FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Mike Vrabel returned to New England on a mission to have the franchise playing again in meaningful games in January — as he did so often as a player.
In his first year as the Patriots’ head coach, he wanted to do it by building a culture of players who wanted to perform for one another. Their most complete team effort of the season has the Patriots one win from a trip to the Super Bowl.
Drake Maye threw three touchdown passes in the snow and rain, Marcus Jones returned one of C.J. Stroud‘s four interceptions for a score, and the Patriots defeated the Houston Texans 28-16 on Sunday to advance to the AFC Championship Game for the first time in seven years.
The Patriots (16-3) will take on the Bo Nix-less Broncos (15-3) in Denver next Sunday, with the winner advancing to the NFL’s title game in three weeks. New England opened as 4.5-point favorite, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
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“Everybody’s stepping up. We’re using everybody. Everybody’s making plays. Everybody’s helping us win,” said Vrabel, who won three Super Bowls as a playmaking linebacker for the Patriots. “I’m excited for these guys, but also, they’re not satisfied, and I can tell that.”
The Patriots — winners of 15 of their past 16 games — will make their 16th conference championship game appearance and first since their run to their sixth Super Bowl title under coach Bill Belichick in the 2018 season. New England has won its past nine divisional round games.
Maye finished 16-of-27 for 179 yards but had an interception and fumbled four times, losing two in cold conditions in which snow and rain fell throughout. One of Maye’s fumbles set up Houston’s first touchdown.
“Just proud of the guys,” Maye said. “Battled the elements. This is New England. This is what we’re trying to embrace and we want to embrace all season long. Props to our defense, played a hell of a game. We’ve got to protect the football better, but we made enough plays to win it.”
Carlton Davis III had two interceptions for New England. Craig Woodson added an interception and fumble recovery.
“They bring it every week,” Maye said of his defense. “It’s fun to watch. And we could help them out some more, but just proud of the guys. Enjoy this one, and we’re back on the road.”
The eight combined turnovers — Woody Marks also lost a fumble for Houston — were the most in a playoff game since 2015, when the Cardinals and Panthers combined for eight in the NFC Championship Game.
The Texans (13-6) have lost in the divisional round in three straight seasons under coach DeMeco Ryans. The franchise fell to 0-7 in this round.
“It’s tough to win a game when you turn the ball over five times,” Ryans said.
Stroud finished 20-of-47 with a TD pass. All of his interceptions came in the first half as he became the first player with five or more INTs and five or more fumbles in a single postseason. Will Anderson forced two fumbles for the Texans.
“I feel like I let people down,” Stroud said. “I’m not happy with that. It hurts. I’m not used to it.”
Leading 21-16 in the fourth quarter, the Patriots stretched their lead to 27-16 when Kayshon Boutte got behind Derek Stingley Jr. and pulled in a diving, one-handed catch in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown.
The Texans had the ball with 5:48 to play but punted on fourth-and-18 at their own 21 with 4:18 remaining.
New England’s next drive took the clock under two minutes. But the Texans turned it over on downs when Stroud’s fourth-down pass to Xavier Hutchinson was batted down by Robert Spillane.
The Patriots now go back on the road, where they are 8-0 this season.
“We feel like we deserve to be here,” Maye said. “I like our chances with those guys in the locker room.”
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
