Texans vs Bears NFL Hall of Fame Game picks - August 1

The 2024 NFL preseason kicks off Thursday night with the annual Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. This tradition dates back to 1962, and it often features some of the sport’s most historic franchises. The Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers are all the all-time leaders with seven appearances, while the Cleveland Browns have participated six times.

Thursday will mark the Chicago Bears’ sixth trip to Canton, where they are going against the Houston Texans. This will be Houston’s second appearance and first since 2022.

The Hall of Fame game is set for 8:00 PM ET and will be televised on the ESPN family of networks (ESPN, ABC, ESPN+). Let’s look at the odds and best bets to make for this season-opening showdown between the Texans and Bears. 

Texans vs Bears NFL Hall of Fame Game Predictions 

Texans vs Bears NFL Hall of Fame Game picks - Texans -1 

Texans vs Bears NFL Hall of Fame Game picks – Over 31.5  

Texans vs Bears NFL Hall of Fame Game picks: Without Williams, Chicago has a problem against Houston 

Unsurprisingly, No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams will not be suiting up for Chicago on Thursday. None of the team’s starters will be taking the field. Head coach Matt Eberflus made that announcement earlier this week. With the former USC quarterback on the sidelines, Tyson Bagent gets the green light to start for the Bears under center.

Bagent was a brief revelation in 2023 when he led Chicago to a Week 7 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, but for the most part, returns were not encouraging. The Shepherd College product had twice as many interceptions (six) as touchdown passes (three) in five appearances last season. Brett Rypien and Austin Reed also expect to see playing time at QB for the Bears on Thursday night.

The Texans almost certainly won’t put C.J. Stroud on the field, but they have a respectable stable of quarterbacks behind him on the depth chart. Davis Mills, Case Keenum and Tim Boyle have plenty of NFL experience. It’s also worth noting that Houston is 5-1 in its last six preseason games dating back to 2022.

Needless to say, the NFL preseason is a relative crapshoot. If there is a smart bet to make, though, it is on the Texans to cover a very small spread. 

Texans vs Bears NFL Hall of Fame Game picks: Even a low-scoring game can exceed a minuscule number 

Indeed, the Hall of Fame Game is generally a low-scoring affair. Not one of the last nine installments of this event has featured more than 38 points. That said, the previous two chapters produced 37 and 38 points.

Thursday’s game should be able to get over a manageable 31.5 number. Bagent is by no means any star QB, but he at least has recent starting experience. The same can be said of Mills. Quarterback play in this contest should at least be competent, which is more than can be said for many preseason products. Moreover, the Bears have been stockpiling talent at the offensive skill positions in recent years, and the Texans are loaded with notable skill-position guys. The starters – or at least most of them – will be benched on Thursday, but both offenses have enough depth to produce a decent amount of points.

By preseason standards, this is unlikely to be the most boring of games. Backing the over should be the way to go.