Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans: NFL Wild Card Pick
By Erik Lambert
It’s quite the lineup for NFL wild card weekend of the 2015 playoffs. Plenty of matchups that look dead even on paper. Among them is an anticipated slugfest between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs. Which defensive power will emerged, battered and bruised no doubt, to reach the next round?
Backdrop:
Seems fitting that two teams with a long history of playoff disappointment would meet in the wild card round. It usually produces fantastic results. Regardless, the last time the Chiefs won a playoff game was 1994 when they won in comeback fashion on the road against the Houston Oilers. How poetic would it be if they broke that streak doing so at the expense of the new Houston occupant?
Meanwhile the Texans are eager to keep that streak going, riding the wave of a dominant defense and steady offense.. It’s a team that overcame the distraction of hosting Hard Knocks, the loss of Arian Foster and fallout from a quarterback controversy. Both teams have momentum, but they have home field.
Matchup To Watch:
OT Eric Fisher vs. DE J.J. Watt
Everything Kansas City will want to do offensively begins and ends with how they’re able to control superstar pass rusher J.J. Watt. The defensive finished with 17.5 sacks on the season, giving him 74.5 for his career. Keep in mind he’s only 26-years old. Suffice to say it takes a herculean effort to stop him.
That job will fall to left tackle Eric Fisher. The former #1 overall pick has been inconsistent at best this season, doing well as a run blocker but struggling at times in pass protection (4 sacks, 27 pressures allowed). It’s worth noting the last time he saw that Texans front, he struggled quite a bit. Time to see if he’s learning anything.
Key Stat:
There is no question this game will be dictated by defense, especially the pass rushes. Some of the best in football are going to be on the field including Watt and linebacker Justin Houston. Collectively the two teams have posted 92 quarterback sacks over the regular season, ranking the Chiefs 4th and the Texans 5th respectively in that category. Suffice to say whichever quarterback is able to navigate that minefield without mistakes is going to win the football game.
Prediction: Chiefs win 20-16
There is no way around it. This game has defensive battle written all over. Initial predictions would say that gives Houston the edge since it’s on their field, but it’s worth noting the Chiefs have won four-straight road games and they have a quarterback in Alex Smith who isn’t prone to making mistakes.