Science

Colts vs. Texans Predictions: Projected Winner for Luck vs. Watson Match-Up

A "swarm" of 35 NFL enthusiasts worked together as a hive mind to make their prediction.

by T.E. Andrews
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 18.0px Georgia} Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire

In one of the more unlikely stories around the League, the Texans have now won nine games in a row after an 0-3 start, which included a loss to the lowly Giants (that one hasn’t aged so well). At 9-3, Houston now stands alone atop the AFC South and in third place in the conference, behind the 10-2 Chiefs and the 9-3 Patriots (the Texans lost the tiebreaker to New England back in Week 1).

Perhaps Houston’s secret is its keys to success, which include such profound insights as: Love Football, Compete, and Be Dependable. We humbly suggest a few more: Finish The Game With More Points Than The Other Team, Try Hard, and of course, Win the Game (hat tip to Mitch McGary for that last one).

Of course, we just hope both teams have fun. With a three-game lead over the 6-6 Colts, the Texans’ lead seems safe, especially given the Colts’ embarrassing shutout loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars last week.

Seriously though, how do you get shut out by the Jags, who were 3-8 heading into last week’s game, having lost seven in a row? Not a good look. We like Houston in a close one. Win. The. Game. Texans 28, Colts 24 is my prediction, but how does a hive-mind of NFL experts see this one turning out?

To predict the result of this Week 14 match-up, Unanimous A.I. used what’s known as swarm intelligence. A “swarm” of 35 NFL enthusiasts worked together as a hive mind to make their prediction. As you can see in the animation below, each participant controlled a golden magnet and used it to drag the puck toward the result they thought was the most likely outcome. This is where it gets interesting: As a user sees the puck move toward a particular decision, it triggers a psychological response. They might readjust their thinking as the group builds toward a consensus. It’s an artificial intelligence, produced by human brains, working together as a swarm.

The swarm has low confidence that Houston wins.

The Colts play at the Texans at 1 p.m. Eastern Sunday on CBS.

Here’s how Unanimous A.I. has predicted previous NFL games this season.

Unanimous A.I. has made some scarily accurate predictions in the past using swarm intelligence, as our this article explains. For instance, the swarm picked this year’s Oscar winners with 94 percent accuracy. Here’s Unanimous A.I. founder Louis Rosenberg explaining swarm intelligence at a recent TEDx Talk:

Want to join the hive mind that picks NFL matches every week? Sign up to participate in future predictions.

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