What a time to be a fan of the underdogs. The Browns and Texans face off in the wild-card playoffs for a matchup of two of the greatest NFL stories this season. It will be a battle of the rookie vs. veteran at QB in this showdown of two teams that have never reached the Super Bowl.
CJ Stroud has taken the Texans from the second-worst team in the league to one of the best. Led by the first-year QB, Houston is the fifth team in league history to make the playoffs with a rookie under center and a rookie head coach with DeMeco Ryans.
Stroud did it at the last minute in Week 18. The Texans beat the Colts in the regular season finale to clinch the AFC’s four-seed and book a date with the Browns. They last made the playoffs in 2019.
It couldn’t have been a worse start to the season for Cleveland. Nick Chubb went down with a season-ending knee injury in just the second game, and former-Texan Deshaun Watson went out for the rest of the year in November with shoulder surgery. After two games, in came Joe Flacco, and the rest is history.
Flacco, in his 16th year, lost his first game as a starter before winning the next four. That included a 36-22 victory over the Texans on Christmas Eve, though Stroud did not play due to a concussion. The next week, the Browns clinched a playoff spot for the first time since 2020 and just the third since ’02.
MORE: Watch Browns vs. Texans live with Fubo (free trial)
The Sporting News is tracking the wild-card playoff game between the Browns and Texans, including live updates and highlights from the game.
Browns vs. Texans score
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final | |
| Browns | |||||
| Texans |
Browns vs. Texans live updates, results from NFL wild-card playoffs
All times Eastern.
3:32 p.m. – The Dawg Pound is showing up and showing out with one hour to go at NRG Stadium.
This almost brought me to tears.
Proud of Cleveland, always. pic.twitter.com/mpDtF3a19t
— Hayden Grove (@H_Grove) January 13, 2024
3:00 p.m. – Inactives for the first NFL playoff game of the season have been released. Those missing out for on the Texans-Browns matchup are as follows.
Inactives for #CLEvsHOU ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/Ig5ADGM3NN
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) January 13, 2024
our inactives for today’s game pic.twitter.com/hcqzS4cJDZ
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) January 13, 2024
2:53 p.m. – CJ Stroud leads the league in passing yards per game and touchdowns to interceptions. What a season for the No. 2 pick from Ohio State. And he isn’t done yet.
What a regular season for the rookie 🫡
🔴 4,108 yards ⁰🔴 23 Touchdowns ⁰🔴 100.8 Passer Rating pic.twitter.com/MTxsbHvPGI
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) January 12, 2024
2:32 p.m. – The comeback quarterback has never lost a wild-card game. A win in Houston would be the Browns’ second playoff victory since 1994.
“This is what you live for”. Joe Flacco’s message to his team this week.#CLEvsHOU 📺: NBC & Peacock pic.twitter.com/RJU6JhHtCh
— Sunday Night Football on NBC (@SNFonNBC) January 13, 2024
Browns vs. Texans start time
- Date: Saturday, Jan. 13
- Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
The NFL playoffs kick off with the Browns vs. Texans on Saturday, Jan. 13. Kickoff from NRG Stadium in Houston will be at 4:30 p.m. ET.
What channel is Browns vs. Texans on today?
The Browns-Texans wild-card game will be the first of three broadcast on NBC. For Cleveland residents and those who prefer streaming, the game can be found on Peacock and Fubo, which offers a free trial.
Noah Eagle and Todd Blackledge will be in the booth while Kathryn Tappen reports from the sidelines.