Public on Chiefs; sharps on Texans, under

The NFL season begins in a few hours, and stop me if you’ve heard this before: The public is betting the favorite, while the sharps are on the underdog and under.

The defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs are consensus 9½-point home favorites against the Houston Texans in the season opener Thursday. The total is 53½.

“Action has been good. Number is starting to tick up a bit,” Sunset Station sportsbook director Chuck Esposito said via text message. “Public on the Chiefs. Sharps on the dog and under.”

The Chiefs were installed as 10½-point favorites when lines first opened during the summer. The line got to 9 earlier this week before moving back up Thursday. The total opened as high as 56½ in the summer and was still 55 at some books earlier this week before moving down.

Circa sportsbook manager Chris Bennett also reported sharp action on the under — Circa was down to 52½ — but didn’t think the spread would go higher.

“Unlikely to see 10 unless we take a really big bet on the Chiefs,” he said via text message.

Bennett also said Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes to score the first touchdown of the game was a popular prop. Mahomes was at +1,750 Thursday afternoon.

The game is a rematch from last season’s divisional playoffs in which the Texans took a 24-0 lead before the Chiefs roared back for a 51-31 victory. They also played in the regular season, with Houston winning 31-24.

“The Texans scored exactly 31 points in each game. One winner and one loser,” Esposito said. “Wonder if they’ll put 31 on the board again tonight.”