Week 14 AFC South predictions: Texans poised to capitalize on Jags injuries

The AFC South split its Week 13 slate of games as the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts came out on the winning end while the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans each lost their games in overtime. Here are predictions for Week 14’s slate of games:

Houston Texans (7-5) vs. New York Jets (4-8): We now know that Zach Wilson will be back at quarterback for the Jets, but it’s not likely to matter much. New York has scored just two offensive touchdowns in the last 20 quarters, and Wilson has mustered just two touchdown passes since the second week of October.

Conversely, C.J. Stroud may just be the hottest quarterback in the NFL having thrown for 1,740 yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions over the last five games, four of which were wins. 

The Texans have the better quarterback, offense and special teams, and they should have no problem cruising past the Jets, who have little left to play for.

PREDICTION: Texans 26, Jets 14

Indianapolis Colts (7-5) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (6-6): With Joe Burrow out for the year, many (myself included) wrote off the Bengals and backup QB Jake Browning. But after his masterful performance in last week’s 34-31 overtime win over the AFC South-leading Jacksonville Jaguars, in which he completed 32 of 37 passes for 354 yards and a touchdown, the Bengals are still a threat to any team, especially ones that may be overlooking them.

The Colts squeaked out an overtime win last week over the Tennessee Titans, but if not for several special teams gaffes and a season-ending injury to punter Ryan Stonehouse, Indy could have very well lost that game. 

Sure, the Colts are riding a four-game win streak but those wins have come against the Titans, Buccaneers, Patriots and Panthers. The Bengals will be a much tougher test — one that I don’t see Indianapolis passing.

PREDICTION: Bengals 24, Colts 20

Jacksonville Jaguars (8-4) vs. Cleveland Browns (7-5): It’s going to be awfully difficult for the Jaguars to go into Cleveland without starting QB Trevor Lawrence and leading receiver Christian Kirk and knock off the scrappy Browns and their top defense. 

In his first start in nearly a year, Joe Flacco threw for 254 yards (the second-most of any Browns QB this year) and two touchdowns last week, and he present a much more formidable option than either P.J. Walker or rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

The Jags had been playing with fire the last two weeks, allowing the Texans to come back from a 10-point deficit before closing out the win in the fourth quarter and letting Browning pick apart their secondary, and with Cleveland’s defense, they can’t afford to do the same this week. 

C.J. Beathard is a solid backup QB, but I don’t like his chances against the Browns, who allow a league-low 153.4 yards passing per game.

PREDICTION: Browns 21, Jaguars 16

Tennessee Titans (4-7) vs. Miami Dolphins (9-3): This one will be a blood bath for a few reasons. The Dolphins have the No. 1 offense and No. 2 scoring offense in the NFL, and Tennessee is one of the league’s worst at stopping the pass. 

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and receiver Tyreek Hill may just have their best games of the year against a reeling Titans secondary that allows the 10th-most passing yards per game. 

On the flip side, things don’t look pretty for QB Will Levis. The Dolphins are tied for the third-most sacks (41) and the Titans offensive line is one of the worst at protecting the QB (they’ve surrendered 183 pressures, 111 hurries and 41 QB hits this season). 

Even if Levis is kept upright, Tennessee just doesn’t have the firepower to keep pace with Miami.

PREDICTION: Dolphins 48, Titans 17