The Kansas City Chiefs and the Houston Texans will meet in the AFC Divisional Round of the AFC Playoffs on Sunday.
The Chiefs come into the game as the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, which gives them home-field advantage in the game.
They finished the regular season with a 12-4 record and they won the AFC West division for the fourth consecutive season.
Kansas City was very close to making the Super Bowl last season but fell one game short. Patrick Mahomes, with the chip on his shoulder, will look to get back into Super Bowl contention at least.
Mahomes, who missed some games with a dislocated knee cap, finished the season with 4,031 passing yards and 26 touchdown passes. Another solid season in his third year with the Chiefs.
Damien Williams emerged as the team’s top rusher with 498 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns. Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill remained as Mahomes’ top receiving targets. Kelce had 97 catches for 1,229 yards and five touchdowns, while Hill had 58 catches for 860 receiving yards and seven touchdowns.
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Kansas City boasts a tough defense with Tyrann Mathieu, Chris Jones and Frank Clark. But, losing Juan Thornhill for the remainder of the playoffs is going to be a huge loss to the Chiefs.
The Texans come into the game after edging out the Buffalo Bills in overtime in their playoff game.
Deshaun Watson will look to build upon his stellar performance in that game. He helped Houston with 247 passing yards, a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown as part of 19 unanswered points to force at least overtime and then pick up the win in the extra frame.
The Texans’ running game is led by Carlos Hyde – who had 1,070 yards and six touchdowns in 2019. The Chiefs will have a tough task at locking down Deandre Hopkins during the game. He is an All-Pro receiver and one of the best in the league.
Stopping J.J. Watt will be a tall order for the Chiefs offense even if he’s still on the mend from a torn pectoral muscle. Justin Reid and Whitney Mercilus are also key defenders Kansas City will have to target if they want to beat Houston.
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The winner of the game will advance to the AFC Championship game.
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PLAYOFF GAME INFO
Date: January 12
Time: 3:05 p.m. ET
TV: CBS
Stadium: Arrowhead Stadium
Location: Kansas City, Mo.
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