FRANK’S CUTTING ROOM FLOOR FOR THURSDAY, 9/23:

My “Cutting Room Floor” plays are the situations I considered the closest to being worthy of investment but did not make the “final cut” for my official plays today for subscribers. The last play I cut for Thursday was with the Houston Astros with the money-line versus the Los Angeles Angels listing both starting pitchers Lance McCullers and Alex Cobb. Houston (91-61) has won four in a row and seven of their last eight after their 9-5 victory against the Angels yesterday. The Astros have won 5 of their last 6 games after a win. Houston has also won 5 straight road games against teams with a losing record. Los Angeles (72-80) has lost six in a row. The Angels have lost 8 straight games at home — and they have lost 8 straight games as a money-line underdog. Take Houston with the money-line listing McCullers and Cobb. Best of luck — Frank.

Frank Sawyer’s Hollywood Sports DELIVERED their 25* MLB Run-Line of the Year last night with Boston’s 7-run win against the Mets to continue their 10 of 11 (91%) Game of the Year/Month run in All-Sports! Frank is also on a 36 of 56 (64%) NFL run — and he furthers his 22 of 32 (69%) NFL run with his highest-rated 25* plays with his 25* NFL Non-Conference Total of the Month for the Carolina-Houston O/U winner on the NFL Network at 8:20 PM ET! DO NOT MISS OUT!

Frank is on a 12 of 15 (80%) run since Friday night and a 52 of 83 (63%) All-Sports mark since August 1st! After his 8-1 FOOTBALL WEEKEND, Frank furthers his 30 of 47 (64%) NFL sides run with tonight’s Carolina-Houston ATS winner! CA$H-IN Frank’s Thursday Night Discounted Deal — IT’S A STEAL!

At 8:20 PM ET on Thursday, we will be playing the Houston Texans (302) plus the points versus the Carolina Panthers (301). THE SITUATION: Houston (1-1) looks to rebound from a 31-21 loss at Cleveland as a 13.5-point underdog on Sunday. Carolina (2-0) comes into this game after a 26-7 upset win against New Orleans as a 3-point underdog on Sunday.

REASONS TO TAKE THE TEXANS PLUS THE POINTS: The Panthers are the toast of the NLF right now with their 2-0 start after their decisive victory against the Saints. But that win against New Orleans was against a team that was without eight coaches due to a COVID outbreak — wreaking havoc on their in-game coaching, sideline management, and who knows what else. The Saints were also dealing with some tough injuries on defense with Marshon Lattimore, Marcus Davenport, and Kwon Alexander all out. The Panthers held New Orleans to just 128 yards — but they have then failed to cover the point spread in 8 of their last 11 games after not allowing more than 250 yards in their last game. Sam Darnold has played well so far in his liberation from the Jets and Adam Gase — but this will be his first game in a hostile environment after Carolina’s first two games were at home. The schedule for the Panthers has been fortunate with them hosting the hapless Jets and then the undermanned Saints last week. While the defensive numbers have improved, this remains a team that was bottom-five in opponents rushing Yards-Per-Carry for two straight seasons. Carolina was 27th in Red Zone Offense and 30th in goal-to-go situations last season despite having wunderkind Joe Brady as their offensive coordinator last year. The Panthers’ defense was second-to-last in the league by allowing their opponents to convert on 49.2% of their third downs. I am just not ready to buy that Carolina should be laying more than a touchdown on the road in a short week. As it is, the Panthers have failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 7 games as a favorite — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 6 straight games playing on a Thursday Night. Houston beat Jacksonville at home before covering the point spread but losing to the Browns on the road last week. The Texans will be without starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor who will be out at least four weeks after being put on IR for a hamstring injury. That means rookie Davis Mills will be the starting quarterback. The third-round pick from Stanford has upside — but he is raw after not playing much in his collegiate career after COVID shortened his junior season as a Cardinal to just five games. Houston is not going to ask Mills to win this game with his arm — they will likely deploy their rushing attack behind Mark Ingram, Phillip Lindsay, and David Johnson being a solid offensive line that features Laremy Tunsil at left tackle and Tytus Howard at right tackle. Mills completed 8 of 18 passes for 102 yards with a touchdown and an interception in relief of Taylor last week. In the preseason, Mills completed 31 of 65 yards for 333 yards with two touchdowns (and four interceptions). There have been comparisons with him and Andrew Luck besides the obvious same alma mater. Mills is smart and has arm talent — offensive coordinator Tim Kelly will likely not ask him to do more than what he is capable of. They prepared for this possibility/eventuality of Mills playing in the preseason — so the short week probably helps the Texans than it does the Panthers in preparing for the new quarterback.

FINAL TAKE: Houston is a mess of a franchise with the Deshaun Watson issues and the creepy Jack Easterby having too much influence over team decisions despite having no football background. This is an Island of Misfit Toys — but they have brought in a bunch of castoff veterans who have bought in 65-year-old rookie head coach David Culley. This team is going to play hard — and they have covered the point spread 4 straight games as an underdog. Carolina is just 4-12-1 ATS in their last 17 road games as a favorite. 10* NFL Thursday Night Discounted Deal with the Houston Texans (302) plus the points versus the Carolina Panthers (301). Best of luck for us — Frank.

At 8:20 PM ET on Thursday, we will be playing Under the Total in the game between the Carolina Panthers (301) and the Houston Texans (302). THE SITUATION: Carolina (2-0) comes into this game after a 26-7 upset win against New Orleans as a 3-point underdog on Sunday. Houston (1-1) looks to rebound from a 31-21 loss at Cleveland as a 13.5-point underdog on Sunday.

REASONS TO TAKE UNDER THE TOTAL: The Texans have played 4 of their last 6 games Under the Total after playing a game where at least 50 combined points were scored. Houston has also played 5 of their last 8 games Under the Total after a loss on the road. The Texans will be without starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor who will be out at least four weeks after being put on IR for a hamstring injury. That means rookie Davis Mills will be the starting quarterback. The third-round pick from Stanford has upside — but he is raw after not playing much in his collegiate career after COVID shortened his junior season as a Cardinal to just five games. Houston is not going to ask Mills to win this game with his arm — they will likely deploy their rushing attack behind Mark Ingram, Phillip Lindsay, and David Johnson being a solid offensive line that features Laremy Tunsil at left tackle and Tytus Howard at right tackle. The Texans have played 4 of their last 5 games Under the Total against teams with a winning record. The Houston defense did give up 156 rushing yards last week to the Browns ground game — but the Texans have played 24 of their last 33 games Under the Total after allowing at least 150 rushing yards in their last game. Houston added 19 free agents on defense in the offseason for new defensive coordinator Lovie Smith to revamp a unit that allowed 29.0 PPG. Carolina has played 7 of their last 8 games Under the Total after a straight-up win — and they have played 4 straight Unders after a point spread victory. The Panthers have also played 18 of their last 25 games Under the Total after an upset win against an NFC South opponent. Sam Darnold has played well for the team in his first two starts after coming over after his failed stint with the New York Jets. But this will be his first start on the road for Carolina. The Panthers averaged only 5.25 Yards-Per-Play while gaining 373 yards last week while controlling the clock for 38:32 minutes of their win against the Saints. Carolina has played 4 of their last 5 games Under the Total after gaining at least 350 yards in their last game. And while they only rushed for 89 yards against New Orleans, they have played 5 straight Unders after not rushing for more than 90 yards in their last game. Second-year head coach Matt Rhule is likely to lean on running back Christian McCaffrey in this game with this being Darnold’s first start on the road. Expect plenty of running from both teams and stalled drives in the red zone from both these quarterbacks. The one unit that appears reliable is the Carolina defense that has allowed only 21 points in there first two games. Rhule’s commitment to youth last year seems to have paid off — the Panthers led the NFL with 287 tackles from rookies last season. Third-year defensive end Brian Burns out of Florida State appears to be a rising superstar in the league. The Panthers have allowed only 47 rushing yards on 2.7 Yards-Per-Carry — and they have already generated 10 sacks. They are giving up only 190 total YPG — and they are facing a rookie quarterback without too many starts in college. Carolina has played 4 of their last 5 games Under the Total when favored.

FINAL TAKE: The Panthers have played 5 of their last 6 road games Under the Total when favored — and the Texans have played 8 of their last 12 home games Under the Total at home as an underdog getting 7.5 to 14 points. 25* NFL Non-Conference Total of the Month with Under the Total in the game between the Carolina Panthers (301) and the Houston Texans (302). Best of luck for us — Frank.