Falcons vs. Texans: TV Schedule, Live Stream, Radio, Game Time and More

The Houston Texans are hosting the Atlanta Falcons and it should be an interesting game that really shows the identity of these two teams.

Houston has been resiliently battling injuries throughout the season and is now going to war with T.J. Yates, a rookie out of UNC, as their starting QB. Matt Leinart and Matt Schaub both went down with season-ending injuries.

Atlanta needs to win this game to stay competitive in the hotly contested NFC playoff race. They are a game back from New Orleans in the South and tied with Chicago and Detroit for the wild card.

Keep reading to find out everything you must know about this matchup.

Where: Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX

When: Sunday, Dec. 4 at 1:00 p.m. EDT

Watch: FOX

Listen: The Zone 790 AM - Falcons, KILT 610 AM - Texans

Betting Line: Falcons minus-3

What's At Stake?

The Houston Texans need to see what they have in T.J. Yates and if he is fit to guide them into the playoffs and beyond.

At 8-3, they have some breathing room right now and are currently the No. 1 seed in the AFC. But they are also only two games ahead of the Titans in the division and could completely miss the postseason if they stumble.

Atlanta is also a fringe playoff team and needs to win as many games as possible over the next five weeks.

7-4 would normally be a fine spot to be at going into Week 13, but it’s only good enough for the six seed right now.

Whoever wins this will be sitting in a good spot to continue their season after Week 17.

Falcons Injury Report

CB Brent Grimes—OUT (Knee)—The Falcons starting LCB underwent a minor knee surgery and will miss a handful of games. It should not harm them too much against the inexperienced Texans’ QB.

Texans Injury Report

QB Matt Leinart—OUT (Clavicle)—Leinart definitely broke his collarbone on Sunday and is going to miss the remainder of the season. The team is actively seeking backups for T.J. Yates right now as they have lost two of their three QBs from the opening week.

Fantasy Start 'Em, Sit' Em and Sleeper

Start ‘Em: Michael Turner

The Texans possess a stout run defense, but Turner is going to wear them down on Sunday.

Usually Houston can rack up time-of-possession and move the ball, but it’s going to be tough for them on Sunday and I think we see a lot of three-and-outs.

Turner should be slated to get a bunch of carries, especially if Atlanta goes up early.

Sit ‘Em: Ben Tate

Tate is usually a solid option even as the backup to Arian Foster. But not this week.

They will certainly rely on him to run the ball 10-15 times, but the Falcons have a solid rush defense and know it’s coming. Tate will be facing some stacked boxes and will have very little room in which to work.

Sleeper: T.J. Yates

If you need a quarterback in a deep league, why not give Yates a shot?

He has some awesome weapons to work with and Andre Johnson is still going to find a way to get open at least a few times this game.

Foster is also a great playmaker on check-down passes out of the backfield and can really rack up the YAC.

What They're Saying

The Associated Press has found that Texans head coach Gary Kubiak is impressed by his team's willingness to overcome injury and rally around whomever they have out at quarterback.

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"I'm very proud of this team," Kubiak said. "It's hard to win in this league, and when you face some of the adversity we've faced and will be facing again, and to continue to find a way to win, that's a sign of a very solid football team."

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Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that lost underneath all of the Houston QB talk for this game is Dunta Robinson’s first game against his former team.

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“I don’t know how I would have handled this situation last year,” Robinson said. “It’s a lot easier now because I’m more comfortable in the surrounding, with this locker room, with these players. I could only imagine being there for six years and having to play against those guys last year when I wasn’t fully comfortable here yet.”

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It’s definitely weird and he is going to have his hands full against old pal Andre Johnson.

Falcons Player To Watch: Matt Ryan

The Texans have a fearsome pass-rush and solid overall defense. Will Matty Ice be able to man up and put his team up early?

If he can do that, Atlanta is going to coast to an easy win.

Texans Player To Watch: T.J. Yates

Yates performed admirably in his first NFL action in a game he probably never thought he would have played in.

The kid probably never thought he would even see the field this season as a backup to both Leinart and Schaub.

Now he has the keys to the Texans’ offense and will need to navigate this team into the playoffs.

Key Matchup: Houston D vs. Atlanta O

If Houston can keep the Falcons under 14 points, like they have done against their past five opponents, they have a shot of winning this as home underdogs.

If Atlanta goes up early and starts bleeding the clock and pounding the rock, it will doom the Texans.

Prediction

Falcons 17 – Texans 14