Introduction
The Patriots are in the AFC Championship Game. If you had told me at the beginning of the year that we would be here, I never would have believed it. Once you are in the playoffs, it doesn’t matter how it looks—all that matters is that you win and advance, and the Patriots have managed to do that two weeks in a row.
Pros
- The Patriots defense starts it off again. Turnovers were key in ensuring that the Texans never had a real chance to win this game. The weather contributed to some sloppy play in the first half, and the Patriots defense capitalized when Marcus Jones scored a defensive touchdown. Defensive touchdowns are back-breakers, especially in the playoffs. After Jones’ TD, the Texans never seemed like they were in a position to win for the rest of the game. Jones has been incredible the last few games and is worth the money they gave him.
- The rest of the secondary also made a big impact, as Carlton Davis chipped in with two interceptions and Craig Woodson added another one. There will be plenty of interception opportunities next week against Jarrett Stidham, so this bodes well for the Patriots’ chances.
- Drake Maye did not have his most productive game (only 179 yards passing), but when the Patriots needed a play, he stepped up and made some big throws. Maye connected with Stefon Diggs to keep the chains moving, and his throw to Kayshon Boutte in the snow will be played on NFL Films for years to come. There is something magical about football games played in the snow—well, maybe not for everyone, but it is definitely magical for Patriots fans.
- The right side of the offensive line dominated on the final offensive drive of the game to get the ball out of the Patriots’ end. Games played in bad weather are often decided by who wins the field position battle. It is difficult to go the length of the field, so smart teams drive the ball, punt, pin their opponent deep, get a defensive stop, and then get the ball back with favorable field position. This is referred to as complementary football. Watching Stevenson and Henderson run behind the right side of the line (Moses and Onwenu) was awesome. It completely flipped the Texans’ complementary football strategy and put the game out of reach. It’s also worth mentioning that Moses received a PFF grade above 90 for the game, which is exceptional.
Cons
- This is the second game the Patriots have won despite an unacceptable number of turnovers. Maye fumbled the ball four times, losing it twice, and also threw an interception. I can’t imagine we can get away with this three weeks in a row. The Patriots have to stop turning the ball over. I’ve tried to look this up but can’t find it anywhere—however, I’d be willing to bet a record has been set for most total turnovers by all teams in a postseason this year. Maybe this sloppiness is contagious and I shouldn’t be so critical, but it has been difficult to watch.
- Will Campbell still has to be dealing with an injury, because he was overwhelmed this week by Will Anderson. I understand the Patriots are facing a pass-rush gauntlet between the Chargers, Texans, and Broncos, but they need to figure something out to protect him because this is a major liability. I’d like to see more running back chips on his side, especially on obvious passing downs. I don’t like using the tight end to chip for him—every time they did that against Myles Garrett, it ended in a sack.