After a three-season stretch in which Houston totaled 11 victories, the Texans hired DeMeco Ryans as head coach and drafted quarterback C.J. Stroud and defensive end Will Anderson Jr. second and third, respectively, in the 2023 NFL Draft.

The Texans have won a playoff game in both of the previous seasons with that trio and have reached a third consecutive postseason for the first time in franchise history.

Houston and the Pittsburgh Steelers will conclude the NFL’s Wild-Card Weekend when they square off at 7:15 CST Monday at Acriscure Stadium in Pittsburgh. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.

“We’re four games away from being world champions,” Anderson said. “Whatever you have to sacrifice, whatever you have to give up, like, don’t look too far ahead, but really be in the moment. But really look what we’re striving for. Look what we’re going towards. And I think everybody’s been doing a really good job with that. Man, like, we’re a couple of games away from being exactly where we want to be at.”

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Early in the 2025 season, the Texans’ playoff chances appeared to be dwindling away before Houston played most of November without Stroud.

The Texans became the second team this century to reach the playoffs after losing their first three games in a season. Davis Mills stepped in for Stroud, and Houston won all three of his starts.

“I think you look at the beginning of our season to now, and we’re just being built on perseverance, man,” Anderson said. “We’ve been built on toughness, built on surviving, built on getting through it, out the mud and stuff like that. So, like, I’m really proud of this team and where we’ve come. I can’t wait till we go let loose on Monday and just play our brand of ball and do it to the best of our ability.”

Anderson thinks the Texans and Steelers have similar makeups. Houston is the AFC’s No. 5 seed after posting a 12-5 record in the regular season and earning a wild-card spot with the conference’s No. 1 defense. Pittsburgh is the No. 4 seed after winning the AFC North by beating the Baltimore Ravens 26-24 in the final game on the NFL’s regular-season schedule to finish 10-7.

“It’s going to be a heavyweight matchup,” Anderson said, “and it’s going to come down to the trenches and everybody being physical. …

“I think that’s what we tried to put on tape all year — that we’re a smashmouth football team. We’re a physical, violent team. And so to go against another team like that is going to be a great challenge for us. Man, it’s the league. Everybody’s good. Everybody’s tough. Everybody’s built right, man. So it’s going to be a really great challenge for us that we’re all excited for.”

The Texans totaled 47 sacks during the regular season with defensive end Danielle Hunter getting 15 and Anderson contributing 12. They’ll take aim at four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. Although 42 years old, Rodgers was one of the harder quarterbacks to sack this season with 29.

“We’re very eager, man,” Anderson said. “But it’s not just about the two guys on the edge. I think it’s us as a collective — the inside guys working together, us working together, everybody rushing together to have fun, man. And they’re going to do a lot of stuff with chips and stuff like that, and I think we have a really great game plan for that. But it’s going to be everybody rushing together doing the same thing that we’ve been doing all year, man. And really just getting after him.”

A two-time unanimous All-American selection and back-to-back winner of the SEC Defensive Player of the Year Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy at Alabama, Anderson was the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2023. He’ll take the field for the first time as a first-team All-Pro on Monday night after making The Associated Press’ annual NFL all-star team announced on Saturday.

“It means a lot,” Anderson said. “Such a blessing. But, man, I just got to give credit to my guys, man. I wouldn’t even be right here if it wasn’t for them.”

Pittsburgh has lost its six playoff games since an 18-16 second-round victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Jan. 15, 2017. But the Steelers will carry a winning streak into their meeting with the Texans. Pittsburgh has won 23 consecutive Monday night home games since a 23-20 setback against the New York Giants on Oct. 14, 1991.

The winner of Monday night’s game will visit the New England Patriots in a Divisional Weekend game on Sunday. The Patriots advanced by beating the Los Angeles Chargers 16-3 on Sunday night.