New England Patriots Will Host Ravens, Chargers Or Texans In 2019 Divisional Playoff Game

After clinching the No.2 seed in the AFC, the New England Patriots have to wait and see which team they’ll host in the second round of the 2019 NFL postseason. It’ll be either the Baltimore Ravens, Los Angeles Chargers or Houston Texans that visit Gillette Stadium in the Divisional Playoffs.

The Indianapolis Colts are the only AFC team playing on Wild-Card Weekend that has no chance of facing the Patriots before the conference title game. A win for the Colts Saturday would give them a second-round matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs.

In their first playoff game, New England will host the highest remaining seed in the AFC. That means a win for the No.3 seed Texans would guarantee Houston a matchup with the Patriots. Houston hosts Indianapolis in the first playoff game this weekend.

Houston is favored to win their first-round contest, though the betting line is less than a field goal, per OddsShark. The Colts beat the Texans on the road just a few weeks ago.

If Indianapolis pulls off the upset, New England will learn the identity of their divisional playoff opponent Sunday. In that scenario, the winner of the game between the Chargers and Ravens would visit the Patriots.

The Ravens beat the Chargers in Los Angeles in Week 16. Baltimore is a slight favorite at home. Los Angeles won two more regular-season games than Baltimore, going 7-1 on the road.

The Texans are the only potential first-round opponent that the Patriots played in the regular season. Houston lost at Gillette Stadium 27-20 in Week 1, extending their losing streak against New England to eight games. Deshaun Watson had arguably his worst game of the season by completing 50 percent of his passes for 176 yards.

Baltimore is the last team to beat New England at home in the playoffs. The Ravens defeated the Patriots 28-13 in the 2013 AFC Championship Game. Baltimore lost in New England two postseasons later.

The Patriots beat the Chargers 11 seasons ago in the 2008 AFC Championship Game. L.A. lost at New England 21-13 in a regular-season matchup last year.