Saquon Barkley should have himself a day tearing apart this porous Texans run defense, taking pressure off Daniel Jones and giving the Giants ample opportunity to run their offense that has likely been fine-tuned coming off the bye. Houston has struggled when matched up against capable offenses, and while New York has its issues, it can certainly find the end zone when needed. Plus, the Texans are now dealing with new internal issues with Brandin Cooks’ captaincy being stripped ahead of kickoff. The Giants should be favored by more than a touchdown.

The bye came at a great time for the Giants, who were clearly exhausted during their two-touchdown loss at Seattle in Week 8. Now they get a perfect opponent (Houston) to help them get back on track. Saquon Barkley should feast on a Texans run defense that allows 5.5 yards per carry. And Wink Martindale's defense should force mistakes. Even though he gets his top receivers back, Davis Mills has a consistent track record of poor play on the road. In his two seasons with Houston, the Texans have averaged 11 points in road games. Lay the points.

The Giants find themselves in rare territory as favorites after starting the season with outright wins in their first five underdog spots then getting blown out in Seattle as 3.5-point 'dogs. Maybe that consistent lowballing of New York's value is why this line came down 1.5 points to Houston, an offense that could also be getting back key receivers this week. But the Texans are still the worst team in the league at full strength, and I can't see them stopping Saquon Barkley here. I also trust great coaching staffs to come out of a bye with an upgraded team thanks to extra time to prepare, scheme, etc. The Giants should win this one by at least a touchdown.