in going with receiving yardage props for the top pass catcher for the Browns.

Let’s not forget that the last time that Cleveland played Houston, Cooper set a Cleveland franchise record with 265 receiving yards.

There have been times since Flacco arrived when his first three options when he drops back to pass is to look for Cooper, look away, and then look for Cooper and if that doesn’t work, he looks to connect with Cooper. It could be more of the same in this matchup.

Nobody who is betting online is expecting him to have another 265-yard game against the Texans but he could make a run at a 100-yard game. He does have one career 100-yard game in the playoffs.