"This is absolutely unbelievable!" The New England Patriots stand just one victory away from an astonishing Super Bowl appearance after their 28-16 triumph over the Houston Texans in Monday’s divisional round clash.
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This recent win saw the Texans’ quarterback C.J. Stroud struggle significantly, throwing four interceptions in the first half alone. Now, the Patriots are gearing up to travel to Denver next week, where they will face the Broncos in the AFC Championship game.
Second Round Playoffs
Even though they will be playing away against the top seed in the AFC, New England is favored to win, especially since the Broncos will be without their star quarterback Bo Nix. Denver’s head coach Sean Payton confirmed after their Sunday overtime victory against Buffalo that Nix has fractured an ankle bone and will need surgery, sidelining him for the remainder of the season.
In his absence, the Broncos will have to rely on backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who was drafted by the Patriots in the fourth round of the 2019 draft. He spent three seasons in New England as a backup to Tom Brady and Cam Newton before being traded to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Monday's game mirrored the struggles of Stroud, who was selected second overall by the Texans in 2023, as he found it difficult to regain the composure and confidence that characterized his impressive rookie season. Instead, Stroud seemed overwhelmed under pressure and even when provided with better protection, he often released the ball too quickly or misfired his throws.
The outcome was four interceptions—tying the record for the most picks thrown in a single playoff game by a Texans quarterback. This also made Stroud just the fourth quarterback in this century to throw that many interceptions in a playoff first half.
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It was a disastrous performance that surely tempted Texans coach DeMeco Ryans to consider benching Stroud in favor of veteran Davis Mills, who had an impressive record of 3-0 this season, with five touchdowns and only one interception during the games Stroud missed.
However, Stroud was not the only quarterback facing challenges. New England’s second-year quarterback Drake Maye, a strong contender for the MVP title, also had trouble maintaining control of the ball, fumbling it four times—the highest number by a Patriots player in a playoff game. Luckily for Maye, only two of those fumbles were lost, contributing to what was a turnover-heavy game for both teams. Maye did throw an interception too, but that occurred on a Hail Mary attempt just before halftime.
The shaky moments for Maye against Houston’s defense were somewhat expected, as they had previously sacked Aaron Rodgers four times and pressured him twelve additional times in their last matchup. In contrast, New England’s defense isn’t typically known for dominance; however, its interior pass rush has proven to be particularly effective—a disadvantage for Houston, given their struggles with interior pass protection.
The Patriots took an early lead in the first quarter when Maye connected with DeMario Douglas for a long touchdown pass on a critical 4th-and-1 play, taking advantage of the Texans’ all-out blitz. Houston responded with their biggest play of the game on the following drive, with Stroud finding a wide-open Dalton Schultz, who ran for 42 yards, leading to a successful field goal.
Unfortunately for the Texans, Schultz, who was already filling in for the injured Nico Collins, had to leave the game due to a calf injury. Nevertheless, Houston managed to take a brief lead when a fumble by Maye allowed Christian Kirk to score the go-ahead touchdown, showcasing his best performance of the season against Pittsburgh just a week earlier.
However, the Patriots' defense retaliated with a significant play of their own, as Marcus Jones returned an interception for a touchdown, followed by Maye connecting with former Texan Stefon Diggs in the end zone to elevate New England's lead to 21-10.
Despite Stroud’s tumultuous first half, the Texans fought back, narrowing the gap with two field goals in the third quarter. Yet, a spectacular diving catch by Kayshon Boutte against standout Houston corner Derek Stingley extended the Patriots’ lead once again to 28-16.
With Stroud’s continued struggles, the Texans faced little hope of turning the game around. In a decision that highlighted Ryans’ lack of confidence in his quarterback, Houston opted to punt with just over four minutes remaining, facing a 4th-and-18 situation. Given Stroud’s performance, the odds of a successful play were slim.
Trailing by twelve points with only one timeout left, Ryans was essentially conceding defeat. Perhaps he believed his defense had a better chance to make a stop than relying on Stroud, which speaks volumes about how poorly Stroud had played.
Later in Monday’s divisional match-up, the Chicago Bears are set to host the Los Angeles Rams.
