FOXBOROUGH, Ma – The New England Patriots are headed back to the AFC Championship game after surviving a turnover-filled contest against the Houston Texans, 28-16. Drake Maye had four fumbles, but New England recovered two of them, saving critical turnover points. On the other side, C.J. Stroud threw four interceptions, including a pick-six to Marcus Jones, as points off turnovers played a major role in the outcome.
Maye's 32-yard touchdown strike to Kayshon Boutte in the fourth quarter helped put the game away, but Houston's defense came as advertised, consistently harassing Maye while forcing six three-and-outs.
New England rode a strong defensive performance that similarly flummoxed Stroud. The Pats D forced two final punts to end the game, and the offense rode their running game to close out the victory.
Here's how the sloppy but highly competitive divisional game went down!
1. Patriots Open Scoring
Both teams went three-and-out on their first possessions, but the Patriots got the game's first score on their second possession. Rhamondre Stevenson delivered a key 20-yard run that took the Pats into Houston territory, but it looked like the drive might flame out after two-straight negative plays backed them up into a 3rd-and-14.
A quick pass to Stefon Diggs picked up 13 yards on third down, and Mike Vrabel didn't hesitate to go for it on 4th-and-1 from the Texans 41. Maye hit Pop Douglas on a slant that the Texans safety nearly broke up, but Douglas secured the catch and ran uncontested upfield into the end zone. It was a 28-yard TD that gave the Patriots a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
2. Pats Red Zone D Holds
The Texans immediately answered on the scoreboard with their next drive, with Dalton Schultz getting lost in the coverage and taking a dump-off pass from Stroud for 42 yards. However, the Patriots red zone defense continued their strong playoff performances, getting a third-down stop inside their own 10-yard line to force the Texans to settle for a field goal. After finishing the regular season near the bottom of the league in red zone defense, this was the third red zone stop in two playoff games for the Patriots D.
New England held a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter as Maye and the offense got the ball back for their third possession of the game. But the Patriots quarterback just avoided disaster on the next third down, as he was strip-sacked and the ball rolled toward New England's end zone. Lucky for the Patriots, Will Campbell recovered the loose ball, and the Pats punted it away for the second time in three possessions.
3. Houston Takes the Lead
Houston took back over on New England's side of the field at the 47-yard line, but the Patriots defense stepped up and forced the game's first turnover just as the Texans were starting to move the ball. It was an interception by Carlton Davis at the New England 17-yard line on a Stroud overthrow.
But New England would give it right back two plays later. It was a broken play for the Patriots as Maye turned for a handoff and Stevenson was going the other way. Maye tucked the ball and ran right up the middle, but Houston punched it out before he got to the ground. The Texans took over at the Patriots 27-yard line.
Houston would cash in on their second takeaway of the first half, needing six plays to pick up the 27 yards needed to the end zone. Stroud found Christian Kirk for a 10-yard score on 3rd-and-4 to give Houston their first lead of the game, 10-7.
4. Marcus Jones Pick Six
Maye and the offense turned in their third three-and-out in five possessions, punting it back to the Texans, but it would take just one more play for New England to put points on the board. On Houston's first play, Stroud was about to attempt a bootleg, but his receiver fell down. Stroud still put the ball up for grabs, and Marcus Jones came down with it, sprinting back the other way for a 26-yard pick-six touchdown.
Just like that, the Pats were back in front 14-10 as the two teams both had two giveaways each in the first half.
5. Stroud Picked Again
It wasn't long before Stroud threw his third interception of the game, when another high pass went through his receiver's hands and into the awaiting arms of rookie safety Craig Woodson. It was the third turnover in four possessions for the Texans, and the Patriots offense took over at the Houston 48-yard line, but they continued to struggle to move the ball against the vaunted Houston defense, punting for the fourth time in six possessions.
6. Boutte, Diggs Deliver a TD
The defense continued to make life tough for Stroud, forcing a three-and-out from deep in Houston's own territory. That's when Maye and the offense woke up, with Kayshon Boutte delivering a 25-yard catch and run, then an 18-yarder to set up New England inside the red zone. Stefon Diggs delivered the touchdown catch, a remarkable effort to secure the ball in traffic. It took just five plays to go 56 yards, as the Patriots extended their lead to 21-10.
7. Stroud's Fourth Interception
Things went from bad to worse for Stroud, even as Houston found some life through their air, moving the ball to New England's side of the field as the first half passed the two-minute warning. That's when Carlton Davis came through again, picking up his second interception of the game as he undercut one of Stroud's throws. It was Stroud's fourth interception of the game, but the Patriots offense couldn't make the Texans pay for this one. Instead, they went three-and-out for the fifth time in the half.
The score would remain 21-10 Pats at halftime. Both teams battled multiple turnovers, but the difference was that the Patriots recovered two of their own fumbles and returned one of Stroud's interceptions for a touchdown.
8. Texans Open Third with Three
The Texans quickly moved the ball down the field to open the third quarter, narrowly avoiding another fumble that was overturned on review. Once again, the Patriots red zone defense showed up, getting a stop at their own 7-yard line that forced the Texans to settle for a field goal. Marcus Jones made an outstanding third-down play, defending a speed out that might've cracked the end zone had it been completed.
The 25-yard field goal made it 21-13 Patriots, getting the Texans within eight points. The 11-play, 58-yard drive was Houston's best since their second possession of the game.
Houston would keep the momentum going, forcing a fourth Maye fumble on the very next third down they faced. For the second time, New England did not recover their own fumble. Instead of a three-and-out, the Texans took over inside Patriots territory.
But that's when Houston gave it right back with their fifth turnover of the day, a Woody Marks fumble, the first non-interception giveaway for Houston. Ball security was an issue for both teams all game long.
9. Texans Add Another Three
After the Patriots sixth three-and-out, the Texans strung together a second-straight field goal drive. Anfernee Jennings had a key sack that helped force the Texans into long third-down yardage. The third field goal of the day for Houston cut the lead to 21-16 Patriots. As the third quarter ended, Maye and the Patriots offense had just 155 total yards of net offense while clinging to a five-point lead.
10. Maye Hits Boutte For Six
After struggling to move the ball for the entirety of the third quarter, the Patriots offense found new life at the start of the fourth quarter. A pass Interference call drawn by Kayshon Boutte helped pick up 17 yards and a new set of downs on the first third down they faced. Then Boutte made the play of the day, hauling in a contested 32-yard throw from Maye in the end zone for the Patriots fourth touchdown of the game. It was an outstanding catch by Boutte, and it looked incredibly similar to Maye's first touchdown pass of his career that came against the very same Texans. This catch was tougher for Boutte, but he made the difficult catch and re-extended the Patriots lead to 28-16.
11. Pats Run to Win
The Patriots defense forced their first punt of the second half on the Texans next possession and, despite a 72-yard punt by Houston that left New England starting from their own 4-yard line, they started to find some life with their running game. Stefon Diggs helped keep the drive alive with a third-down conversion catch as New England continued to bleed the clock. The drive would stall out near midfield, but the Patriots got the clock down to under six minutes to go.
The defense would respond by forcing a three-and-out and again, the New England offense would do enough to keep the clock running.
Houston would get one final chance with 1:45 left, down by 12, but Stroud's final fourth-down pass fell incomplete, and the Patriots were kneeling on another playoff win.
12. Patriots are on to the AFC Championship
With the win, the Patriots will travel to Denver for the AFC Championship. It will be New England's 16th appearance in the conference championship game, tying them with the Pittsburgh Steelers for most in NFL history. The Patriots already own the most AFC titles in league history with 11.
Denver knocked off the Bills on Saturday night, but lost quarterback Bo Nix to an ankle injury on one of the final plays of the game. That means former Patriot Jarrett Stidham now stands between the Patriots and the Super Bowl, along with a potent Broncos defense that ranked 3rd in points, 8th in EPA and 7th in DVOA.
The Patriots are 0-4 all-time in the playoffs in Denver, with the 1986, 2005, 2013 and 2015 seasons all ending at the hands of the Broncos. But Mike Vrabel's team was undefeated on the road in 2025, a positive sign that this could be the Patriots squad that breaks the losing streak.
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