Pats Pulpit
Even though it was tightly contested for much of the night, the New England Patriots’ wild card playoff contest against the Los Angeles Chargers was won with relative ease. The offense kept making enough plays to overcome its miscues, while their defense was lights-out and never allowed L.A. a chance to get back into the game.
The result was a 16-3 victory and a chance to host another postseason game in the divisional round. There, a seemingly more daunting test awaits: the Houston Texans, who finished the regular season with a 12-5 record and — powered by an outstanding defense — left the Pittsburgh Steelers no chance in a 30-6 trouncing on Monday night.
How exactly do the two teams match up, though? Let’s go through some critical areas to find out who has the edge.
Patriots pass offense vs. Texans pass defense: Sunday will mark the 31st start of Drake Maye’s career, and it will be the toughest test he has faced so far. Houston’s defense is excellent across the board, and especially when it comes to putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks: spearheaded by All-Pros Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, the Texans’ pass rush has been devastating and will prove a challenge to a Patriots O-line that did not look its best against the Chargers. And yet, we still give Maye and company a slight edge in this one. Why? He has been excellent against zone coverage this year, the Texans have been middle of the pack in preventing big plays and defending mobile QBs, and Houston is not doing anything crazy scheme-wise — they primarily win on superior talent — which could allow Josh McDaniels to cook something up. If they can limit their self-inflicted mistakes, we can therefore see the Patriots finding success passing the ball. | Edge: Patriots
Patriots pass defense vs. Texans pass offense: Question marks are hanging over two of the best players on either side of this matchup: Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and Texans wide receiver Nico Collins are both in concussion protocol. Based on practice participation, Gonzalez appears to be further along and not an unrealistic candidate to be cleared by Sunday. Obviously, that would be good news for a New England pass defense that shined last Sunday. But even if he is not cleared in time and assuming Collins will be a no-go as well, the team should be able to find success against the Texans’ passing game. As long as Christian Kirk and Jayden Higgins in particular are held in check, the 17th-best passing offense in the NFL in EPA per play (0.083) could have a hard time against a Patriots D trending up. | Edge: Patriots
Patriots rushing offense vs. Texans run defense: New England’s ground game has made tremendous strides in recent weeks, but, much like its passing game, will go up against one of the top units in football. The Texans are ranked in the top-10 in multiple statistical categories...
