FOXBORO, Mass. — The Patriots will look to keep their Super Bowl aspirations alive on Sunday when the Houston Texans come to town.
The winner will punch their ticket to the AFC Championship game against either the Bills or the Broncos the following weekend.
The Patriots and Texans have history. It’s a short history, as the Texans didn’t come to be until the 2002 season. Over the course of 24 years, the two have faced off 15 times – 13 times in the regular season and twice in the playoffs. The Patriots have won 9 regular season encounters, and both playoff games.
When the Texans took the field in 2002 for their first ever game as a franchise, the Patriots were the reigning Super Bowl champions.
Their first matchup came the following year, in week 11 during the 2003 season. The Texans fell victim to a dominant Patriots team, who were 8-2 and in the midst of a 6-game winning streak. That streak eventually ended at a whopping 21 consecutive victories.
The second-year Texans managed to exchange blows with the eventual Super Bowl champion Patriots. But a Tom Brady touchdown with 4 seconds left sent the game to overtime. Adam Vinatieri sent everyone home with a game winning kick with 41 ticks left on the overtime clock.
Their next meeting didn’t come until 2006. The Patriots won, blasting Houston 40-7. Texans quarterback David Carr, who was Houston’s first ever draft pick ahead of their inaugural 2002 season, threw 4 interceptions. That season would be his last in Houston, finishing his five-year tenure with a 22-53 record.
The Patriots and Texans third encounter was the 2009 regular season finale. By this point, the Patriots had cemented themselves as the team of the 2000s – winning three Super Bowls, appearing in four, and finishing with a perfect regular season record in 2007. But it was Houston who came away with the win – their first against New England. Texans running back Arian Foster ended the day with 145 yards of total offense and 2 touchdowns. Foster would end his career as the Texans all-time rushing leader.
The two teams matched up twice during the 2012 season – once in the regular season and then again in the playoffs. Ahead of their week 14 matchup on Monday Night Football, several Texan players arrived at Gillette Stadium wearing matching letterman jackets. The Patriots decimated Houston, 42-14. Brady threw for 296 yards and 4 touchdowns.
They met five weeks later in the Divisional round of the playoffs. The Patriots once again dominated, winning 41-28. This time, Brady threw for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns. The combined score from the two 2012 meetings was 83 to 42.
The following season, New England just barely beat Houston in their week 13 matchup during the 2013 season. Rob Gronkowski tallied 127 yards and a touchdown. Julian Edelman reeled in nine passes for 101 yards. The final was 34-31.
By the time of their next head-to-head meeting in 2015, the Texans had a new coach. Old friend Bill O’Brien took the job the season prior after previously serving as a key offensive coach on the Patriots staff from 2007 through 2011. In the week 14 meeting, the Patriots bashed the Texans 27-6 on Sunday Night Football. Former Patriots backup quarterback Brian Hoyer started for Houston. He was sacked 5 times, fumbled twice, and completed 50% of his passes.
In 2016, the two teams faced off twice. The Patriots shut out Houston in week 3 on Thursday Night Football, 27-0. Rookie quarterback Jacoby Brissett filled in for Tom Brady, who was serving a four-game suspension for his role in the Deflategate scandal.
Four months later, the Patriots toppled the Texans in the Divisional round of the playoffs, 34-16. New England was now 2-0 against the Texans in postseason play. They would go on to win Super Bowl LI.
The Patriots beat the Texans in their week 3 matchup in the 2017 season. Tom Brady hit Brandin Cooks in the endzone for a 25-yard touchdown with 23 seconds left on the clock. Cooks got both feet down just in time, then bounced out of bounds.
The following season, the Patriots beat the Texans for an 8th time in a row. This time it was the season opener for the 2018 season.
In 2019, the Patriots suffered their first loss to Houston since the 2009 season. It came in week 13 on Sunday Night Football. It would be the last game against the Texans with Tom Brady calling signals for the Patriots.
In 2020, with Cam Newton at quarterback, the Patriots fell to the Texans in week 11. It was the first and only time the Texans beat the Patriots in back-to-back seasons.
The Patriots beat the Texans in a thriller in 2021. With 15 seconds on the clock, Nick Folk nailed a 21-yard field goal to win it for New England.
The most recent encounter came in week 6 of the 2024 season. It was a 41-21 Texan thumping of the Patriots. Rookie quarterback Drake Maye threw for 243 yards with 3 touchdowns, but he was picked off twice, and lost a fumble.
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