{"id":418326,"date":"2026-01-19T00:26:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T00:26:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/418326\/"},"modified":"2026-01-19T00:26:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T00:26:11","slug":"patriots-return-to-afc-title-game-for-first-time-in-7-years-send-texans-into-offseason-of-questions-about-c-j-stroud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/418326\/","title":{"rendered":"Patriots return to AFC title game for first time in 7 years, send Texans into offseason of questions about C.J. Stroud"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Houston Texans had a championship-level defense. There should be little doubt about that.<\/p>\n

At one point not long ago, C.J. Stroud looked like a future Super Bowl-winning quarterback. His rookie season is one of the best ever. Houston has to wonder if that\u2019s ever coming back.<\/p>\n

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This season\u2019s Texans had a good shot to go to the first AFC championship game in their franchise\u2019s history, and maybe to Super Bowl LX as well. In a divisional round matchup at the New England Patriots, Houston\u2019s defense made plays. The Texans needed the offense, directed by Stroud, to be decent. It wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

The Patriots are moving on to the AFC championship game after a 28-16 victory in Foxborough. Their defense forced Stroud and Houston into numerous mistakes, with Stroud throwing four interceptions including a pick 6,<\/a> and while the offense wasn\u2019t great, it was good enough for the Patriots to win 28-16. Drake Maye had three touchdowns and continues to add to what has been a phenomenal second NFL season. Maye has become what the Texans thought they had in Stroud a couple years ago.<\/p>\n

[Get more Patriots news: New England team feed<\/a>]<\/p>\n

The Patriots will face a Broncos team that will have to start Jarrett Stidham<\/a>, who hasn\u2019t thrown a regular-season pass in two seasons, at quarterback. Bo Nix\u2019s ankle injury doesn\u2019t make the Patriots a lock to win the AFC next week, but their prospects are much better than they were going into the weekend.<\/p>\n

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That could have been the Texans.\u00a0 It seemed like a wasted opportunity for Houston, with arguably the best defense in the NFL. Quarterbacks too often get overly blamed for losses. It\u2019s hard to not put plenty of what happened Sunday at Stroud\u2019s feet. That\u2019s not ideal with the Texans having to make a decision on whether to make a long-term commitment to Stroud, which will cost them a small fortune.<\/p>\n

Patriots pounce on Texans’ turnover woes<\/p>\n

One way to negate the advantage of having a great defense is to have the offense give away the ball, and give away points too.<\/p>\n

The Texans had a mistake-filled first half. The costliest error came when Stroud was under pressure from outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson and threw blindly to the middle of the field as he was hit. The ball was popped up in the air, Patriots cornerback Marcus Jones picked it off and he returned it 26 yards for a touchdown. It\u2019s easier to score on the Texans when their defense isn\u2019t on the field.<\/p>\n

The Patriots also put together some offense. Drake Maye hit DeMario Douglas for a 28-yard touchdown a little more than five minutes into the game to get the scoring started. Later in the half, Stefon Diggs had a great touchdown catch in the end zone and New England led 21-10.<\/p>\n

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While the offense was having some success against the Texans, New England\u2019s defense was the one creating havoc. Stroud threw four interceptions in the first half. One, which went off Xavier Hutchinson\u2019s hands over the middle, wasn\u2019t the QB\u2019s fault. The rest were.<\/p>\n

It was a horrific half for Stroud and the Texans\u2019 offense. Stroud completed just 10-of-26 passes and had the four turnovers. In addition to the turnovers, Houston had a Woody Marks touchdown taken off the board due to an illegal shift penalty and had to settle for a field goal. The Texans didn\u2019t have wideout Nico Collins, who was out with a concussion, and they lost tight end Dalton Schultz early on to a calf injury.<\/a> Those two losses obviously hurt, but it didn\u2019t fully explain how bad Houston\u2019s offense was in the first half.<\/p>\n

Texans now must decide what to do with C.J. Stroud<\/p>\n

The Texans have lost in the divisional round in each of Stroud\u2019s three seasons. Before Stroud and head coach DeMeco Ryans arrived, the Texans were perhaps the worst organization in the NFL. Making the divisional round three seasons in a row after that isn\u2019t terrible. But it is getting frustrating.<\/p>\n

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Stroud has regressed, and there\u2019s a fair argument to be had whether that\u2019s on him or the Texans for not putting more talent around him. But the results haven\u2019t been great for two seasons.<\/p>\n

Stroud is eligible for a massive extension. The going rate for quarterbacks getting that extension starts somewhere near the $50 million per year range. The Texans probably will pay that. But it\u2019s also hard to feel confident about it anymore. That rookie season keeps sliding further in the past.<\/p>\n

The Texans had chances to win an ugly game that had eight combined turnovers in the first 40 minutes, which was the most in a playoff game since the end of the 2015 season. Ryans electing to kick a field goal on fourth-and-2 at New England\u2019s 7-yard line was a bad decision, but part of it had to be lack of confidence in Stroud making a play. Houston\u2019s defense kept the Texans in the game before New England\u2019s offense made its first huge play of the second half, early in the fourth quarter. Kayshon Boutte had a great one-handed catch in the end zone for a 28-16 lead.<\/p>\n

Given how the Texans\u2019 offense had played, it seemed like that touchdown would be enough to carry New England to a win.<\/p>\n

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The Patriots move on knowing they\u2019re one win against a backup quarterback from a Super Bowl. The Texans have to wonder what\u2019s next for them. This was perhaps their best shot to make the first Super Bowl in team history. Instead, they fell to 0-7 all time in the divisional round and have some uncomfortable questions about their quarterback and what has happened since his historic rookie season.<\/p>\n

Live coverage is over56 updatesSun, January 18, 2026 at 12:02 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:28 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Hey, nobody hits on all of their picks.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:26 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Texans – 241 yards total offense
C.J. Stroud: 20-of-47, 212 yards, 1 TD, 4 INT
Woody Marks: 14 rushes, 17 yards
Jayden Higgins: 6 catches, 59 yards<\/p>\n

Will Anderson: 3 sacks, 1 forced fumble<\/p>\n

5 team turnovers<\/p>\n

Patriots – 248 yards total offense
Drake Maye: 16-of-27, 179 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rhamondre Stevenson: 16 carries, 70 yards
Kayshon Boutte: 3 catches, 75 yards, 1 TD<\/p>\n

Carlton Banks III: 2 INT<\/p>\n

3 team turnovers<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:20 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Drake Maye kneels down twice to run out the clock and clinch a 28-16 divisional playoff win for the Patriots.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:19 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

The Texans got a first down on a 13-yard pass from CJ. Stroud to Woody Marks. But on fourth-and-4, a deep pass to Xavier Hutchinson is dropped and the Patriots take over with 1:03 left in the game.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:16 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

New England could not get a first down after the 2-minute warning with Drake Maye missing Austin Hooper on a third-and-10 pass.<\/p>\n

Following a 41-yard punt by Bryce Baringer and 8-yard return from Brendan Schooler, the Texans take over at their 28-yard line with 1:45 left in the game.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:14 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

New England goes to the 2-minute warning with a third-and-10 after Rhamondre Stevenson runs for no gain at the Patriots\u2019 39-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:10 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Houston calls its last timeout with 3:55 remaining in the fourth quarter. That came after Rhamondre Stevenson gave the Patriots a first down with a 2-yard run on second-and-1.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:08 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

The Texans needed to put a drive together and get some points with less than six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. But Khyiris Tonga sacked C.J. Stroud on third-and-10 for an 8-yard loss.<\/p>\n

Houston probably needed to go for it on fourth down, but at fourth-and-18 from its 21-yard line, coach DeMeco Ryans opts to punt and give New England the ball back with four minutes left in the game.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:04 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Following a 14-yard pass to Stefon Diggs, the Patriots can\u2019t get another first down. However, they ran 10 plays for 44 yards and took 5:58 off the clock.<\/p>\n

The Texans get the ball back at their 14-yard line after a 38-yard Bryce Baringer punt with 5:48 remaining in the game.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 3:00 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Backed up near their end zone, the Patriots have grinded out some runs to get some distance from the goal line while also burning time off the clock.<\/p>\n

Rhamondre Stevenson carried the ball four consecutive times, gaining 25 yards. TreVeyon Henderson followed with a 6-yard run that advanced the ball out to the New England 35-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:56 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Following two incompletions by C.J. Stroud, Tommy Townsend booms a 69-yard punt that Ja\u2019Marcus Ingram downs at the New England 4-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:53 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Texans fans will surely complain that Christian Gonzalez was not called for pass interference while colliding with Jayden Higgins on a deep pass.<\/p>\n

Maybe that was incidental contact. But ESPN replays showed that Charles Woods also should have been called for a penalty on the other side of the field for pulling on Christian Kirk\u2019s shirt. No flag was thrown, however.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:44 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

The Patriots add to their lead with an outstanding one-handed catch by Kayshon Boutte for a 32-yard touchdown.<\/p>\n

The play is being reviewed, but it appeared that Boutte had control of the ball as he fell to the turf.<\/p>\n

Prior to the touchdown, New England got a big gain with a pass interference call on Derek Stingley Jr. resulting in 17 yards. That penalty came while covering Boutte, as well.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:39 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

The third quarter ends with Houston\u2019s Danielle Hunter sacking Drake Maye. The Patriots will start the fourth with a 2nd-and-10 from their 43-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:34 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Despite snowy conditions in Foxborough, Texans kicker Ka\u2019imi Fairbairn kicks a 51-yard field goal to cut the Patriots\u2019 lead to 21-16 with 1:32 left in the third quarter.<\/p>\n

The Texans\u2019 drive stalled at the Patriots\u2019 38-yard line with Anfernee Jennings sacking C.J. Stroud for a 3-yard loss on second-and-10.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:30 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:29 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

Carlton Davis III has two interceptions, but was flagged for the second time in this game for pass interference on a third-and-7 throw to Jayden Higgins.<\/p>\n

The 21-yard penalty give Houston the ball at the New England 35-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:24 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

The Patriots couldn\u2019t get a first down after recovering Woody Marks\u2019 fumble. Bryce Baringer punts 44 yards from his own 15-yard line and the Texans take over at their 41-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:20 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

The Texans drove into the red zone on four plays following Drake Maye\u2019s fumble on a strip-sack by Will Anderson.<\/p>\n

But on second-and-8 from the New England 17, Christian Gonzalez forces a fumble from Woody Marks and Craig Woodson recovers.<\/p>\n

The Patriots take over at their 12-yard line.<\/p>\n

\"IanSun, January 18, 2026 at 2:15 PM PST<\/p>\n

Ian Casselberry<\/p>\n

C.J. Stroud will be criticized for his four interceptions, but Drake Maye has fumbled four times. This one was recovered by the Texans\u2019 Azeez Al-Shaair after Will Anderson sacked Maye.<\/p>\n

Houston takes over at the New England 33-yard line after the turnover.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Houston Texans had a championship-level defense. There should be little doubt about that. At one point not…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":418327,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[436],"tags":[175597,57332,2216,49,48,118228,34548,19258,2221,174962,175598,52303,56082,19260,1718,514,61155,40344,82,13956,11285,18081,57022],"class_list":["post-418326","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-afc-championship-game","tag-bo","tag-c-j-stroud","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-dalton-schultz","tag-demario-douglas","tag-demeco-ryans","tag-drake-maye","tag-jarrett-stidham","tag-k39lavon-chaisson","tag-kayshon-boutte","tag-marcus-jones","tag-new-england","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-nfl","tag-nico-collins","tag-rookie-season","tag-sports","tag-stefon-diggs","tag-texans","tag-woody-marks","tag-xavier-hutchinson"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=418326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418326\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/418327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=418326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=418326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=418326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}