Patriots vs. Texans: Full Report Card Grades for New England
It was a historic night on many levels for the New England Patriots, but the most historic mark of all is that they are heading to their sixth straight AFC Championship Game and have now made 11 conference championship games in the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era.
Getting to the AFC title game was not a pretty sight, as the Patriots flirted with disaster by playing a sloppy game against the major underdogs, the Houston Texans.
Luckily, Brock Osweiler did what he does best, making crucial mistakes that set the Patriots apart and allowed them to cover the historic pregame spread of 16.5 points, per OddsShark.
The Patriots are now 15-0 when Dion Lewis plays, and they will look to add two more wins to that tally this year.
The Texans defense was a formidable opponent that tested the Patriots, but in the end, New England was too much to handle, as it won 34-16 in a game that it played poorly in.
Alas, the Patriots are moving on, and they will look to avoid a repeat of careless football.
Read on for the full grades from the Patriots' AFC Divisional Round win over the Texans.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Tom Brady was uncharacteristically not Tom Brady against the Texans. Let's give some credit to Jadeveon Clowney, Whitney Mercilus and the Texans pass rush, but Brady was just a little off all night.
This one stat will sum up the night for him: Coming into this game, Brady had thrown two interceptions the entire season. Against the Texans, he threw two interceptions.
It was mind-boggling. Brady simply doesn't throw interceptions.
The first pick probably should have been a completion to Michael Floyd, but the throw was just a little too far in front of the receiver, causing the drop and deflection.
On the second interception, Brady didn't see Bernardrick McKinney, who deflected the pass for an easy INT.
Brady was telegraphing some passes and was rattled all night.
That being said, he did have some shining moments with a few deep balls that were on the money and a splendid touch pass on a wheel route to James White that went for a touchdown.
Grade: B-
Running Back
2 of 10
As mentioned, the Patriots are undefeated when Dion Lewis plays. And when Lewis plays how he did against the Texans, the Patriots will continue to beat teams.
Lewis didn't do anything exceptional on the ground, but he was hit in the backfield numerous times and always found a way to turn negative rushes into short gains. That went a long way for the offense as it set up shorter late-down situations against a tough defense.
Lewis' top moment came when he caught the first touchdown of the game off a swing pass and burst into the end zone untouched. Lewis also stretched into the end zone for a touchdown run that capped off the game.
He was as close to flawless as possible, as Lewis became the third player to have a rushing touchdown, receiving touchdown and kick return touchdown in the same game (the Kansas City Chiefs' Tyreek Hill also did it this season).
Meanwhile, James White had a great wheel-route touchdown, and LeGarrette Blount had a quiet night but was still effective on a pair of runs.
Grade: A
Wide Receiver
3 of 10
It was the Julian Edelman and Chris Hogan show against the Texans.
Both receivers played great games and were the main contributors to the offense outside of Dion Lewis.
Edelman had eight catches for 137 yards, including a 48-yard jump ball that he timed perfectly. Hogan had four catches of his own for 95 yards, including a 46-yard bomb down the middle of the field. Hogan also drew a huge 30-yard penalty on A.J. Bouye at the start of the game to keep a drive alive. Hogan did injure his thigh, though, which is something to keep an eye on this week.
Edelman and Hogan were electric and accounted for nearly all of the passing yards to wide receivers, as Malcolm Mitchell was out with a knee injury. In Mitchell's place, Michael Floyd saw some action, but he struggled. He was the intended receiver on Brady's first pick that bounced off his fingertips, and he also was later nabbed for offensive pass interference.
Grade: A-
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Tight End
4 of 10
It was a quiet day for Martellus Bennett, as the focal points of the offense were Lewis, Edelman and Hogan.
Bennett had one bobble on the sideline that he caught, but he couldn't corral it in time to make the catch in bounds.
Bennett also had a scary moment where he appeared to hyperextend his knee. But he came back into the game after just one play and seemed to be OK.
Keeping Bennett healthy was more important than anything, as he adds another dimension to the versatile offense.
A lack of volume of work is no reason to knock down Bennett's grade.
Grade: B
Offensive Line
5 of 10
Hits like the one above should not happen in the postseason. They also shouldn't happen if the Patriots are trying to keep Tom Brady healthy at 39 years old.
David Andrews struggled all night with Whitney Mercilus and Jadeveon Clowney, who are some of the fastest pass-rushers in the NFL. While they are great players, the Patriots needed to do more up front to protect Brady.
Andrews was put on a swivel multiple times by Clowney and Co. The Texans pass rush is fantastic, but this is a team that was still without J.J. Watt.
Joe Thuney was obliterated by Clowney when he attempted to move up to the next level to set a screen block. The offensive line cannot do that with a freakish athlete like Clowney getting to Brady within two seconds of the snap. He's just too fast.
Brady was pressured all night and smacked around a bit too much.
Grade: D
Defensive Line
6 of 10
The Patriots received an early gift on the defensive line, as Rob Ninkovich got to Brock Osweiler early in the game, thanks to some stellar coverage. The pass rush died out a little bit for the remainder of the game, but Osweiler was already rattled.
Malcom Brown contributed a sack when the team needed one later in the game.
The containment of Lamar Miller was good as a whole. Miller's biggest gain was 17 yards, but he only averaged 3.8 yards per carry on the night. Credit goes to Alan Branch, Brown, Vincent Valentine and the whole crew in the trenches.
Trey Flowers continued his hot streak with a QB hit and seven total tackles.
Valentine had one terrible hands-to-the-face penalty.
Grade: A-
Linebacker
7 of 10
When Kyle Van Noy is on, it's a joy to watch. Van Noy finished the game with a QB hit and one great pass deflection on an inside blitz where he smacked Osweiler's arm. Van Noy also did a great job of swarming the football to help with tackles and finish plays.
Dont'a Hightower led the way with eight total tackles, including five solo stops. He was seemingly all over the field and captained a great defensive performance.
Shea McClellin got to Osweiler once on the outside.
Grade: A
Secondary
8 of 10
Rutgers! Rutgers! Rutgers!
Rutgers doesn't exactly make you think football, but in New England, it sure does. The Rutgers trio in the secondary, Logan Ryan, Devin McCourty and Duron Harmon, each had an interception. Ryan's interception was timely, as it set up an easy touchdown in the second half. He did a great job of taking a chance and jumping the route by reading the eyes of Osweiler, who was telegraphing the pass.
McCourty stepped in front of a route and got both feet down on the sidelines in bounds. And Harmon was just playing center field late in the game, his interception being the icing on the cake.
Ryan was the game's MVP, as he had the interception and also contributed a big sack on a delayed blitz at the start of the game, seven tackles and three passes defensed. He was flawless and made big plays at the right times while also shutting down DeAndre Hopkins.
The only negatives in the secondary were a dumb extracurricular penalty on Eric Rowe, who pulled a player from a scrum, which is an easy flag for referees to call. The secondary was also beat by Will Fuller when the Texans still had a glimmer of hope, but luckily for the Patriots, Fuller drops perfectly thrown footballs.
Grade: A+
Special Teams
9 of 10
We already know about Dion Lewis' offensive impact on the game, but he made the special teams play of the game, too.
Lewis took a kickoff 98 yards to the house by cutting and turning on the jets. It was a remarkable return for a player who was feeling it almost the whole night.
Unfortunately, Lewis followed up that touchdown with a fumble on the next return he took. Lewis tried to stay up and force a few more inches out of the run, but it ended up being a major mistake. The ball was punched free, and the Texans recovered. Osweiler then found a wide-open C.J. Fiedorowicz for a touchdown, and we had ourselves a one-point game. Lewis' fumble was the 10th special teams fumble by the Patriots this season.
Shortly thereafter, Ryan Allen pinned the Texans deep in their own territory, as Matthew Slater downed the punt inside the 5-yard line.
Stephen Gostkowski struggled in warm-ups, but he did have a perfect kicking game.
Grade: A-
Coaching
10 of 10
The first half wasn't great. The Patriots were clinging to a 17-13 lead, and panic was beginning to set in for Patriots fans (well, at least some of them).
Bill Belichick and his staff made the proper adjustments and got James White involved offensively. They also dialed up plays to Edelman and Hogan and continued to build on Lewis' success.
The defense sat back and capitalized on Osweiler's errant throws.
The delayed blitzes worked wonders, and the dialed-up blitzes killed Osweiler's day.
The Patriots are a second-half team, and it showed again against the Texans. The coaches had another good day on that front.
Grade: B+
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