NFL 2018-19 Week 8 Thursday Night Football Preview: Dolphins Visit Red Hot Texans

Miami Dolphins (4-3) 

v.

 Houston Texans (4-3) 

Miami Dolphins at Houston Texans - These two teams have the identical records, but the way that they got there could hardly be much different. These are teams moving in opposite directions. The Dolphins started off red hot, sprinting out to a 3-0 start. The Houston Texans, meanwhile, got off to a horrendous 0-3 start, but have now won four straight to take over first place in the AFC South. So, these two teams meet at a strange time. Had this game happened earlier, perhaps in the second or third week, I would figure that the Dolphins would win, especially if it was at Miami. But we are at the mid-season now, and things have changed. The Fins have lost that great start, and have already fallen behind the New England Patriots in the AFC East, despite having enjoyed a two-game lead following that undefeated 3-0 start. Assuming that New England takes care of business this week (and the Pats are up at Buffalo, where they almost always win), the Dolphins now, rather incredibly, have the pressure of not falling two games behind the Patriots this week, needing a win to either remain securely within a game, or to tie the race in the seemingly unlikely scenario that New England loses this weekend. So, the pressure is on Miami. It has been growing for a few weeks now, especially once they got humiliated in a meeting up at Foxboro, and they just have not responded well or inspired much confidence during that span. And winning at Houston is a tall order, because the Texans are obviously on a big winning streak. They lost those first three games, but they finally won their first in a shootout up at Indianapolis. They have since played lights out on defense, allowing the Cowboys, the Bills, and the Jaguars a total of 36 points in their last three games. That makes this defense one of the toughest and stingiest defenses in the league during that stretch, and they should give the Miami offense some serious problems. I do not know that the Texans will embarrass the Fins or blow them out, but they really do not need to do that, either. Playing the way that they are, it would be surprising if the Texans did not follow up on the way that they have played during this last month with another solid performance and another win, to bring their winning streak up to five straight, in hopes of remaining atop the AFC South, and perhaps getting some cushion between them and the other teams within the division. My pick: Houston