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Key Takeaways
- The Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Texans face off in the final game of Wild Card Weekend.
- The Steelers finished the season 10-7, while the Texans finished 12-5 and are on a nine-game winning streak.
- The Texans have a ferocious defense that finished first in yards allowed and second in points allowed.
- The winner of the game will head to New England to take on the Patriots in the divisional round.
- The Steelers have won four of their last five games, while the Texans have won nine in a row.
Introduction to the Game
The final game of Wild Card Weekend features a matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Houston Texans. The Steelers, who won the AFC North in dramatic fashion, will host the Texans at Acrisure Stadium. As stated in the article, "Pittsburgh won the AFC North in dramatic fashion, prevailing over the division rival Baltimore Ravens thanks to a missed field goal on the final snap of the regular season." The Texans, on the other hand, finished second in the AFC South with a 12-5 record and are on a nine-game winning streak. This game promises to be an exciting matchup between two teams that are playing some of their best football of the year.
Team Performance
Both teams enter this game playing well, with the Steelers having won four of their last five games and the Texans having won nine in a row. The Steelers have turned the ball over just once during that five-game span and have scored 26-plus points in each of the four wins. As the article notes, "The Steelers have turned the ball over just once during that five-game span and have scored 26-plus points in each of the four wins after doing so just five times in their first 12 games." The Texans, on the other hand, have forced multiple turnovers in five of their nine consecutive wins and allowed 20 points or less in six of them.
Houston’s Defense
The Texans have a ferocious defense that finished first in yards allowed and second in points allowed. As the article states, "The Texans finished the season first in yards allowed, second in points allowed and tied for first in TruMedia’s version of EPA per play." This defense has been instrumental in the Texans’ winning streak, and it will be a challenge for the Steelers to move the ball against them. The article quotes, "You can’t really throw the ball on them — teams completed only 59.3% of their passes at an average of just 5.8 yards per attempt, with 20 touchdowns against 19 interceptions."
Playoff Picture
The winner of this game will head to New England to take on the Patriots in the divisional round. The Steelers beat the Patriots earlier this season, but the Texans did not play them during the regular season. The article notes, "The winner of this game will head to New England to take on the Pats in the divisional round. New England is coming off a 16-3 victory over the Chargers." The Steelers’ only victory against a fellow playoff team during the regular season was against the Patriots, while the Texans went 4-4 in games against playoff teams.
Prediction
The article predicts that the Texans will win the game, stating, "I’m still picking against them here. I just can’t see them consistently moving the ball against this ferocious Houston defense — especially if Rodgers is unwilling to hold on to the ball for long enough to even try pushing it down the field." The predicted score is Texans 16, Steelers 10, with the Texans covering the spread and the under hitting. As the article concludes, "I’m going to back the team with the best single unit in the game here."
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/steelers-vs-texans-prediction-where-to-watch-pick-odds-afc-wild-card/