HOUSTON (AP) — Saturday’s wild-card game between the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts is a matchup that seemed improbable early this season after Houston dropped its first three games and the Colts limped to a 1-5 start.Instead of letting their tough starts lead to disappointing years [url=http:/

HOUSTON (AP) — Saturday’s wild-card game between the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts is a matchup that seemed improbable early this season after Houston dropped its first three games and the Colts limped to a 1-5 start.Instead of letting their tough starts lead to disappointing years Womens Deshaun Watson Jersey , these teams which both finished 4-12 last season turned things around to lead the AFC South and charge into the postseason.Houston’s rebound began at the expense of the Colts (10-6) and it was thanks in part to a controversial call by Indianapolis coach Frank Reich in overtime. The game was tied 34-34 when, instead of punting on fourth-and-4 from his 43-yard line and likely settling for a tie, Reich called for a short pass from Andrew Luck to Chester Rogers. Luck’s pass fell incomplete, Houston got a 24-yard completion on the next play, and Ka’imi Fairbairn made a 37-yard field goal as time expired to give the Texans (11-5) a 37-34 victory.“We knew that to be able to come out on the winning end of that game was a big thing for us, but that’s a long time ago,” Houston coach Bill O’Brien said. “The teams have evolved over time, so it’s a new ballgame now.”The win was the first of nine straight for Houston. The Texans didn’t lose again until a visit from the Colts on Dec. 9, a 24-21 Indy victory. Houston then won two of its last three games, capped by a 20-3 victory over the Jaguars on Sunday to clinch the division — and become the sixth team since 1980 and first since 1998 to make the playoffs after a 0-3 start.The Colts’ loss to Houston in Week 4 was the second of four straight that dropped them to 1-5. Indianapolis then won its next five and nine of its last 10 to make its first playoff appearance since a 2014 AFC championship game loss at New England. Yes, the “Deflategate” game.The Colts are the third team in NFL history to reach the postseason after losing five of the first six games.These teams have more in common than their difficult starts. They’re both led by a player making a comeback after an injury.Luck returned after missing the 2017 season with a shoulder injury to throw for 4,593 yards and rank second in the NFL with 39 touchdown passes. His best games this season have come against Houston, piling up 863 yards passing with six touchdowns.Trying to slow him down on Saturday will be Houston’s comeback star J.J. Watt, who played all 16 games after starting just eight games combined in the previous two years because of back surgeries and a broken leg. Watt led the AFC with 16 sacks, had 25 quarterback hits, 18 tackles for losses and forced a career-high seven fumbles, which tied for most in the NFL.Watt said Luck has been getting rid of the ball quicker this season, which makes his job as a pass rusher much more difficult.“You try and do different things, but at the end of the day, you try and get there, and if you can get your hands up http://www.thetexanslockerroom.com/authentic-tashaun-gipson-jersey , you get your hands up,” he said. “You just try and get there. You can’t really let it affect you, and you hope maybe he holds it for an extra second.”Some things to know about Houston’s game against Indianapolis:HILTON’S INSome of T.Y. Hilton’s most memorable moments have come against the Texans — especially when he visits Houston.The Colts’ top receiver has caught 41 passes for 933 yards with seven TDs in seven games at NRG Stadium, and in the last two trips to Houston Hilton has 14 receptions for 374 yards and two TDs. So even though he’s been hobbled by a bad ankle, which he initially injured at Houston on Dec. 9, Hilton insists he’ll be fine Sunday.“That’s probably why it’s starting to feel better,” Hilton joked earlier this week when asked about playing in Houston for the second time in a month.DESHAUN’S DEBUTHouston quarterback Deshaun Watson will make his playoff debut in his second year in the NFL. Don’t expect the 12th overall pick in the 2017 draft to be daunted by the challenge after he played plenty of huge games at Clemson, highlighted by leading his team to the national title game twice. The Tigers lost to Alabama when Watson was a sophomore before he helped Clemson beat Alabama 35-31 for the 2016 national championship.“It’s just another opportunity for myself and this whole team to be able to show what we’ve got and put in the work,” Watson said. “I’ve played in a lot of big games before in college and stuff, but you can’t really pit college playoffs with the NFL. This is the hardest business, top-notch. It’s a whole new season, a whole new speed of game. So it’s going to be new for me (and) it’s going to be a lot of fun.”TURNAROUND TIMEIndy didn’t just rebound from a 1-5 start to make the playoffs. It rewrote the book.While the oft-criticized offensive line allowed a league-low 18 sacks after giving up a league-high 56 in 2017, the biggest change came on defense, where the Colts were ranked No. 11. They had the league’s leading tackler, 26 takeaways, allowed only 16.4 points over the final eight games, and were one of three teams that didn’t allow a 100-yard rusher all season.The Colts know it will take more of the same to advance.“The last time we did a good job, that was great for us, but this is a new challenge this week,” Reich said when asked about defending Pro Bowl receiver DeAndre Hopkins. “I’m sure they are going to try to get him going.” Any hope of recalcitrant running back Le'Veon Bell returning to the football field in the black and gold 鈥?or any other team's colors 鈥?any time soon took a major hit when Seattle star safety Earl Thomas broke his lower left leg, illustrating the dangers of playing without the security of a long-term deal.Thomas and Bell each held out this summer Jon Weeks Jersey White , but while Bell continued to work out on his own, Thomas returned to the Seahawks in time for the season opener without a trade or a new contract in hand.,That move didn't pay off financially or otherwise.He got hurt in a game at Arizona, and when he was carted off the field at State Farm Stadium, he raised his middle finger toward the Seahawks' sideline."Earl wanted an extension and at the end of the day he didn't get that," Seahawks defensive end Frank Clark said. "It sucks to see a guy who puts his heart into something, put his all into his team and he doesn't get what he deserves."Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner said in an Instagram post, "If he doesn't come then he's not a team player. If he does come and gets hurt, then it's 'he shouldn't have came.' If I was him, I'd be (ticked) off."ESPN posted the quote and a photo of Thomas' obscene gesture, and that's when Bell chimed in , suggesting he wouldn't be back on the field anytime soon."Smh, exactly ..." wrote Bell. "Get right bro bro (Earl Thomas)! I'll continue to be the 'bad guy' for ALL of us."Bell has refused to sign his $14.54 million one-year tender, concerned that he'd get overused in a contract year, either subjecting him to the risk of injury or to a devaluation of his talents.NFL Network reported earlier Sunday that the Steelers were shopping Bell.Trading him is a tricky proposition because Bell would have to first sign his tender. Because he can't negotiate a long-term deal until after this season, he'd still be taking on the injury risk with a new team.Bell can return in Week 10 and still accrue a full season to become a free agent in March.Other takeaways from Week 4 include a fourth-down gamble that backfired on Colts coach Frank Reich, the "Big Four" rookie QBs going 0-4 Sunday after the hype meter cranked up to high last week and the Ravens tricking the Steelers and the officials on a trick play in their 26-14 win over Pittsburgh.FIT TO BE TIEDReich earned kudos from both his players and the Texans for his decision to go for it on fourth-and-4 from his 43 with 27 seconds left in overtime rather than punt, bury Houston deep and settle for the NFL's third tie game."We're not playing to tie," Reich insisted after his decision led to a 37-34 overtime loss instead. "We're going for that 10 times out of 10. That (play) has just got to work."It didn't.With his favorite target, T.Y. Hilton, on the sideline with a hamstring injury and a short week ahead with the New England Patriots on tap Thursday night http://www.thetexanslockerroom.com/authentic-aaron-colvin-jersey , Andrew Luck bounced his pass to Chester Rogers.The Texans took over and Ka'imi Fairbairn missed a 37-yard field goal as overtime expired. But wait! In yet another call that backfired, Reich had called timeout.Fairbairn nailed the do-over to end the league's longest losing streak at nine.Reich's only regret was calling timeout before the fourth-and-4 play after the Texans didn't jump offside, he said.Luck's only lament was misfiring the pass, but he loved the bold call."It had my stamp of approval," Luck said. "We did not execute well enough."COOL YOUR JETSAfter a dominant debut against Detroit in the Jets' opener, Sam Darnold has cooled off in three straight defeats, including a listless loss at Jacksonville on Sunday.A week after being hailed as a hero for leading Cleveland to its first win since 2016 by rallying the Browns over the Jets in relief of an injured Tyrod Taylor, Baker Mayfield had four turnovers in his first NFL start, a 45-42 overtime loss to the Raiders.Mayfield threw for 295 yards and two touchdowns but suffered a pick-6, got strip sacked, fumbled a snap and threw an interception in the final seconds of regulation."You don't want to rein him in," coach Hue Jackson said, "because I like the things he's doing."Josh Rosen had a strong debut in his first start for Arizona but it wasn't enough to keep the Cardinals from falling to 0-4 for the first time since 1986.Josh Allen accounted for three turnovers in the Bills' 22-0 loss at Green Bay a week after a stunning win at heavily favored Minnesota in his starting debut."I take this one on my shoulders," Allen said. "We can only go as far as the quarterback goes."TRICK OR TREATBaltimore coach John Harbaugh was furious when the Patriots fooled the Ravens in the playoffs a few years ago with a trick play to an eligible receiver who looked like he was lined up as an offensive lineman.The Ravens stole that idea from New England eight months later and unwrapped it again Sunday to fool the Steelers.Tight end Maxx Williams lined up next to the center as the left guard but just far enough off the line of scrimmage to make himself an eligible receiver. He was wide open for a 22-yard gain that set up a field goal for a 23-14 lead.Retired referee Terry McAulay, now an NBC Sports rules analyst, said Williams probably shouldn't have been an eligible receiver on the play, but no flag was thrown.