The Houston Texans and the Los Angeles Chargers both showed great promise heading into the season. Now is the time to live up to expectations.
Last week, the Philip Rivers-led Chargers lost to the Detroit Lions after failing to get into the end zone in the second half. Though Rivers had a decent day, throwing for almost 300 yards, his costly pick and his failure to throw even one touchdown pass cost the Chargers the game.
Though the Texans squeaked out a victory against the Jaguars in Week 2, the vaunted Houston offense looked limp. Deshaun Watson threw for only 159 yards, and a Jacksonville team led by a backup quarterback almost took the game from them.
This week, both teams will look to rebound and get their offensive production back on track. If not for a fourth-quarter strip sack by the Houston pass rush, the Texans could have lost last week. Carlos Hyde ran decently, but everyone else on offense, from running back Duke Johnson to star receiver tandem DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller, failed to produce.
Though the Texans defense deserves credit for holding the line, the unit fell apart on a fourth-quarter drive demonstrating that Houston’s D could stand to improve as well.
Despite strong play from receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, and decent running by Melvin Gordon-replacement Austin Ekeler, the Chargers offense also came up short last week.
Poor tackling and defensive injuries hampered Los Angeles as they let decent offensive production turn into a crushing loss. In particular, terrible cornerback play has allowed opponents to stay on the field and drain offensive opportunity from this Chargers team.
Houston Texans vs. Los Angeles Chargers
- When: Sunday, Sept. 22 at 4:25pm ET
- Where: Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, CA
- Streaming: CBS, NFL Sunday Ticket
There are a number of options for watching Texans vs. Chargers on streaming platforms that carry CBS. However, consult a coverage map to see what game your regional channel will be playing.
If a game is not being carried in your area, the only option might be an NFL Sunday Ticket package.
Texans vs. Chargers live stream: How to watch NFL online
1) Sling TV
- Cost: $25-$40 per month (40% off first month)
- Sling TV devices: Amazon Fire TVs, Android Fire Stick, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Xbox One, Google Chromecast, Oculus Go, and iOS and Android devices
- Sling TV local channels: NBC, Fox (check your local availability here)
Both Sling Blue ($25 per month) or Sling Orange + Blue ($40 per month) include NFL Network and a number of sports channels—like three ESPN channels, NBCSN, and FS1—and it’s still a nice perk that Sling subscribers can order a la carte packages. Sling TV also offers a special Latino package for bilingual viewers. Sling TV is currently offering a deal where you can subscribe for 40% off the regular price for the first month of your subscription. That means Sling Blue would cost $15, and Sling Orange + Blue would cost $25. (Here’s a complete guide to Sling TV channels and our Sling TV review.)
For $10 extra per month, you can get NFL RedZone via the Sling Blue Sports Extra package.
How to use AirTV with Sling
AirTV solves one of the Sling’s biggest problems: The inability to receive all of your local channels. By purchasing a basic AirTV for $79.99 or the AirTV Player for $119.99, you can merge those local channels into your Sling TV, (or on your mobile device if you have the basic AirTV). As the Daily Dot wrote in its AirTV review, “it’s practically magic.”
The basic AirTV is a dual-tuner streaming device, while the AirTV Player is basically an upgraded Chromecast that has Netflix preinstalled. You’ll still need to own an HD antenna because even though AirTV gets you access to your local channels, it doesn’t actually physically show them to you.
But AirTV—which has no monthly fee—serves to strengthen one of Sling’s biggest weaknesses compared to other live streaming services like Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, and PlayStation Vue. All those services have plenty of local channels.
2) FuboTV
- Cost: $54.99 per month
- FuboTV devices: Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Android TV, iOS and Android devices
- FuboTV local channels: Fox, NBC, CBS (check local availability here)
If you’re a big-time sports fan, FuboTV is your best streaming service option. If you love international soccer and you’re a Spanish speaker, FuboTV also offers various add-on packages, including Fubo Latino and Fubo Português. FuboTV’s basic plan showcases nearly 100 channels and includes NFL Network. At $54.99 per month, you’ll also get FS1, FS2, NBCSN, NBA TV, Big Ten Network, Pac 12 Network, BeIn Sports, and CBS Sports Network, along with premium channels like FX/FXX/FXM. The only notable omission for sports fans is ESPN. You can add Fubo’s Sports Plus package for an additional $8.99 per month, which allows you to stream NFL RedZone, (Here’s the complete FuboTV channels list.)
3) PlayStation Vue
- Cost: $44.99-$79.99 per month
- PlayStation Vue devices: PlayStation 3 and 4, Roku, Amazon Fire, Google Chromecast, Kodi, iOS and Android devices
- PlayStation Vue local channels: NBC, Fox, ABC, CBS (enter your ZIP code here to check your availability)
If you’d like to watch live NFL games directly from your PS4, PlayStation Vue is your best bet. PlayStation also works with streaming devices like Roku and Amazon Fire products, but what separates PlayStation from the rest of the streaming services is that it’s also compatible with Kodi. No matter how you stream, you’ll get to choose from four tiers of channels—all but the cheapest include NFL Network. From there, you can also add NFL RedZone as part of the $10-per-month Sports Pack, which also unlocks ESPN Bases Loaded, ESPN Classic, Longhorn Network, Outside TV, and NBCUniversal regional sports networks. You can see the full list of PlayStation Vue channels here. Two other great perks: You can stream on up to five devices at once, and there’s also unlimited cloud DVR.
4) Hulu with Live TV
- Cost: $44.99 per month
- Hulu devices: Roku, Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire Stick and Fire TV, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, and iOS and Android devices
- Hulu local channels: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, the CW (check your local availability here)
Hulu with Live TV includes sports programming among its offerings, including ESPN and FS1, and as a subscriber to the service, you’ll get free access to Hulu’s sizable on-demand library. (Check out the full list of Hulu Live TV channels.)
5) YouTube TV
- Cost: $50 per month
- YouTube TV devices: Google Chromecast, Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Xbox One, iOS and Android devices
- YouTube TV local channels: NBC, CBS, Fox, ABC, the CW (enter your ZIP code here to check your availability)
YouTube TV is a great option for college football fans, including ESPN and FS1. (Take a look at the full list of YouTube TV channels here.)
6) NFL Sunday Ticket
Cost: $73.99 per month for four months, or one single payment of $293.96
There are two—and only two—ways of acquiring NFL Sunday Ticket without DirecTV. There’s NFLSundayTicket.TV, which costs $73.99 per month for four months. It’s everything you love NFL Sunday Ticket but online-only. You can stream from pretty much any device that connects to the internet (but only on one device at a time).
You can also upgrade to the NFLST.TV Max bundle for a total of $99 per month for four months or one single payment of $395.99. You can also add on NFL Game Pass, which allows you to watch replays of every game after they air, for $50 for the full season.
There’s another way to watch NFL Sunday Ticket without DirecTV: Amazon Prime. While you can’t pay for the package using Amazon Prime, you can at least watch all of the games on the service. To start, first download the NFL Sunday Ticket channel on Amazon Prime. It’s free. From there, you’ll just need to sign in with your subscription credentials.
College students can purchase NFL Sunday Ticket at a discounted price through NFLSundayTicket.TV U.
TRY NFL SUNDAY TICKET ON AMAZON PRIME
Texans vs. Chargers: Why it matters
Early in the season, teams have time to make adjustments. But, those fixes have to happen fairly quickly. Both of these teams need to get better on both sides of the ball.
The big thing for the Texans in offensive consistency. Deshaun Watson has to show up every week if Houston is going to make a deep playoff run. It’s simple: If Watson can’t throw enough good passes, it doesn’t matter how well his receivers play.
If the Chargers defense can’t get off the field, their production on offense won’t be good enough. LA’s awful secondary is going to need help up front from stars like Melvin Ingram and Joey Bosa in order to limit yardage and give Philip Rivers the opportunities he needs.
While much of the league is solidifying for good or ill, these teams’ futures are still up in the air. Will the Houston and Los Angeles offenses play up to their potential? Can their defenses firm up enough to give their teams a chance to win?
This could be one of the most exciting games of the week, as two teams filled with potential will be fighting to live up to expectation. While the winner could gain some serious momentum, the loser could find themselves on the path to regular season irrelevance.
READ MORE:
- How to watch NFL RedZone without cable
- How to watch NFL Sunday Ticket without a DirecTV satellite
- How to watch NFL Network online (without cable)
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