The stage is officially set for the Houston Texans and their 2019 NFL Playoff run. It all starts on Saturday with a home matchup against the AFC South rival Indianapolis Colts. The two teams split the season series with each game decided by just three points, so there’s plenty of intriguing surrounding the opening game of the wild-card round.
When all was said and done, the Texans wrapped up the season with an 11-5 record which was nearly good enough for a first-round bye. Unfortunately, they lost the tiebreaker for the No. 2 seed in the AFC to the New England Patriots. A matchup with Andrew Luck and the Colts (10-6) is no walk in the park, but if they can advance out of the opening round, we have an idea of what lies ahead.
Let’s take a look at the NFL playoff bracket as well as how the path to the Super Bowl for Deshaun Watson and company could look.
NFL Playoff Bracket & Potential Divisional Round Matchup
The #NFLPlayoffs are SET!
While the NFL playoffs feature reseeding as the rounds roll on, it’s already known where the Texans will head if they knock off the Colts. Since the lowest remaining seed will immediately face the No. 1 seed, this would leave Houston set for a date with Tom Brady and the Patriots regardless of the other outcome.
This would be a rematch of a tough Week 1 matchup in which the Texans lost 27-20 on the road. Watson struggled a bit in that game, completing just 17-of-34 passes for 176 yards, one touchdown and one interception. There’s certainly a case to be made that this was the quarterback’s worst game of the 2018 season, but was also his first real action since a torn ACL last year. Watson’s completion percentage fell below 60 percent just one other time all season, and that was during a 20-7 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Texans’ Most Likely AFC Championship Game Opponent
Obviously, figuring out who the Texans could face in the AFC Championship Game is a far tougher task than the divisional round. Much of that will simply come down to who you believe would have the edge in the other corner of the bracket. But there would only be three potential options, including the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs or the winner of the other wild-card game.
A potential divisional-round matchup between either the Los Angeles Chargers or Baltimore Ravens and the Chiefs would be played at Arrowhead, so it’d be a tough task for the lower seed. If you’re confident that home-field advantage will play a big factor or simply peg the Chiefs as the team to beat of those three, then it could be a Houston vs. Kansas City matchup.
Regardless of who makes the game, any AFC Championship matchup would be must-see television. While the Chiefs boast a top NFL Most Valuable Player candidate in Patrick Mahomes, the Chargers are led by a trio of Philip Rivers, Melvin Gordon and Keenan Allen. And as the NFL found out down the stretch of this season, Ravens rookie signal-caller Lamar Jackson is electrifying and tough to stop.
But first thing’s first, the Texans need to get the job done against the Colts, and the Super Bowl run starts Saturday afternoon in Houston.
READ NEXT: NFL Playoff Schedule & Bracket: Updated Wild Card Betting Lines & Picks
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Texans Playoff Schedule: Houston’s Bracket & Path to Super Bowl