The Playoffs start off today with two AFC Matchups, Kansas City kicks off against Houston at 4:20PM, and then Pittsburgh heads to Cincinnati for the 2nd game at 8:15PM on CBS. One thing most people didn't expect after they lost to Baltimore in Week 16, was the Steelers making the Playoffs. However, the Jets' epic collapse against the Bills in the final week of the season opened the door for the Steelers to grab the final Wild Card spot. So, let's take a look and see who'll take on Denver and New England in the Divisional Round.
Kansas City -3
at Houston
Kansas City has been on a hot streak, winning their last 10 games after starting the year at 1-5. Houston has found ways to win, despite having major issues at the QB position. They've won the last 3 games, and they've only given up 22 total points in those wins. Kansas City beat Houston 27-20 in Week 1, and Travis Kelce went off scoring 2 TDs and totaling 106 yards receiving on 6 catches, but a lot has changed since then.
I think Kansas City is the better overall team, and Houston's wins have largely come against bad teams. JJ Watt and company will give Alex Smith a lot of trouble today, and I think DeAndre Hopkins will do some nice things, but I trust Kansas City to protect the football more than I do Houston. This game should be a low scoring defensive struggle all day. I wouldn't be surprised to see Houston pull an upset, but with Andy Reid's experience, I think the Chiefs make enough plays to get a win. Chiefs 17 Texans 13.
Pittsburgh -3
at Cincinnati
The second game sees an AFC North battle between the Steelers and Bengals. Deangelo Williams is out for tonight's game, so Pittsburgh is going to have to find ways to move the ball on the ground with Fitzgerald Toussaint and Jordan Todman. However, I think most of their offense will be based on Big Ben throwing to Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant.
On the Cincinnati side, AJ McCarron gets his first postseason start, since he was the QB for the Crimson Tide. McCarron has been decent this year throwing for 6 TDs and only 2 INTs, and a lot of analysts like his deep ball better than Andy Dalton's. I think the biggest key for the Bengals though is how they blitz Roethlisberger on passing downs, and how well the Steeler running backs can block for him to get the ball down the field. Marvin Lewis is going to have to bring pressure, because if Brown and Bryant have time to get open, Big Ben is going to be able to make big plays against the Bengals.
While I think Cincinnati is clearly the better team top to bottom, the Bengals haven't won a playoff game since 1991, they have a backup QB starting tonight, and the Steelers even with their challenges, still have an elite QB and WR, and they know how to win playoff games. Steelers 30 Bengals 27.
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