Sunday Night – Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans

This Texans vs Chiefs matchup seems likes it’s becoming a little bit of a rivalry over the last few years. They’ve played 3 games in the last 2 seasons and 2 of the 3 were decided by a touchdown or less. The other game was the 30-0 drubbing the Chiefs put on Houston at home in the playoffs. Ouch. Though Houston did win the last game, you can bet they still feel the sting of that loss every time they see Kansas City on the schedule. Get ready for nasty game from two of the league’s best defenses.

Keys to the Game

Chiefs

The Chiefs can’t afford to held without a touchdown again. They’ll lose that matchup every single time — even against a team as offensively-challenged as Houston. The key will be establishing the run game in order to keep those Texans pass rushers honest. There’s not a team in the league that can block those guys all game, so forcing them to respect the run is absolutely imperative. Alex Smith may not walk away from this game if he has to drop back and throw 45 times. Watt and company will brutalize him. If Spencer Ware can get 100+ yards and 2 scores, KC will have themselves a fun Sunday night in Houston.

Texans

Houston is going to need to find a way to score without going through DeAndre Hopkins. The Chiefs will have Marcus Peters shadowing Hopkins all night long and they’ll do everything in their power to take him out of the game plan. This is where players like Will Fuller will need to step up. Houston’s offense was embarrassing in 2016 and it will be again in 2017 if the role players aren’t able to take a step forward. If Fuller can make the defense respect his speed, it will open up opportunities for Houston to move the ball underneath and get on the scoreboard while their defense handles the rest.