High-powered offenses collide as the Houston Texans travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs in the NFL divisional playoffs. The two teams met back in Week 6 with the Texans winning 31-24. Houston won the AFC South, while Kansas City captured the AFC West and a playoff bye. Can Deshaun Watson and company make it two in a row at Arrowhead or will the reigning NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes have something to say about that? We’ll find out Sunday afternoon.
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Texans vs. Chiefs
- When: Sunday, January 12
- Time: 3:05 p.m. ET
- TV: CBS
- Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)
The Texans entered the playoffs as the No. 4 seed and drew the No. 5 seed Buffalo Bills at home in the wild-card round. Watson proved why he is an All-Pro quarterback and one of the best in the NFL by rallying his team from 16 points down to win 22-19 and advance in the playoffs. Watson was spectacular, completing 20 of 25 passes for 247 yards and one touchdown, 90 of those yards to favorite target DeAndre Hopkins. In addition, he also recorded 55 yards on the ground and another score. The bad news was the lack of protection, as he was sacked seven times. The offensive line will need to do a better job protecting him against a much improved Chiefs defense. Carlos Hyde and Duke Johnson give Houston a 1-2 punch at the running back spot that can wear down defenses and chew up the clock.
Houston’s defense combined for three sacks and limited Josh Allen to 24 of 46 passing for 264 yards and no touchdowns. Allen also had nine carries for 92 yards but failed to reach the end zone. How will this defensive unit step up, particularly the secondary? The Chiefs love to air it out and the Texans ranked 29th in the NFL against the pass during the regular season.
Kansas City closed out the regular season with six straight victories to earn the No. 2 seed and a first round bye. That extra time has allowed them to prepare for a high octane Texans offense, as well as fine-tune their own. Mahomes has 4,031 passing yards this season, 26 touchdowns and a minuscule five interceptions. Tight end Travis Kelce was fourth in the league with 1,229 yards during the regular season. However, Kelce isn’t the only weapon. Wide receivers Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins and Mecole Hardman may be the fastest trio in the NFL. Mahomes, Kelce, Hill, Watkins and Hardman are four of the six team’s All-Pro selections.
Defensively, they have held opponents to an average of 11 points in the last three games. If they can keep Watson off the field and control the time of possession, the Texans will be successful. Look for All-Pro defensive end Frank Clark and defensive tackle Chris Jones to put pressure on Watson and an offensive line that allowed seven sacks a week ago. As a unit, the defense was eighth in passing yards allowed (221.4 YPG), which bodes well against the air attack, but will need to stop a balanced Texans team that can beat you with the run as well.
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