The 11-5 Kansas City Chiefs visit the 9-7 Houston Texans in the Wild Card of the 2015 NFL playoff schedule. The Texans won the AFC South so they earned the right to host this game as the No. 4 seed despite the No. 5 seed Chiefs having the better record.
The winner of this game will player with the Denver Broncos or New England Patriots in the AFC Divisional round.
The Chiefs are 3-point road favorites in the game and hope to make this their first playoff win nearly 22 years. The last Chiefs playoff win came in Houston against Warren Moon and the Oilers on January 16, 1994. The Chiefs won 28-20 that day and since then have lost eight straight playoff games, which is tied with the Bengals for the most consecutive playoff losses.
The Chiefs did beat the Texans earlier this year in a game that was not as close as the 27-20 score indicated.
More: Chiefs podcast with Nick Wright | Can Chiefs score on Texans D?
The Chiefs are on a 10-game winning streak after starting the season 1-5. They're just the second team since 1970 to make the playoffs after starting 1-5, and the first to win 10 straight after that start. KC has done it with an incredible defense allowing less than two touchdowns per game in the win streak. Their offense has been more up and down but they're still the ninth leading scoring offense in the NFL. Either way, the Chiefs need their pass rushers Justin Houston and Tamba Hali to step up and help win this game.
The Texans are similar to the Chiefs in that they started slow at 2-4. Houston came alive similarly to the Chiefs: defense. In their last nine games, the Texans have given up just six points five times. JJ Watt, Whitney Mercilus and Jadeveon Clowney are having a great year together.
I am picking the Chiefs to win, 24-16. Almost everyone at ESPN is picking the Chiefs, too. The Chiefs defense has to stop the Texans from stretching the field with DeAndre Hopkins. He'll probably get his but the Chiefs have more offensive weapons than the Texans so, with both defenses playing well, I expect the Chiefs offense to be the difference.
Nuts and bolts
Location: NRG Stadium, Houston, Texans
Game time: Saturday, January 9, 3:30 p.m. (Arrowhead Time)
TV channel: ESPN / ABC (Do I get the game?)
Online streaming: NFL Game Pass (Live audio, replay after it's over) | WatchESPN
Radio: 101.1 The Fox (Mitch Holthus and Len Dawson) | Full listings
Odds: Chiefs are 3-point favorites
Matchup history: 4-3 (Chiefs lead)
Announcers: Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden, Lisa Salters (sideline)
Enemy blog: Battle Red Blog
Twitter: @ArrowheadPride
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(All times are Arrowhead Time ... or Central)
First round bye (AFC)
1 - Denver Broncos (12-4) - Sunday, Jan. 17, 3:40 p.m., CBS
2 - New England Patriots (12-4) - Saturday, Jan. 16, 3:35 p.m., CBS
Wild Card Weekend (AFC)
3 - Cincinnati Bengals (12-4) vs. 6 - Pittsburgh Steelers (10-6) - Saturday, Jan. 9, 7:15 p.m., CBS
4 - Houston Texans (9-7) vs. 5 - Kansas City Chiefs (11-5) - Saturday, Jan. 9, 3:25 p.m., ESPN/ABC
....
First round bye (NFC)
1 - Carolina Panthers (15-1) - Sunday, Jan. 17, 12:05 p.m., FOX
2 - Arizona Cardinals (12-4) - Saturday, Jan. 16, 7:15 p.m., NBC
Wild Card Weekend (NFC)
3 - Minnesota Vikings (11-5) vs. 6 - Seattle Seahawks (10-6) - Sunday, Jan. 10, 12:05 p.m., NBC
4 - Washington Redskins (9-7) vs. 5 - Green Bay Packers (10-6) - Sunday, Jan. 10, 3:40 p.m., FOX
Saturday, Jan. 16
AFC Divisional Round Game 1: New England Patriots vs. highest seed, 3:35 p.m., CBS
NFC Divisional Round Game 1: Arizona Cardinals vs. highest seed, 7:15 p.m., NBC
Sunday, Jan. 17
NFC Divisional Round Game 2: Carolina Panthers vs. lowest seed, 12:05 p.m., FOX
AFC Divisional Round Game 2: Denver Broncos vs. lowest seed, 3:40 p.m., CBS
Sunday, Jan.24
AFC Championship: AFC Divisional Round winners, 2 p.m., CBS
NFC Championship: NFC Divisional Round winners, 5:40 p.m., FOX
Sunday, Feb. 7
Super Bowl 50: AFC champion vs. NFC champion, 5:30 p.m., CBS
Chiefs regular season schedule
Week 1: @ Houston Texans (W: 27-20)
Week 2: Denver Broncos (L: 31-24)
Week 3: @ Green Bay Packers (L: 38-28)
Week 4: @ Cincinnati Bengals (L: 36-21)
Week 5: Chicago Bears (L: 18-17)
Week 6: @ Minnesota Vikings (L: 16-10)
Week 7: Pittsburgh Steelers (W: 23-13)
Week 8: Detroit Lions (W: 45-10)
Week 9: BYE
Week 10: @ Denver Broncos (W: 29-13)
Week 11: @ San Diego Chargers (W: 33-3)
Week 12: Buffalo Bills (W: 30-22)
Week 13: @ Oakland Raiders (W: 34-20)
Week 14: San Diego Chargers (W: 10-3)
Week 15: @ Baltimore Ravens (W: 34-14)
Week 16: Cleveland Browns (W: 17-13)
Week 17: Oakland Raiders (W: 23-17)