The Pittsburgh Steelers have one thing on their mind: taking care of business against the Houston Texans. Tonight, the Texans will be in town to face the Steelers at Acrisure Stadium, as Mike Tomlin looks to snap an eight-year drought without a playoff win.
This is guaranteed to be a daunting task. Houston finished the 2025 regular season with nine straight wins. Meanwhile, the Texans possess a top-two NFL defense in terms of points allowed, yards allowed, EPA per play, and DVOA, and we're already preparing for a nightmare matchup against elite edge rushers Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter.
But if the Steelers manage to escape tonight's game with a win, they will get the most daunting AFC playoff matchup possible in the Divisional Round next week.
Because the New England Patriots trounced the LA Chargers on Sunday Night Football in the Wild Card round, the Steelers would travel to Foxborough next week to face the Patriots if they beat the Texans tonight.
This is the matchup no AFC team wants right now.
The Pittsburgh Steelers would face a daunting matchup against the New England Patriots if they beat the Texans tonight
The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of only three teams to have faced the Patriots and emerged victorious during the 2025 season. However, this win came all the way back in Week 3 on September 21, and it required a whopping five takeaways from the defense to get the job done.
Finishing plus-four in the turnover department in a single game is a rare accomplishment. In fact, there were only two games during the 2025 season in which the Steelers finished over plus-two in the takeaway department (against the Patriots in Week 3 and the Colts in Week 9).
The chances of Pittsburgh emerging victorious against New England without the ball bouncing their way on defense are slim.
With their recent Wild Card victory over the Chargers, the Patriots have a 15-3 record, including the postseason, and have won 14 of their last 15 games. Meanwhile, New England finished third in the NFL in point differential (+170).
What would make this contest even more excruciating is the fact that it would be played in Foxborough against Drake Maye, who—since early in the season—has emerged as a top-two MVP candidate.
Of course, none of this matters if the Pittsburgh Steelers can't find a way to emerge victorious against the Houston Texans tonight. But even if Mike Tomlin can find a way to upset the red-hot Texans and their dominant defense in the Wild Card round, it only gets harder from here.