Bills vs. Texans: Odds, Stat Predictions for 2020 AFC Wild Card Game

Appearing in the AFC Wild Card Round is becoming a frequent occurrence for the Houston Texans. Not so much for the Buffalo Bills.

This season, the Texans won the AFC South for the fourth time in five years, with each of those playoff berths leading to them hosting a game on Wild Card Weekend. This is the sixth time in nine seasons that Houston is playing at home in the AFC Wild Card Round, and it's gone 3-2 in its previous games during that stretch.

Meanwhile, the Bills are making only their second playoff appearance in 20 seasons. They played in the Wild Card Round in 2017, but they lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road that year. Buffalo's last playoff victory came in the 1995 Wild Card Round.

On Saturday, the Texans and Bills are set to face off in the postseason for the first time. Here are the odds for the contest, followed by stat projections for some top players.

Game Odds

Spread: Houston -3

Over/Under: 43.5

Moneyline: Houston -150 (bet $150 to win $100); Buffalo +130 (bet $100 to win $130)

Odds via Caesars.

Stat Projections

Josh Allen: 240 passing yards, one passing touchdown, one rushing touchdown

Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

Although Josh Allen didn't have the most consistent regular season, the second-year quarterback played well throughout the year. And he has the potential to have a solid showing and lead the Bills to victory at Houston.

Allen has a favorable matchup in the Wild Card Round, as the Texans defense ranked 28th in the NFL during the regular season, allowing 388.3 total yards per game. That included 267.3 passing yards per game, which ranked 29th in the league.

With the Bills at full strength heading into the playoffs, Allen will have all of his top weapons available, a group that includes veterans such as running back Frank Gore and wide receiver Cole Beasley. Their presence could help Allen in the quarterback's first career playoff game.

Expect Allen to account for a pair of touchdowns, with one coming on the ground. He's flashed his mobility all year, as he scored nine rushing touchdowns during the regular season.

DeAndre Hopkins: five receptions, 68 yards

Mark Zaleski/Associated Press

It was a solid regular season for DeAndre Hopkins, one of the most talented receivers in the league, as he had 1,165 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games.

However, Hopkins had a slow finish to the regular season. He recorded five receptions for 23 yards against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Dec. 21 and then didn't play in the Texans' regular-season finale at home against the Tennessee Titans. He was dealing with an illness, and Houston was already locked into the No. 4 seed in the AFC.

Hopkins has a difficult matchup in the Texans' wild-card game. He will likely be covered by Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White, who had six interceptions and 17 pass deflections during the regular season. White is a key part of Buffalo's defense, which ranked third in the NFL with only 298.3 total yards allowed per game.

Hopkins will haul in a handful of catches, but he won't have a big game. White will keep him out of the end zone.

Frank Gore: 66 rushing yards, one touchdown

David Dermer/Associated Press

Over his 15-year NFL career, Gore has amassed 15,347 rushing yards, which ranks third all time behind only Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton. Yet Gore doesn't have much history in the playoffs.

In eight career postseason games, Gore has 646 rushing yards and five touchdowns. However, all of those contests came while he played for the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2013. This will be Gore's first time in the playoffs since San Francisco lost in the NFC Championship Game at the end of the 2013 season.

Gore is due for a solid game, and not just in the playoffs. After scoring two touchdowns through the Bills' first three games this season, he was kept out of the end zone the rest of the year. And he didn't total more than 26 rushing yards in any of his past four games.

But Gore's veteran leadership should help the Bills in this playoff matchup, and he should return to the end zone against the Texans rush defense, which ranked 24th in the NFL this season with 125.6 yards allowed per game.