Following Houston‘s 30-6 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Wild Card Round, a panel on ESPN’s NFL Live unanimously picked the Texans to defeat the New England Patriots and reach the first AFC Championship Game in franchise history.
For fans familiar with playoff superstition, that kind of consensus has a name, and it is rarely a good omen.
The so-called “ESPN curse” has become shorthand for teams that receive heavy media backing only to fall short when it matters most.
This time, the Texans find themselves squarely in that position, and the circumstances surrounding the matchup suggest the confidence may be misplaced.
Houston enters the game significantly shorthanded. Nico Collins, the team’s top offensive weapon, was ruled out on Friday after suffering a concussion last week.
Collins was carted off the field following a heavy blow to the head, and his absence strips the Texans of their most reliable target at a critical moment.
In 15 regular-season games, Collins caught 71 passes for 1,117 yards and six touchdowns.
Without him, the burden on rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud increases dramatically, especially in a hostile road environment.
Stroud‘s own performance against Pittsburgh offered mixed signals. While Houston dominated the scoreboard, the quarterback’s outing was far from clean.
He threw for 250 yards, one touchdown and completed 65.6 percent of his passes, but he also fumbled the ball five times, an almost unheard-of number in a playoff game.
Why the spotlight may work against Houston
The Texans survived those mistakes because their defence overwhelmed the Steelers from start to finish.
Head coach DeMeco Ryans has built one of the league’s most disciplined defensive units, and it carried the team when the offence faltered.
Stroud did not hide from his own shortcomings after the game.
“We had some problems with the snap, me catching them,” Stroud said after the win. “Got to find a way to catch ’em and take care of the ball.”
That honesty matters now more than ever. Turnovers that did not cost Houston against Pittsburgh are unlikely to be forgiven by the New England Patriots, particularly with snow in the forecast.
Cold conditions traditionally favour New England and amplify the importance of ball security and field position. This is where the ESPN backing becomes uncomfortable.
On NFL Live, analysts including Ryan Clark and Marcus Spears all sided with Houston, projecting confidence that feels detached from the matchup’s realities.
The Texans are young, depleted and facing a disciplined opponent at home in winter conditions.
