The Kansas City Chiefs are set to face off against the Houston Texans in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs next weekend.
The Chiefs defeated Houston 27-19 in Week 16 of the regular season, and a rematch between the reigning Super Bowl champions and the fast-rising Texans is sure to make for must-see television as both teams face elimination.
Kansas City has experience on its side with star quarterback Patrick Mahomes under center, but Houston’s offense, led by second-year signal-caller C.J. Stroud, proved that it could score points against the Chiefs’ defense earlier in the season.
The experts at Pro Football Network outlined five reasons that fans in Kansas City should be confident that the Chiefs can outduel the Texans:
Editor’s note: This is the first in a two-part series on whether the Chiefs will beat the Texans in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs. The next part will focus on why Kansas City could struggle against Houston.
Reason No. 1
“Kansas City had a first-round bye on their way to a title in 2022, and there were no signs of rust. The Chiefs scored on each of their first three possessions and allowed just 5.1 yards per play in the first half of their Divisional Round game.”
Reason No. 2
“From Weeks 15 to 17—excluding Week 18, when most playmakers rested—the Chiefs’ defense allowed a touchdown on only two of seven opponent red zone drives.“
Reason No. 3
“Patrick Mahomes earned an 84.8 grade in our QB+ metric this season, ranking 10th in the NFL. While below his career norm, it was an improvement over his 81.5 score from last season.”
Reason No. 4
“DeAndre Hopkins has maxed out at a 63.1% snap share with Kansas City and now faces competition from a healthy Hollywood Brown, who has been targeted on 44.1% of his routes in the two games since his return.”
More Chiefs content
Check out this early prediction for the Chiefs’ divisional-round matchup against the Texans.
This article originally appeared on Chiefs Wire: 4 reasons why Chiefs will beat Texans in divisional round of NFL playoffs
