ORCHARD PARK - The Buffalo Bills came face to face with a legitimate playoff contender for the first time in 2024 Sunday night, and the outcome was, to say the least, mortifying.

The Bills were rag-dolled on national TV by the physically imposing Baltimore Ravens, a team that stumbled to an 0-2 start but is clearly is back on track with its second consecutive victory, this one about as impressive as could be given the total domination they enjoyed.

“We couldn’t get anything going on both sides,” said cornerback Rasul Douglas. “Usually if one side is struggling, the other one is there to pick us up. I feel like this game, neither one of us could pick each other up. It was just one of those games where you were like, ‘damn.’”

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Damn, indeed. The Bills were disappointingly non-competitive from start to finish, and now they have to go back on the road to Houston to play a Texans team that is 3-1 and, like the Ravens, a no-doubt-about-it playoff and Super Bowl contender.

“I think it’s important early in the year that we’re consistent in our approach and that I’m consistent for the guys in that locker room and the staff,” coach Sean McDermott said. “That said, it’s an hour plane ride home, I wish it was a five-hour plane ride because I’d have enough time to find all the things we need to work on. It just wasn’t up to our standard tonight.”

If it’s not up to their standard Sunday in Houston, they will get whipped again, and this time, McDermott will have that five-hour plane ride to sort his thoughts.

Here are my early thoughts on the Stefon Diggs Bowl:

Buffalo Bills keys to victory

Houston’s pass defense is among the very best in the NF as it leads the NFL in lowest completion percentage allowed at 57.5% and is fifth in passing yards allowed at 161 per game. The Bills have to find ways to attack down the field because four games of tape have shown that they aren’t capable of doing that, and now opposing defenses can play closer to the line without the fear of being over the top. This clogs up the short and intermediate passing windows, it also helps in run defense, and it’s something Joe Brady has to solve in a hurry.

Houston Texans keys to victory

If RB Joe Mixon is healthy enough to play, the Texans should copy the blueprint of what Baltimore just did and establish him early on the ground. Granted, he’s no Derrick Henry, but the way the Bills’ defense played against Henry and a Ravens offensive line that was banged up, Houston has to at least test the waters. If the Bills hold up, then C.J. Stroud can go to work and unlike Josh Allen, he has a wide array of dangerous passing threats led by Diggs, Nico Collins and Tank Bell (if he can play as he sat out Week 4 against the Jaguars).

Matchup to watch: Bills vs. Texans

Obviously, all eyes are going to be laser-focused on Diggs as he meets up with his old teammates for the first time since his trade to Houston in April. And no matter what side he lines up on, he will find tough resistance from CBs Christian Benford and Rasul Douglas who are playing at an elite level. Diggs, of course, is not the only passing game weapon at Stroud’s disposal, but you know the Texans are going to do all they can to get him heavily involved. He has 25 catches for 233 yards and two TDs in his first four games.

Top players for Texans

∎ QB C.J. Stroud: Coming off a remarkable rookie season when he won the offensive rookie of the year award while throwing for 4,108 yards and 23 TDs with just five picks, he’s picked up where he left off. Against Jacksonville, he completed 27 of 40 for 345 yards and two TDs including the game winner to Dare Ogunbowale with 18 seconds left to play.

∎ RB Joe Mixon: After leaving the Bengals as a free agent, Mixon started great as he ran for 159 yards in Week 2 against the Colts, but he suffered an ankle injury and has missed the last two games. It is expected that he can return to face the Bills.

∎ WR Nico Collins: He is coming off a huge against the Jaguars as he caught 12 passes for 151 yards and a TD and he now has 30 for 489 yards and two TDs.

∎ DE Will Anderson Jr.: The third overall pick in the 2023 draft was the defensive rookie of the year after recording 7.5 sacks, and he has 2.5 through four weeks in 2024.

∎ DE Danielle Hunter: The former Vikings star, who had 89 sacks in eight seasons there, signed as a free agent with Houston and he has 1.5 sacks as a terrific book end to Anderson.

∎ CB Kamari Lassiter: The rookie second-round pick has come right in and earned a starting job and he made his first career interception against the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft, Caleb Williams of the Bears in Week 2.

∎ LB Azeez Al-Shaair: He leads the Texans with 29 tackles and he also has a sack and a pass and a pass breakup.

Who wins? Texans 28, Bills 23

Once again, I do not like the matchup for the Bills. While true, they should be a motivated team looking to bounce back from that debacle in Baltimore Sunday night and that makes them a bit frisky and dangerous, but the continued lack of a downfield passing game is problematic, and defensively, if the Bills don’t get Terrel Bernard and/or Taron Johnson, the Texans could have a huge day on offense.

What time does the Bills vs Texans game start?

Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at NRG Stadium Sunday.

Who is favored to win Bills vs Texans?

The Texans have opened as a 1.5-point favorite for the game. The money line is Texans minus-120 (bet $120 to win $100) and Bills plus-100 (bet $100 to win $100). The over-under is 46.5.

How to watch Buffalo Bills vs Houston Texans game on TV, streaming

∎ Cable/Network TV: CBS. The game will be available locally via the following stations: WROC channel 8 (Rochester area), WIVB channel 4 (Buffalo area), WTVH channel 5 (Syracuse area), WKTV channel 2 (Utica area), WENY channel 2 (Elmira area), WRGB channel 10 (Albany area), and WBNG channel 12 (Binghamton area).

∎ Online streaming services: You can watch games on NFL.com and the NFL mobile app, and you can subscribe to NFL+, the league’s own streaming service, though you can’t cast the games to your TV - you must watch on your phone or tablet.

∎ TV streaming: You can also stream games if you have subscriptions to Spectrum, DirecTV, fuboTV, Sling, Vidgo, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, and Paramount+.

On the radio: How to listen to the Bills vs Texans game

You can listen on SiriusXM satellite radio on channel 381 (Bills feed) and channel 229 (Texans feed), and on traditional radio, the Bills Radio Network has stations all across the state. Chris Brown has the play-by-play, Eric Wood is the analyst, and Sal Capaccio is the sideline reporter. The network includes:

• Rochester (WCMF 96.5 and WROC 950 AM)

• Buffalo (WGR550, 550 AM)

• Syracuse (WTKW 99.5/WTKV 105.5)

• Binghamton (WDRE 100.5FM)

• Ithaca (WIII 99.9/100.3 FM)

• Bath (WVIN 98.3 FM)

• Newark (WACK 1420 AM)

• Dansville (WDNY 93.9 FM)

• Elmira (WNGZ 1490 AM)

• Auburn (WAUB 98.1 FM/1590 AM)

• Geneva (WGVA 95.9 FM, 1240 AM)

Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for four decades including 35 years as the full-time beat writer for the D&C, and he has written numerous books about the history of the team. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana. https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

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This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Who do the Bills play next? AFC showdown vs Texans info