Tennessee Titans vs. Houston Texans 8:30 ET

Posted on 11/20/2009 12:00:00 AMby North Shore Sports, INC

Monday Night Football betting action heads to Reliant Stadium, where the Tennessee Titans (3-6, 4-5 ATS) will take on the Houston Texans (5-4, 5-3-1 ATS). The final game on the Week 11 NFL betting slate is arguably the most intriguing game on the schedule for Bookmaker Sportsbook customers to dig into. QB Vince Young will return to the Lone Star State, where the crowd will certainly be on his side considering that he led the Texas Longhorns to a National Championship. But the Texans are the upstarts of the league, and they'll want to kick off the second half of their season in a strong manner after their bye week.
 
The host Texans currently sit as 4.5-point home favorites with the game ‘total set at 48-points at Bookmaker.com for tonight’s MNF betting AFC South battle.
 
Since their bye week, the Titans have won and covered three straight games. HC Jeff Fisher's decision to change quarterbacks has apparently worked, as Young has led the Titans to 30+ points in each of their L/3 games. However, the game plan may be a large part of that as well. Young hasn't been asked to do much with his arm. He has only thrown for 507 yards in his three starts. Instead, the onus has fallen on RB Chris Johnson.
 
The East Carolina product is already a 1,000+ yard rusher this year, as he has rumbled for 1,091 yards and eight TDs. He also has 262 receiving yards on 30 receptions. The second-year back has turned himself into an MVP candidate very quickly, as he has accounted for 623 rushing yards and six TDs over the L/4 games. Johnson will be salivating at the idea of facing a Houston defense which he absolutely torched in Week 2, as he ran for 197 yards and received for another 87, accounting for three TDs in the process.
 
QB Matt Schaub and WR Andre Johnson had fantastic games against these Titans in Week 2 as well, though. Johnson caught ten passes for 149 yards and two scores, while Schaub won AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors for going 25/39 for 357 yards and four TDs without throwing a pick. There's no doubt that Houston can throw the ball around the field, as Schaub is pacing the #3 passing attack in the NFL at 283.7 yards per game.
 
The biggest question is whether an improving defense can figure out how to contain Johnson and keep Young in the pocket. Before taking their bye week last week, the Texans had gone 3-0-1 ATS and 3-1 SU in their L/4, and they came as close as any team has come to knocking off the Colts when they lost 20-17 at Lucas Oil Stadium two weeks ago.
 
The 34-31 victory for Houston in Week 2 marked the second straight win for the Texans in this series. The underdog has covered seven of the L/2 clashes between these two squads. The home team has won three straight. Last year at Reliant, the Texans used a stifling defensive effort and 207 receiving yards by Johnson to capture a 13-12 victory.
 
Tensions will be high between these division rivals, as playoff positioning is also on the line. You're not going to want to miss all of the NFL betting action under the bright lights of Monday Night with Bookmaker.com!