Texans to play first wildcard game for fifth consecutive time

The Houston Texans’ home playoff game will once again take place on a Saturday. Houston will host the Cleveland Browns at 4:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. ET on Jan. 13 on NBC, the team announced.

Oddly enough, this isn’t the first time the Texans played their wildcard match during the Saturday slate. Houston’s previous four playoff games were all also the first playoff games of the postseason.

The Texans lost at home to the Kansas City Chiefs on Jan 9, 2016, beat the then-Oakland Raiders on Jan 7, 2017,  lost to the Indianapolis Colts on Jan. 5, 2019, and then beat the Buffalo Bills the following season on Jan. 4, 2020. All on Saturday. All the first games of the playoffs. How odd.

Nevertheless, Houston will take on the Browns as the first rookie quarterback-head coach duo to make the playoffs since 2012 with C.J. Stroud and DeMeco Ryans. They’ll face the Browns with a seasoned postseason veteran in Joe Flacco and NFL Coach of the Year candidate Kevin Stefanski.