The New England Patriots are heading for their sixth straight AFC Championship Game after stomping the throat of the Houston Texans in the second half for a 34-16 victory.
Julian Edelman was able to carve up the Houston secondary for 137 yards on eight receptions while Dion Lewis did much of the same on special teams returning this kick for 98 yards and a touchdown.
HE IS GONE.
98 YARDS.
SO FAST.SEE YA, @DionLewisRB! #HOUvsNE #NFLPlayoffs https://t.co/wRwpJy3s1M
— NFL (@NFL) January 15, 2017
Other than that however the Patriots didn’t look all that great considering they were at home and playing against a Texans team that was still without JJ Watt.
Tom Brady looked very human going 18-for-39, 287 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Yeah… two interceptions which matched his regular season total.
The Patriots also didn’t do much on the ground. As a team they failed to eclipse the 100-yard mark as Dion Lewis led the way with a measly 41-yards.
Essentially the game was a lot closer than the final score indicated.
Both teams had three turnovers and quarterbacks who weren’t overly impressive. In fact, if it wasn’t for Brock Osweiler being Brock Osweiler we might have had a different outcome tonight.
Bottom line, New England was fortunate enough to get the Texans at home. If they plan on making another trip to the Super Bowl they’ll have to be better than this.