Play “Picks”

Jared Koch#1 of 87 NFL pundits · Sep 8, 2026

Koch argues the Texans hold the advantage over the Bills in their Week 1 2026 matchup in Houston, based on returning personnel and past results against Josh Allen.

Published in writing · Sports IllustratedRead the original

0 of 1calls landed1 miss · 1 waiting

0Average accuracyout of 100, across 1 call

0A naive guessthe same calls, no knowledge

1Games calledeveryone’s picks below

#1Jared Koch’s rankof 87 ranked NFL pundits

What Jared Koch said

our reading, beside the words we read it from

On paper, and based on past precedent, Houston looks like they have the edge in this one-off first glance.

Jared Koch, the lead quote · each call’s own words are below

Where it was published: Sports Illustrated
The piece: Texans' Recent History vs. Bills Spells Trouble for Josh Allen in Week 1
The original: Read the original
Read it wrong?: Tell us and we will look

SaidSep 8
PlayedSep 13
GradedSep 15

1Houston Texans to beat Buffalo Bills“On paper, and based on past precedent, Houston looks like they have the edge in this one-off first glance.”
2C.J. Stroud to be 1st on the depth chart“C.J. Stroud will be suiting up and ready to go as the Texans' starting signal-caller”

Box score

HitCloseMissWaiting

Verdict	Call	Kind	What happened	Score	Naive	Skill
	Houston Texans to beat Buffalo Bills¹	Game Outcome Picks	Bills 36–31	0	0	0
	C.J. Stroud to be 1st on the depth chart²	Depth Chart Calls	—	—	—	—
	2 calls · 1 miss · 1 waiting			0	0

Game calls show that game’s closing betting line under their grade: a dated fact from nflverse, for context and never part of a grade. MissedTakes takes no bets and earns nothing from any sportsbook.

How each call scored

a naive guessbetter than naive

2 checkable claims — 1 depth chart call and 1 game outcome pick — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.

It names 2 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

1 of 2 have settled so far, averaging 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess at the same calls.

Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room.

Each call is scored 0 to 100 against what happened, on its own, by the published methodology. The naive guess is what knowing nothing would have scored on the same calls; the gap, weighted by how hard the call was, is the skill.

1Game Outcome Picks Houston Texans
Houston Texans to beat Buffalo Bills
What happenedBills 36–31Bills at Texans
0Miss · naive 0
0this call0a naive guess0better than naive2difficulty0skill
Closing line (Sep 13): Bills by 1.5 · a toss-up, Bills 50%, Texans 50%.
How this was scored
won:
BUF
score:
36-31
skill:
0
they picked:
HOU
season:
2026
accuracy:
0
baseline:
0
the naive pick:
HOU
difficulty:
2
weeks in the season:
18
weeks left when called:
18
Think this is wrong?
2Depth Chart Calls C.J. Stroud Houston Texans
C.J. Stroud to be 1st on the depth chart
VerdictWaiting
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Think this is wrong?

The game in this take

every pundit’s pick on each

Bills at TexansBills 36Texans 3134 calls →

Who this take is about

Where do you stand on this one?Pick every open claim on Picks →

Others on the same people

Bobby Skinner · Trade and Signing Calls · Stefon Diggs · Miss 0
Skinner predicted Daniel Jones signs with and wins the starting job in Indianapolis, Milton Williams to New England, Lavonte David back to Tampa, Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams to the Giants, DJ Reid to Arizona, Hassan Reddick to Washington and Justin Fields staying in Pittsburgh, plus alternates they had listed.
Pete Prisco · Score Predictions · Houston Texans · Close 55
Prisco gives score predictions for every Week 9 NFL game, picking the Bengals to rout the Falcons in Madrid, the Cowboys to rebound at Indianapolis, and the Jaguars to win in Baltimore without Lamar Jackson.
Chris Simms · Score Predictions · Houston Texans · Hit 81
Simms gave a predicted final score for every Week 9 game, picking the Bengals, Chiefs, Broncos, Lions, Giants, Rams, Cowboys, Saints, 49ers, Patriots, Seahawks, Texans, Bears and Bills, and also said they wouldn't be shocked to see Jacksonville reach the AFC Championship Game.
Connor Rogers · Game Outcome Picks · Houston Texans · Hit 100
Rogers picked straight-up winners in every Week 9 game, agreeing with Simms on all of them, and gave a 24-20 Bills score over the Vikings on Monday night.
Nick Wright · Score Predictions · Houston Texans · Hit 83
Wright made several outright game calls for Week 9 alongside their spread picks: Kansas City beating the Jets 31-20, Detroit winning at Miami, New England edging Green Bay by a field goal or so, Carolina winning outright over Denver, and Houston blowing out the Chargers 27-12.
John Shipley · Game Outcome Picks · Houston Texans · Hit 100
Shipley expects Jacksonville to keep Brian Thomas Jr. at the trade deadline while adding two defenders, most likely Derrick Brown, and they think the winless Chargers will again come up short against Houston in Week 9.

More depth chart calls

The same kind of call, about other players and teams.

Jeremy Brener · Depth Chart Calls · Drew Lock · Hit 100
Brener picked the Seahawks to beat the Cardinals in Week 9 by a multi-score margin, giving a final score of 27-13, and expressed confidence Seattle would be fine with Drew Lock starting at quarterback.
Jeremy Brener · Depth Chart Calls · Jalen Milroe · Miss 0
Brener suggests Seattle may turn to rookie-contract quarterback Jalen Milroe for their first career start in Week 9 against the Cardinals, with Sam Darnold ruled out and Drew Lock dealing with an elbow injury.
Michael Moore · Depth Chart Calls · Shedeur Sanders · Hit 100
In a Week 9 injury roundup, Moore forecast which banged-up fantasy contributors would play or sit: Deshaun Watson, Garrett Wilson, David Montgomery, Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, TreVeyon Henderson and Terrance Ferguson are expected out, while Travis Kelce, Saquon Barkley, Michael Wilson, Christian Watson and Emeka Egbuka should play. They also expect Shedeur Sanders and Drew Lock to start at quarterback.
Zachary Pereles · Depth Chart Calls · Shedeur Sanders · Hit 100
Pereles writes that if Deshaun Watson can't clear concussion protocol in time, the Browns would likely turn to second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders to start Week 9 against the Saints.
Nic Bodiford · Depth Chart Calls · Joe Fagnano · Hit 100
Previewing Week 9 running game matchups, Bodiford expects Jacksonville to win lopsidedly over a depleted Baltimore team, with Bhayshul Tuten sitting out and Chris Rodriguez taking over as lead back, while Joe Fagnano starts at quarterback for the Ravens. They also view Broncos rookie Jonah Coleman as an RB2 going forward.
Garrett Podell · Depth Chart Calls · Carson Beck · Miss 0
Podell argues the Cardinals have maxed out with Jacoby Brissett and that rookie Carson Beck should be ramped up to replace them as starter, targeting Week 8 at Dallas for Beck's regular-season debut.

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