The Broncos (3-5) are surprise 2.5-point favorites against the Texans (5-3) in Week 9, according to Westgate Las Vegas (via OddsShark.com). Oddsmakers usually spot the home team a three-point advantage but Denver opened as just a one-point favorite. The line has moved to 2.5 since then. Oddsmakers in Vegas must view the Broncos as a better team than their record. On paper, Houston appears to be a better team. The Texans have a strong defense, led by defensive lineman J.J. Watt, and an exciting offense, led by quarterback Deshaun Watson. Watson threw 19 touchdown passes in seven games last year before suffering a season-ending injury. He hasn’t started the 2018 season quite as well, but his 15 touchdown passes in eight games is still a respectable total. Denver’s defensive backs will have their hands full trying to cover DeAndre Hopkins, one of the best receivers in the NFL. Hopkins is Watson’s favorite target — they have connected 53 times for 789 yards and five touchdowns this year. Sunday’s game will begin at 2:05 p.m. MT and will air on CBS.<doc-sep>Broncos vs. Texans in Denver was going to be an interesting Week 9 game without the storyline of Demaryius Thomas' quick return to Mile High. The fact that the 30-year-old wide receiver was traded to Houston on Tuesday just a few hours before the deadline makes for an even juicier matchup. It also gives the Texans much-needed reinforcement for their passing game. MORE: NFL trade deadline tracker The Broncos traded the four-time Pro Bowler to the Texans for a fourth-round pick in the 2019 draft, and the teams also swapped seventh-rounders. It's a relatively low-cost deal for a first-place Houston team that's dealing with injuries at receiver. For Denver, which reportedly had been looking to deal Thomas for weeks amid the emergence of rookie receiver Courtland Sutton, it's a way to gain draft capital in exchange for what had become an expendable player. Below are grades for the Texans and the Broncos in the Thomas trade. Demaryius Thomas trade grades Texans receive: WR Demaryius Thomas, 2019 seventh-round draft pick Broncos receive: 2019 fourth-round draft pick, 2019 seventh-round draft pick Texans: B- For Houston, this trade is directly tied to the torn ACL speedy receiver Will Fuller suffered last week against the Dolphins, and while Thomas will replace Fuller in the role he played alongside DeAndre Hopkins and Keke Coutee in the offense, it's fair to wonder whether the ninth-year pro will be capable of matching Fuller's production. Fuller, who was averaging 71.9 receiving yards per game and had four touchdowns on the season, had been given a 6.9 overall offensive rating from Pro Football Focus, second-best among Houston's offensive players behind Hopkins. Thomas, who in Denver was averaging 50.3 receiving yards per game with three scores on the season, had been given a rating of 2.0. The speed that made Thomas' NFL career has diminished, but that doesn't mean he can't be effective as a target for Deshaun Watson. Thomas also is a relatively inexpensive gamble for Houston. If he does not prove worthy of the $17.5 million cap charge he will cost in 2019, the final season of the five-year deal he signed with Denver in 2015, the Texans can cut him before June 1, in which case he would cost only $3.5 million in dead cap charges. Houston, in that case, would save $14 million. The team also could restructure Thomas' deal in the offseason. Broncos: A- There are two reasons Denver wanted to trade Thomas before Tuesday's deadline. One is the aforementioned Sutton. The other is money. With Thomas set to enter the final, most expensive season of the $70 million contract he received in 2015, the Broncos were set to pay him $17.5 million next year without a move. In trading Thomas to Houston, Denver saves $3.5 million in cap space this year and $14 million in cap space next year. It's a no-brainer for the books. Despite only one start this season, Sutton has two touchdown catches. The highlight-reel plays he displayed in training camp were a preview of what he did against the Chiefs last week, and a preview of what the Broncos hope will be the new norm in their offense.<doc-sep>The Houston Texans are in a world of hurt at receiver with third-year deep threat Will Fuller tearing his ACL in Week 8 versus the Miami Dolphins. The 5-3 owners of first place in the AFC South can use all of the help they can get, including from rookie receiver Keke Coutee. The fourth-round slot receiver from Texas Tech missed the 42-23 victory due to a hamstring injury from Week 7 that prematurely ended his game against at Jacksonville. Coach Bill O’Brien believes it is too soon in the week to tell where Coutee is at and if he is able to play. “I think it’s too early to probably tell that. I think we’ll probably continue to work with him throughout the week, especially moving to Wednesday, Thursday, and see where he’s at,” said O’Brien. “So, I’d probably say yeah, it’s too early.” Coutee has 21 catches for 196 yards and a touchdown in his four games with Houston. He burst onto the scene on Sept. 30 with an 11-catch performance for 109 yards in Indianapolis to help the Texans secure their first win 37-34 in overtime. Coutee got his first start of the year the next week versus the Dallas Cowboys and caught his first NFL touchdown.<doc-sep>
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, and updating the rumor that first circulated last night, the Texans are finalizing a trade with the Broncos that will bring WR Demaryius Thomas to Houston. Sources: The #Texans are closing in on a deal for #Broncos WR Demaryius Thomas in exchange for a mid-round pick. They are finalizing. It’s Courtland Sutton’s time. — Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 30, 2018 The Texans needed a wide receiver after Will Fuller was lost for the season to an ACL tear in last week’s win over the Dolphins. Thomas has spent all nine of his NFL seasons with the Broncos and has been a centerpiece with the team since he arrived as a first-round pick in 2010. Thomas has 36 receptions so far this season, accounting for 402 receiving yards and three touchdowns. He’ll have a chance to exact revenge against his former team as early as this Sunday when the Texans visit the Broncos in Denver. What are your thoughts on this near trade, BRB? Are the Texans making the right move in giving Deshaun Watson another weapon? UPDATE: John McClain says the cost is a fourth-round pick. Confirming @RapSheet report Texans getting Demaryius Thomas for a fourth round pick. — John McClain (@McClain_on_NFL) October 30, 2018 UPDATE II: If the trade does become official, the financial ramifications for the Texans end at paying Thomas $4.5 million for the remainder of the season. The #Texans will acquire WR Demaryius Thomas with caps of $4.5M in 2018 & a non-guaranteed $14M in 2019 (zero dead cap). The #Broncos take on dead cap hits of $7.5M in 2018 & $3.5M in 2019. https://t.co/xqlHyMDQoR — Spotrac (@spotrac) October 30, 2018 UPDATE III: Adam Schefter says the Broncos are sending Thomas and a seventh-rounder to Houston in exchange for a fourth-round pick. Denver traded Pro-Bowl WR Demaryius Thomas and a seventh-round pick to the Houston Texans for a fourth-round pick, per source. Thomas’ first game for the Texans will be....in Denver, against the Broncos. — Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 30, 2018 UPDATE IV: Slight revision to the terms of the trade...the Texans aren’t simply getting Denver’s seventh-round pick; the teams are swapping seventh-round picks (presumably in the 2019 NFL Draft). Update: Denver traded Demaryius Thomas and a seventh-round pick to Houston for a fourth-round pick and a seventh-round pick, per source. Trade involved three picks and one player. — Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 30, 2018 UPDATE V: The trade is official, and Demaryius Thomas is a Houston Texan.