Welcome to the NFL playoffs, Pickswise Nation! The 2023 NFL regular season was certainly one to remember, especially for our expert handicappers. We ended the season 57-40 with our NFL best bets, delivering +29.55 units of profit overall! We also 288-247-8 with our NFL picks on the side and total for every game, which delivered +47.9 units of profit. Now, we look to keep that momentum rollin g in the postseason with 3 of our experts giving their best bets for Super Wild Card Weekend. Let’s dive in.
John Martin: Cleveland Browns -2.5 over Houston Texans (-110)
This Browns vs Texans game poses an intriguing scenario to sports bettors. You have an opportunity to back one of the most dynamic rookie quarterbacks the league has seen in quite some time as a home underdog. CJ Stroud has been nothing short of incredible for the Texans and is the primary reason Houston is in this situation to begin with. He deserves credit for taking the Texans from a 3-win team a year ago to a playoff team. When first-time playoff quarterbacks go up against quarterbacks who have made previous playoff appearances, the first-timers are only covering the spread at a rate of 38%. Conversely, when you dive a bit deeper into what the Texans have been doing and who they've been beating over the last month, the picture becomes a bit murkier.
Houston has not beaten a top-20 defense since Week 6 and they must now take on the #1-ranked unit in the NFL in the Cleveland Browns. That's a lot to ask for a rookie quarterback. As amazing as Stroud may be, you're also asking him to knock off the league's top defense with perhaps just one of his receiving weapons. The Texans' injuries on offense are beginning to catch up to them, and they only just got past the Colts last week. This Browns defense is levels above that unit, and ultimately I like veteran Joe Flacco to humble the young pretenders in this one. Take Cleveland to win this one by at least a field goal.
Be sure to check out our full Cleveland Browns vs Houston Texans predictions