NFL wild-card playoff game-plan keys: How every team can win - ESPN

Twelve of the 14 NFL playoff teams are in action on wild-card weekend and look to advance to the divisional round. How can each team get it done? We mapped out game-planning keys to victory.

We focused on personnel matchups, scheme advantages, coaching tendencies and what we see on the game tape to come up with one crucial issue for all 12 teams this weekend. Additionally, we included game projections from ESPN's Football Power Index (FPI). Here's how every team can win and move onto the next round of the playoffs.

Jump to:
CLE-HOU | MIA-KC | PIT-BUF
GB-DAL | LAR-DET | PHI-TB

When: Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET (NBC)
ESPN BET: CLE -2
FPI prediction: CLE, 50.5%

How the Browns can beat the Texans

Cleveland has to scheme deep shots for quarterback Joe Flacco. In the Browns' Week 16 head-to-head matchup with the Texans, Flacco dropped 368 passing yards on the Houston defense, with wide receiver Amari Cooper logging a franchise record 265 yards receiving. A closer look at the tape, however, tells us that Browns coach Kevin Stefanski put Flacco in position to drive the ball down the field on concepts that created isolation matchups and schemed voids against the Texans' core coverages.

Flacco logged five completions on throws of 20 or more air yards in that win and I expect Stefanski to dial up more of those shots in his quarterback-friendly system on Saturday, with Cooper and tight end David Njoku as the top targets. Houston allowed 34 of those deep throws this season, tied for the second most in the NFL.

How the Texans can beat the Browns

Give quarterback C.J. Stroud some passing game answers against single-high coverage. This season, Cleveland's defense has played single-high (Cover 1, Cover 3) on 75.1% of opponents dropbacks. We'll