Getty Deshaun Watson of the Houston Texans
The Houston Texans (10-6) are back in the playoffs for the fourth time in five years as the AFC South champs and face the Buffalo Bills (10-6) to kick off Wild Card weekend in the NFL on Saturday.
The game is scheduled to start at 4:35 p.m. ET and will be televised on both ESPN and ABC. If you don’t have cable, you can watch a live stream of the game on your computer, phone, Roku, Fire TV Stick, or other streaming device via one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
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AT&T TV Now
AT&T TV Now (formerly DirecTV Now) offers six different channel bundles. They range from 45 to 125 live TV channels, and they all include ABC (select markets) and ESPN. The “Plus” and “Max” bundles come with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for AT&T TV Now, you can watch a live stream of the Bills vs Texans on your computer via the AT&T TV Now website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or other compatible streaming device via the AT&T TV app. You can also watch the game on the ESPN app if you sign in using your AT&T TV Now credentials.
If you can’t watch live, AT&T TV Now — no matter what channel package you choose — comes with included cloud DVR.
Sling TV
Sling TV’s “Sling Orange” package comes with 32 channels, including ESPN. It costs $20 for the first month ($30 per month after that), which makes Sling the cheapest streaming service with the ESPN channels if you plan on keeping it long term:
Or, as part of a special deal that Sling is currently offering, you can get a free Amazon Fire TV Stick if you prepay for two months:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch the Bills vs Texans live on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the Sling TV app. You can also watch the game on the ESPN app if you sign in using your Sling TV credentials.
If you can’t watch live, Sling TV comes with 10 hours of cloud DVR storage.
Hulu With Live TV
ABC (select markets) and ESPN is included in Hulu With Live TV, which comes with 60-plus live TV channels and Hulu’s extensive on-demand library of TV shows and movies:
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch a live stream of the Bills vs Texans on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Echo Show, or other streaming device via the Hulu app. You can also watch the game on the ESPN app if you sign in using your Hulu credentials.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu With Live TV comes with 50 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as the option to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of space and the ability to fast-forward through commercials.
Bills vs Texans Preview
The Bills and Texans did not have to sweat about getting into the playoffs and were able to rest most of their starters in the final week of the season.
The Texans are hoping to turn around their recent playoff woes. They’ve lost two in a row, the latest a 21-7 loss to the Colts in last year’s Wild Card round.
Offensively, quarterback Deshaun Watson leads the way for the Texans. He has thrown for 3,852 yards with 26 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, running for 413 yards with seven more touchdowns. But it’s his intangibles that set him apart and that have help make the Texans contenders.
“He’s got great poise,” Texans head coach Bill O’Brien said. “Anybody that’s been around him for a long time, (knows) he doesn’t have any fear. He has no fear and …. he has a lot of fun playing, you see the smile on his face, he loves playing football and he loves being out there with his teammates.”
Texans All-Pro pass-catcher DeAndre Hopkins agreed with his head coach.
“Everybody in this locker room, offense and defense feeds off of his game and how he never feels like we’re out of a game no matter what the score is,” Hopkins said. “He’s a winner. He’s won his whole career and it shows every day in everything he does.”
The Texans aren’t taking the Bills signal-caller lightly, either. Josh Allen has had a stellar sophomore season in the NFL and won’t make life easy for a Houston defense that has had trouble defending dual-threat QBs.
“I mean, this guy’s thrown for 3,000 yards and he’s got 500 yards rushing. This guy is a dangerous player,” O’Brien told reporters on Tuesday. “He does a lot of things well.”
The Bills were a nice surprise this season and gave the Patriots a run for the AFC East title, coming up just short. Buffalo hasn’t won a playoff game in 24 season, when they beat the Dolphins in a 1995 Wild Card matchup.
“It would just be great for our entire organization, our fanbase,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said on WGR Sports Radio this week. “That’s the first people that I think about and everyone that’s been here for so long and everyone who’s rooted for this team for so long. It’s the most loyal and passionate fanbase I’ve ever been around, and I’ve been around some good ones. To me, for [general manager] Brandon [Beane] and myself, and I don’t want to put words into Brandon’s mouth here, but just joining the situation in the last two-and-a-half years, at this point, I would just feel and think about the people that have been around here for so long and feel good for them more than anything.”
Houston is a 2.5-point favorite for the game.