Inevitable is a word that’s been thrown around about the Kansas City Chiefs throughout this season, as they try to march toward an historic third straight Super Bowl title. They opened 13-0, and their only two losses in the regular season were at Buffalo and at the Broncos in Week 18 with the 1-seed locked up and the starters on the bench. They’ve won every way imaginable this season, and while good teams do make their own luck, that has some thinking Kansas City might be vulnerable. While playing up — or sometimes apparently down — to their competition isn’t in question, the rust vs. rest argument may come into play. The Chiefs haven’t played a meaningful game in the standings since Christmas Day — a 24-day layoff for the Chiefs’ top players. The two teams met in Week 16, on the Saturday before Christmas, a 27-19 K.C. win.
The Texans were last seen making short work of the Los Angeles Chargers, 32-12 in the wild-card round. Joe Mixon rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown and C.J. Stroud threw for 282 yards and a score. He and head coach DeMeco Ryans became just the third quarterback-head coach combo — along with Mark Sanchez and Rex Ryan (Jets) and Joe Flacco and John Harbaugh (Ravens) — to win playoff games in their first two NFL seasons together. A Texans upset would mean the first AFC Championship game appearance in franchise history.
Partly cloudy skies and cold temperatures are expected for Saturday afternoon in Kansas City, with kickoff temps expected around 20 degrees and potentially dropping into the teens as the sun goes down.
How to watch Texans vs. Chiefs: AFC Divisional playoff
Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
Location: GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium | Kansas City, Mo.
TV Channel: ABC, ESPN
Streaming: ESPN+, Fubo
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