Vikings vs. Texans 2012: Game preview, kickoff time, TV schedule and more

The Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans face off on Sunday afternoon in Houston, and the Vikings need a win to stay ahead of the pack in the NFC playoff race. If the season were to end today, the Vikings would scrape into the playoffs as the sixth seed, winning a tiebreaker over the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants. The Texans still have something to play for as well, as a win would clinch them a first-round bye in the AFC.

The key matchup in the game is Adrian Peterson against the Texans defense. Peterson is leading the NFL in rushing with 1,812 yards and 11 touchdowns, and the Texans' defense is fifth in the NFL in rush defense. The Texans have a great running back themselves in Arian Foster, who is fourth in the NFL with 1,313 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns. Whichever team can contain the other's running game best will probably end up winning the game.

Kickoff from Reliant Stadium in Houston is scheduled for noon CT, and the game can be seen on FOX.