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Two of the best teams in the AFC will square off Christmas Day in Houston as the Texans host the Baltimore Ravens on Netflix. Both teams have already clinched postseason berths, but division titles and seeding are on the line.
Baltimore is tied with Pittsburgh in the AFC North at 10-5, but the Ravens hold tiebreakers with a better conference record (7-3) and a better record in common games. If they win out, they will claim the division for the second straight year.
Houston has already clinched the AFC South but can get as high as a No. 3 seed if it wins out and finishes with the same record as the AFC North winner (Pittsburgh or Baltimore).
Who will come out on top Wednesday from Acrisure Stadium? Stay with NBC News all day for the latest.
Touchdown, Ravens!
Beautiful drive by the Ravens, who needed only six plays to go 99 yards for their second touchdown of the game.
Lamar Jackson made all kinds of plays, including a nice scramble-turned-pass to Mark Andrews for a 67-yard gain.
Then Jackson extended a play for several seconds inside the 10 to find Isaiah Likely for a score.
Baltimore now leads 17-2.
Texans convert fourth down thanks to penalty
The Texans went for it on 4th-and-3 and picked up a first down via a pass interference penalty on Marlon Humphrey.
That was...a tough call. There was minimal contact by Humphrey, and even Netflix rules analyst Gene Steratore (a former ref) disagreed with the flag.
The conversion set up Houston inside the Baltimore 5-yard line.
Ravens make the fourth down stop this time
Wow!
The Ravens escape harm after the Texans converted a 4th-and-3 via penalty to get to the 10-yard line.
After two runs and an incomplete pass, C.J. Stroud threw to Joe Mixon on 4th-and-goal, but Mixon was tackled one yard short of the end zone.
That’s a massive stop by Baltimore, which was on defense after the offense gave up a safety.
The Ravens will now take over on their own 1 hoping to avoid another one.
Safety! Texans on the board!
Whoa!
The Texans’ first points on Christmas come via their defense, as Derrick Henry was tackled in the end zone for a safety. After running for 86 yards on his first 10 carries, Henry has lost eight yards on his last two.
Houston will now get possession of the ball trailing 10-2.
Texans punt again after another sack
On 3rd-and-2, C.J Stroud couldn’t run away from Odafe Oweh and was sacked for a 13-yard loss, leading to the Texans’ third straight punt. Stroud has now been sacked twice in the first half.
The Ravens take over inside their own 5-yard line after the punt.
Ravens punt for the first time
After dominating on the ground in the first quarter, the Ravens’ first two runs of the second quarter both went backward. That set up a 3rd-and-20, and Lamar Jackson threw incomplete, setting up a Baltimore punt.
The Texans take over on their own 18 trailing 10-0.
Ravens running all over the Texans through one quarter
The Ravens lead 10-0 after one quarter, and they’ve been especially dominant on the ground.
Derrick Henry has already carried the ball 10 times for 86 yards, as well as the game’s only touchdown. Overall, Baltimore rushed 13 times for 115 yards in the first quarter.
It will be a long day for the Texans if they can’t slow down the run.
Texans punt after four plays
The Texans picked up a first down on the first play of their second drive, but C.J. Stroud threw incomplete on the next three plays, leading to a punt. Stroud missed a wide-open Dalton Schultz on third down on what could have potentially been a big gain.
The Ravens take over their own 23 with a 10-0 lead after a penalty on the punt.
Ravens get three on second drive
After a nice run stuff by the Texans on second down, Lamar Jackson threw incomplete to Zay Flowers on 3rd-and-9, leading to a Justin Tucker field-goal attempt.
Tucker was good from 52 yards out, giving the Ravens a 10-0 lead with 2:47 left in the first quarter.
Texans punt after third-down sack
On 3rd-and-4 from the Baltimore 48, C.J. Stroud was sacked by Kyle Van Noy, ending the Texans’ first drive after only six plays.
The Ravens take over on their own 30 leading 7-0.
Touchdown, Ravens!
What an opening drive by the Ravens.
Baltimore went 75 yards in eight plays, picking up 51 of those yards on the ground.
Derrick Henry capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown run.
The Ravens lead 7-0.
Netflix fairly glitch-free as game 2 begins
It's been smooth sailing for Netflix so far. The streaming giant has experienced little to no issues during today's broadcast of both games. Wonder if that'll change with Beyonce's expected halftime performance, coming up in a few hours.
And our second Christmas game is underway!
The Ravens received the opening kickoff and their first play from scrimmage was a Derrick Henry run for six yards.
Netflix airs Mariah Carey performance ... again
Netflix loves Mariah Carey so much they played her pre-recorded "All I Want for Christmas Is You" performance again before game 2. The segment played after a cappella group Pentatonix performed the National Anthem.
Ravens could take over AFC North with win
With Pittsburgh losing to the Kansas City Chiefs earlier today, Baltimore could take over first place in the AFC North with a win against Houston. A win today and a win against Cleveland next week will wrap up the division.
Houston struggling in recent weeks
The Texans lost 27-19 at the Chiefs in Week 16. They are only 4-5 in the last nine games after starting the season 5-1.
Maybe the addition of a new wide receiver will help? After losing Tank Dell to a knee injury, the Texans claimed Diontae Johnson off waivers after Baltimore released him.
Ravens have been on fire as of late
Baltimore has two straight wins since returning from Week 14 Bye and losing to the Eagles in Week 13.
The Ravens clinched a playoff berth with win over Steelers in Week 16. They are outscoring opponents 69-31 during the two-game wining streak (34+ points scored in each win).
Baltimore is looking to win three straight games for the first time since winning five straight from Weeks 3-7.
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