When and Where to Watch Houston Texans vs. Pittsburgh Steelers NFL Wild Card Game Online Without Cable for Free

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The NFL Playoffs continue with the last Wild Card game of 2026 between up-and-coming star quarterback C. J. Stroud of the Texans and the veteran Aaron Rodgers of the Steelers. The winner of the game move onto AFC Division Series to play the New England Patriots on the road to Super Bowl LX.

In the AFC Wild Card, the game has the Houston Texans (12-5) taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Monday, Jan. 12, starting at 5:15 p.m. PT/8:15 p.m. ET. The game broadcasts on ABC and ESPN.

At a Glance: How to Watch AFC Wild Card Online

Keep reading below for more details on how to watch the game, plus how to buy last-minute tickets online.

How to Watch Houston Texans vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Without Cable

Since the Texans vs. Steelers airs on ABC and ESPN, the game is also available to livestream on internet-based cable services that carries the network. DirecTV, Fubo and Hulu + Live TV all offer free trials, which allows sports fans to watch the game for free.

In addition, the NFL on ABC and ESPN is available to livestream on ESPN Unlimited, which comes with a free trial.

Watch the Texans-Steelers game is streamable with DirecTV, which carries ABC and ESPN, along with more than 20 other channels — such as CBS, Fox, NBC, NFL Network, FOX Sports and others. The streamer has a free five-day trial available that allows you to watch the NFL game. Afterwards, you can either cancel the service or keep watching, with prices going for $69.99 per month for the “MySports” package.

ESPN Unlimited is live-streaming the Texans-Steelers NFL Wild Card game online. If you’re not a subscriber, you can sign up for ESPN Unlimited for $29.99 per month.

ESPN Unlimited includes all of the sports network’s channels, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ABC on ESPN, ESPNU, ESPNEWS and others, as well as original programming, such as The Pat McAfee Show, 30 For 30, McEnroe’s Places, Man in the Arena: Tom Brady, Southern Hoops: A History of SEC Basketball, Deion’s Double Play and others. Meanwhile, it comes with streaming access to live sports from NBA, UFC, Formula 1, NHL, MLB and other sports leagues.

Sling TV is one of the cheapest options for new live TV streaming subscribers who want to watch NFL Wild Card game on ABC and ESPN. The Sling Orange + Blue plan also includes Discovery Channel, Disney Channel, CNN, Fox News, TNT, TBS, Bravo, FreeForm, QVC, MSNBC and much more.

Please note: Pricing and channel availability depend on your location and TV market.

Fans can also watch NFL Playoffs game online through Fubo, which starts at $48.99 for the first month ($73.99 per month afterward), for more than 200 channels, including ABC and ESPN. You can even record over 1,000 hours of TV shows, movies, games and more. Right now, you can get up to $30 off your first month of service with Fubo’s current deals. If you want to watch the Texans-Steelers game live online for free, the online TV streaming service offers a seven-day trial for new subscribers.

A subscription to Hulu + Live TV is one of the best streaming services to watch the AFC Wild Card game on ABC and ESPN. The cable streamer carries over 90 live channels starting at $89.99 per month with ads and comes with Hulu’s entire streaming library, Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited. It includes unlimited cloud DVR, too. Hulu offers a three-day free trial to try before you buy a monthly subscription.

How to Watch Houston Texans vs. Pittsburgh Steelers With Cable

The Texans-Steelers wild card game airs on ABC and ESPN. You can watch by tuning in through your cable TV provider, on ESPN.com or the ESPN Sports mobile app with your cable TV account login — including streaming and traditional services such as DirecTV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, Verizon, Xfinity and others.

Where to Buy Houston Texans vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Tickets Online

Want to watch the game in person? Tickets are available for Texans-Steelers game at StubHub, Ticket Liquidator and Ticketmaster — prices depend on seat location. For more info, visit NFL.com.

One of the best deals on last-minute tickets right now is at TicketNetwork, which offers The Hollywood Reporter readers $150 off orders of $500 with promo code THR150 or $300 off orders that are $1,000 and up with code THR300.

Meanwhile, other deals on tickets can be found at Vivid Seats, where you can save $20 with code THR30; or at SeatGeek where you can use promo code HOLLYWOOD10 to save $10 on eligible purchases of $250 and up.