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| Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Houston Texans in the 2025-26 wild card round. |
The 2025 NFL playoff field is set, and a highly anticipated wild-card round awaits. The Pittsburgh Steelers, after clinching the AFC North in dramatic fashion and earning the No. 4 seed, wrap up the first weekend of postseason play by hosting the fifth-seeded Houston Texans in a playoff edition of "Monday Night Football."
Four-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl XLV champion Aaron Rodgers gets a crack at another Super Bowl and gets his top target, wide receiver DK Metcalf, back when the Steelers take on a Texans squad that enters the postseason on a nine-game winning streak following an 0-3 start.
Pittsburgh is 5-3 against Houston all-time, but the two teams have never played in the playoffs. The Texans defeated the Steelers 30-6 in their most recent meeting in Week 4 of the 2023 season.
Here are key facts about the playoff "Monday Night Football" showdown:
What is the schedule?
*All times Eastern
Monday, Jan. 12
3 p.m.: "NFL Live" on ESPN
6 p.m.: "Monday Night Countdown" on ESPN
8 p.m.: Texans at Steelers on ESPN and ABC
8 p.m.: "NFL Wild Card with Peyton and Eli" -- the "ManningCast" -- on ESPN2
8 p.m.: "NFL Wild Card Playbook with Next Gen Stats" on ESPN Unlimited
How can fans watch?
Fans can catch all of the action in the ESPN App and in the NFL streaming hub.
'NFL Wild Card Playbook with Next Gen Stats'
"NFL on ESPN Playbook with Next Gen Stats" returns for ESPN's wild-card and divisional round playoff games. The two remaining editions of "NFL on ESPN Playbook" will be available for fans with a subscription to the ESPN Unlimited plan in the ESPN App.
Designed for viewers who crave deeper insights, "NFL on ESPN Playbook with Next Gen Stats" delivers real-time data, advanced metrics and analytics-driven commentary, powered by the NFL's Next Gen Stats and Adrenaline's TruPlay AI. Fans will consume the game with a 22-man, all-field camera view, as "NFL on ESPN Playbook" taps TruPlay AI's unprecedented live predictive engine that is capable of adjusting to personnel, formations and pre-snap movement in real time.
How can fans access more NFL content from ESPN?
Check out the ESPN NFL hub page for the latest news, analysis, scores, stats, schedules and more.
