Who Will Win Houston Texans vs. Jacksonville Jaguars? A.I. Predicts
The Jaguars are officially winners, now it's time for the playoffs.
The Jacksonville Jaguars got their most impressive win of the season last week against the Seattle Seahawks, clinching their first winning season since 2007. Now they have a chance to snag their first playoff berth in a decade against the ailing Houston Texans. A hive mind of about 30 NFL fans predicts the Texans will win Sunday.
We mostly use this space to keep ticking off the Jaguars’ accomplishments, because they have been perhaps the season’s most fun story. Reaching 9-4 means they could lose all their remaining games and still go down this season as winners. And while 9-7 is probably enough to make the playoffs in this putrid AFC, they can avoid any drama and keep their AFC South title hopes alive by defeating the Texans, who have understandably fallen apart since the season-ending injury to rookie sensation Deshaun Watson — who was, until said injury, the other most fun story this season.
From their game earlier this season.
To predict the result of this and other games, Unanimous A.I. used what’s known as swarm intelligence to forecast the week’s slate. About 30 NFL fans worked together as a hive mind to make picks. As you can see in the animation below, each participant controlled a little golden magnet and used it to drag the puck toward the answer they thought was the most likely outcome. As the users saw the puck move toward a particular outcome, it triggers a psychological response. They readjust their decision-making, building toward a consensus. Here’s Unanimous A.I. founder Louis Rosenberg explaining swarm intelligence at a recent TEDx Talk.
Unanimous A.I. has made some scarily accurate predictions in the past using swarm intelligence, as our previous article explains. For instance, the swarm went a perfect 7-0 in its most recommended picks for an English Premier League slate earlier this season.
The swarm predicts the Jaguars will win with high confidence and a whopping 96 percent confidence behind the pick.
The hive mind likes the Jaguars to win by 10 to 12 points. The Vegas line favors Jacksonville by 11 points.
The game kicks off 1 p.m. Eastern Sunday on Fox.
