Two of last season’s NFL division winners meet in Texas in the first of two Monday night games in Week 2 of the 2025 season.
The Houston Texans did slightly better in the playoffs last year, reaching the divisional round after going 10-7 in the AFC South, while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made an early exit in the wild-card round after posting the same record in the NFC South.
The Bucs have an early win on the board this time after beating the Atlanta Falcons 23-20 in Week 1, while the Texans are looking to bounce back after a 14-9 loss in a defensive battle with the Los Angeles Rams.
These teams have met only six times previously, with the Texans winning the last five, and neutral fans would welcome a repeat of their last meeting in 2023, when Houston won a ding-dong battle 39-37.
Houston Texans v Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tips
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers +2.5 @ 37/40
- Emeka Egbuka over 53.5 receiving yards @ 17/20
- Nico Collins over 75.5 receiving yards @ 5/6
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Bucs can build on first success
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were on the back foot for much of their Week 1 contest against the Atlanta Falcons, but pulled off a valuable divisional win on the road, and they can carry that confidence into their second away game in Houston.
That result looks even better now after the Falcons impressed in beating the Minnesota Vikings 22-6 on Sunday night and the Tampa Bay offence should be able to find their rhythm earlier in this contest.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield threw three TD passes in the first game and has been blessed by the arrival of talented rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, who caught two of them.
The Texans led 9-7 at half-time in their game against the Rams but their offence looked fairly pedestrian with running back Joe Mixon ruled out through injury and quarterback CJ Stroud had only 188 passing yards with an interception.
The home side have won only five of their last 12 games after a fast start last season, while the Bucs have seven wins in their last nine and they rate a value bet as handicap underdogs.
Rookie living up to reputation
The Buccaneers have enjoyed having the services of elite wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin in recent seasons and they have now acquired another gem in rookie Emeka Egbuka.
Egbuka looks set to follow in the footsteps of other former Ohio State wideouts who have excelled in the league such as Garrett Wilson, Marvin Harrison Jr and Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
The young talent was his team’s leading receiver in his first NFL appearance against the Falcons with four catches for 67 yards and two touchdowns and he can gain at least 54 in Houston.
Collins should shake off quiet start to the year
Houston’s star wide receiver Nico Collins was unusually quiet in his team’s first game against the Rams, recording just 25 receiving yards, but he can be expected to fare better against the Buccaneers’ defence.
Collins has exceeded 1,000 receiving yards in each of the last two seasons and this could be a classic case of head coach DeMeco Ryans wanting to feed his star man the ball as much as possible after that effort to keep him happy.
The Texans don’t have many alternatives with fellow wideout Christian Kirk and tight end Cade Stover both injured and Collins will need to have a big game if his side are to challenge for their first win of the year.
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All odds correct at time of writing
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