Stop Trying to Become Gambling "Experts" Local Media.

Because you're not.

Gambling Point Spreads for Every 2018 Texans Game. Matt Young. Chron.com

"Las Vegas has a positive view of the Texans overall. The Texans are underdogs in just four games all season, which would put them in strong contention to bounce back and win the AFC South."

Let's talk about point spreads for a minute, and what they really mean.

When "Vegas" (or, more accurately, the offshore books) create point spreads they are NOT saying which team they believe is going to win the game. This is the most common misconception in sports betting and it's also one of the most mis-reported "facts" among non-gambling sports reporters.

What "Vegas" is really doing is figuring out where they need to establish a number in order to get the action to fall as close to 50/50 as possible on either side of the ledger.  Because the sports books always understand that they have the vigorish on their side. IF they can get the line correct they'll make money both on losing bettors, and on the Vig coming back to them when they pay out less than true odds.

So, what these lines REALLY mean is not that "Vegas" is bullish on the Texans but that they believe the public will be and are setting things up accordingly.  IF the Texans continue to come in as favorites as the games get closer, and too much money is bet either way, these lines will change in an attempt to balance out the betting.

Vegas, unlike local media, are agnostic regarding who wins and loses each individual game (the lone exception to this being the Golden Knights right now) what they really want is to not have too much exposure to the "wrong side".

Once you understand this fact you'll understand lines all the more.