Week 2: Texans-Jaguars matchup
Houston at Jacksonville
Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET, at EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Fla. - TV: CBS;
DirecTV: 710
*TV announcers: Marv Albert, Rich Gannon
*Keys to the game: The temporary demotion of Maurice Jones-Drew in Jacksonville proved to be a nasty rumor. The summertime holdout was back as the central figure in the Jaguars' offense in Week 1, an overtime loss at Minnesota, but the most encouraging take-away from the defeat was Blaine Gabbert's 260-yard, two-touchdown, no-turnover game. Gabbert will get all kinds of pressure from the Texans, who had seven sacks in two games against the Jaguars last season. Tackling in the open field wasn't a strong suit against Adrian Peterson last week. With a similar one-cut bulldozer in Arian Foster capable of outrunning or running over the Jaguars' back seven, keeping Foster and RB Ben Tate hemmed in is a major focus. The Dolphins were successful in that quest last week -- Foster averaged 3.0 yards per carry, Tate 1.2 (five carries, six yards), but soft outside coverage was exploited by accurate QB Matt Schaub.
*Matchup to watch - Jaguars WLB Kyle Bosworth vs. Texans TEs Owen Daniels: Bosworth, the nephew of Brian Bosworth, wasn't a weak link last week. Daniels had four catches for 87 yards (21.8 yards per carry) in the opener as Miami focused on taking away Foster and WR Andre Johnson. The Jaguars could be without Daryl Smith, who has a groin injury and thought he was going to go last week before suffering a setback during practice.
*Player spotlight - Jaguars WR Cecil Shorts: He had only two catches last season as a rookie but caught four passes for 74 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown with 20 seconds left, in last week's game.
*Fast facts: Houston has won three in a row in the series, including 24-14 and 20-13 victories last year. ... Gabbert was sacked six times by the Texans in the Nov. 27, 2011 loss to Houston.
WHO WILL WIN AND WHY
The Texans bring the kitchen sink and a plunger at quarterbacks, and Blaine Gabbert's growing pains aren't yet over. The Texans have established playmakers in all the right spots to continue their recent dominance of Jacksonville.
*Our pick: Texans 29-16
