Thursday, Sept. 10 at 8:20 p.m. ET

NBC

SPREAD: Chiefs -9

There is the kickoff, and we are underway for the 2020 season! He is at the 30, the 40, the 50..... Welcome to the 2020 NFL season ladies and gentlemen!  We are looking forward to an exciting and much needed NFL season. The reining Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs begin their title defense as they open up on Thursday Night Football against Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans. When your team wins the Super Bowl the previous season you are hoping there is no "hangover" when opening up the following  year on Thursday Night. For the Chiefs, they should be in the discussion for another run at the title, especially with Patrick Mahomes running the offense. But for the Texans, there could be more questions than answers.

After winning the Super Bowl in 2019, the Chiefs went on to have one of the best offseason’s of any team in the NFL. They brought back almost all of their key pieces and managed to lock in some for the future. After seemingly having no cap space whatsoever, the Chiefs were able to bring back key defensive players in starting corner Breshaud Breeland and star defensive tackle Chris Jones. On top of that, the Chiefs brought back important receiving options in Demarcus Robinson and extended star tight end Travis Kelce. For their efforts, head coach Andy Reid and General Manager Brett Veach. On top of all of that, the Chiefs locked in face of the NFL, QB Patrick Mahomes, to a record breaking 10-year deal, ensuring that the Chiefs will be a mainstay at the top of the AFC for a long, long time.

On the other side of field, the Texans decided to prioritize their future as well by locking in QB Deshaun Watson to a 4-year contract extension. Because of Watson, the Texans should be able to fight for a playoff spot, and possibly contend for the AFC South title. However, the loss of top receiving option, DeAndre Hopkins, still has some Texans fans scratching their heads. The Texans did bring in a few offense pieces to hopefully fill the void for Hopkins, which will include the well traveled wide receiver,  Brandin Cooks. However, Cooks is questionable for tonight’s game. If he is unable to go, look for the Texans to struggle heavily to move the ball consistently.

It is going to be tough to expect anyone to replicates Hopkins type numbers in Houston, and don’t expect anyone to do that Thursday Night. In the trade that saw DeAndre Hopkins leave for Arizona, the Texans acquired former Cardinals running back David Johnson. For this trade to look less ridiculous than it currently does, the Texans are going to need Johnson to replicate his 2016 season where we saw him have over 2,000 total years and 20 touchdowns. Even if Johnson somehow discovers the fountain of youth and magically replicates those numbers, the trade will still be hard for Texans fans to swallow. Houston will also be banking on Will Fuller V, their former first round pick back in 2016 out of Notre Dame, to step up in a huge way and remain healthy on the year.  

The Chiefs did lose running back Damien Williams before the season started due to COVID-19 concerns, but they did draft Clyde Edwards-Helaire out of LSU in the first round. Edwards-Helair should step in immediately and have a positive impact on this high powered offense.

The last time these two teams faced each other was in the divisional round of last years playoffs. We all watched as the Houston Texans blew a 24-0 lead and ultimately watched the Kansas City Chiefs put up 51 points on the Texans defense. With questionable offseason moves from the Texans on both sides of the ball, coupled with the fact that the Chiefs arguable got much better, no one here at La Tonique expects the Texans to pull off the upset. Don’t be surprised if the Chiefs cover the -9 point spread tonight, and then some.

SHAWN’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 34-20

CADE’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 24-20

AJ’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 38-17

DAGEN’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 35-17

JAKE’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 24-10

NICK’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 28-17

DAVID’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 35-27

JASPER’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 30-12

STEPAN’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 27-17

SHAYNE’S PREDICTION: Chiefs 28-21

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