Are you looking for the player numbers from the Houston Texans and New England Patriots game? You are in the right place. In this article, we look at the passing, rushing, receiving and defense stats in simple words. We also explain why the Patriots won, and we look back at the game these two teams played in 2024.
The most recent match between these teams was an AFC Divisional Round playoff game on January 18, 2026. It was played at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The Patriots won 28 to 16. Let’s go through the numbers step by step.
Quick Facts About the Game
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Date | Sunday, January 18, 2026 |
| Game | AFC Divisional Round (NFL playoffs) |
| Place | Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts |
| Final score | Patriots 28, Texans 16 |
| Crowd | 64,628 fans |
| Weather | Snow and rain during the game |
| Records before the game | Patriots 16-3, Texans 13-6 (including playoffs) |
The Patriots were the home team and the favorite, with bookmakers listing them at -3.5 points. The weather made the game hard for both teams. Players dropped the ball, and there were eight turnovers in total.
How the Game Went
The Patriots scored first. On their second drive, quarterback Drake Maye threw a short pass to DeMario Douglas, and Douglas ran 28 yards into the end zone. Houston answered with a 25-yard field goal from Ka’imi Fairbairn.
The second quarter was the wildest part of the game. Maye fumbled the ball, and the Texans got it back. Six plays later, C.J. Stroud threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Christian Kirk. But the Patriots hit back fast. Stroud threw a pass that was picked off by Marcus Jones, who ran it back 26 yards for a touchdown. Then Maye found Stefon Diggs for a 7-yard score. At halftime, it was 21 to 10 for New England.
In the third quarter, Fairbairn kicked two more field goals, from 25 yards and from 51 yards. That cut the gap to 21 to 16. In the fourth quarter, Maye threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to Kayshon Boutte. Boutte made a one-handed catch in the corner of the end zone while Houston cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. was covering him. That score made it 28 to 16, and the Texans could not get back into the game.
Here is the score by quarter:
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston Texans | 3 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 16 |
| New England Patriots | 7 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 28 |
Passing Stats
The quarterbacks had very different days.
| Player | Team | Completions / Attempts | Yards | TD | INT | Sacked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drake Maye | Patriots | 16 / 27 | 179 | 3 | 1 | 5 times |
| C.J. Stroud | Texans | 20 / 47 | 212 | 1 | 4 | 3 times |
Drake Maye did not throw for a lot of yards, but he made big plays when they counted. All three of his touchdown passes were important. He found Douglas, Diggs and Boutte in the end zone. He also had a hard night in other ways. Houston’s pass rush hit him all game, and he fumbled four times. The Patriots lost two of those fumbles. His passer rating for the game was 100.7.
C.J. Stroud threw more passes and got more yards, but his day was tough. He threw four interceptions, and all four came in the first half. At halftime, he had completed 10 of 26 passes for 124 yards. One interception was returned for a touchdown, and that was a 14-point swing in the game’s second quarter. His passer rating was only 28.0. Late in the game, Houston tried a fourth-down pass to Xavier Hutchinson, but Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane batted it down.
One fact shows how rough the passing game was for Houston. The Texans averaged just 3.9 yards per pass attempt. The Patriots averaged 4.5.
Rushing Stats
| Player | Team | Carries | Yards | Longest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rhamondre Stevenson | Patriots | 16 | 70 | 20 |
| TreVeyon Henderson | Patriots | 12 | 25 | 6 |
| Drake Maye | Patriots | 4 | 10 | 8 |
| Woody Marks | Texans | 14 | 17 | 8 |
| Nick Chubb | Texans | 4 | 14 | 7 |
| C.J. Stroud | Texans | 2 | 11 | 10 |
| Cade Stover | Texans | 2 | 6 | 4 |
The Patriots clearly won the running game. As a team, New England ran 32 times for 105 yards. Houston ran 22 times for only 48 yards. At halftime, the Texans had 12 carries for just 8 yards.
Rhamondre Stevenson was the best runner on the field. He gained 70 yards, and he also caught four passes. Woody Marks had a hard day for Houston. He ran 14 times for 17 yards, and he also lost a fumble.
Receiving Stats
| Player | Team | Catches | Targets | Yards | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kayshon Boutte | Patriots | 3 | 5 | 75 | 1 |
| Stefon Diggs | Patriots | 4 | 6 | 40 | 1 |
| DeMario Douglas | Patriots | 2 | 2 | 36 | 1 |
| Austin Hooper | Patriots | 1 | 2 | 14 | 0 |
| Rhamondre Stevenson | Patriots | 4 | 4 | 11 | 0 |
| Jayden Higgins | Texans | 6 | 10 | 59 | 0 |
| Dalton Schultz | Texans | 2 | 2 | 47 | 0 |
| Xavier Hutchinson | Texans | 4 | 13 | 44 | 0 |
| Harrison Bryant | Texans | 3 | 6 | 21 | 0 |
| Christian Kirk | Texans | 2 | 6 | 20 | 1 |
Look at how the Patriots passing game worked. Maye threw only 27 passes, but three different receivers caught a touchdown. Boutte led all players with 75 receiving yards, and his 32-yard touchdown catch was the play people talked about the most after the game.
Houston spread the ball around more. Jayden Higgins had the most catches for the Texans with six. Dalton Schultz had only two catches, but one of them went for 42 yards, the longest catch of the day for Houston. Xavier Hutchinson was targeted 13 times but caught only four passes, which shows how hard it was for Stroud to find open receivers.
Defense and Turnovers
This game was won by defense and turnovers more than anything else.
Patriots defense:
- Carlton Davis III had two interceptions.
- Marcus Jones returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown.
- Craig Woodson had an interception and a fumble recovery.
- In total, New England picked off Stroud four times.
Texans defense:
- Will Anderson Jr. had two sacks and a forced fumble in the first half. He forced two fumbles in the full game.
- Danielle Hunter had a sack and a forced fumble in the first half.
- Houston sacked Maye five times for 36 yards.
The Texans defense played very well, and they did not let the Patriots build a big lead on offense. The Patriots had only 248 total yards. But Houston’s offense kept giving the ball away. The Texans turned the ball over five times, and the Patriots turned it over three times. After the game, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said it is hard to win when you turn the ball over five times.
Kicking Stats
Ka’imi Fairbairn was the only Texans player who had a steady day. He made three field goals from 25, 25 and 51 yards, and he also made his extra point. That gave him 10 of Houston’s 16 points. For the Patriots, kicker Andres Borregales made all four of his extra points.
Team Stats Side by Side
| Stat | Texans | Patriots |
|---|---|---|
| Total net yards | 241 | 248 |
| First downs | 16 | 13 |
| Rushing yards (attempts) | 48 (22) | 105 (32) |
| Passing yards | 193 | 143 |
| Turnovers | 5 | 3 |
| Sacks allowed | 3 | 5 |
| Penalties (yards) | 4 (32) | 3 (48) |
| Time of possession | 27:51 | 32:09 |
The two teams were close in total yards. Houston even had more first downs. The difference was turnovers. The Patriots scored 14 points that came directly from the Texans’ mistakes, including the pick-six, and they ran the ball better. That is why the final score did not look as close as the yards did.
Why the Patriots Won
If you want a short answer, here are the main reasons:
- They took the ball away. Four interceptions and a fumble recovery gave the Patriots many extra chances.
- They made big plays. Douglas, Diggs and Boutte each caught a touchdown from Maye, and Jones scored on defense.
- They ran the ball better. Stevenson and Henderson gained 95 yards together, while Houston’s runners struggled.
- They stayed calm in bad weather. Snow and rain made the field slippery, but New England kept making the key plays when it mattered.
For the Texans, the story is sad but simple. Their defense played well enough to win, but their offense gave the game away in the first half.
The Earlier Game: October 13, 2024
These two teams also met in a regular season game on October 13, 2024. Houston won that one 41 to 21, and it was the first start of Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye. It was also the first time the Texans had ever won at Gillette Stadium. They had lost all seven earlier games there, including playoff games.
| Player | Team | Stats |
|---|---|---|
| C.J. Stroud | Texans | 20 of 31, 192 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Drake Maye | Patriots | 20 of 33, 243 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT |
| Joe Mixon | Texans | 13 carries, 102 yards, 1 rushing TD, plus a receiving TD |
| Stefon Diggs | Texans | 6 catches, 77 yards, 1 TD |
| DeMario Douglas | Patriots | 6 catches, 92 yards, 1 TD |
Houston ran the ball very well in that game. The Texans gained 192 yards on the ground, and Dameon Pierce added a 54-yard touchdown run late in the game. Defensive end Will Anderson Jr. had three sacks. The Patriots also hurt themselves with nine penalties.
It is interesting to see how much changed in about 15 months. In 2024, Houston won easily and Maye was a rookie. In 2026, Maye was a leading MVP candidate and the Patriots were the team moving on. In both games, though, Maye threw three touchdown passes.
How to Read an NFL Box Score
If box scores look confusing, here are the main short forms you will see:
- Comp / Att: completed passes and total pass attempts.
- Yds: yards gained.
- TD: touchdowns.
- INT: interceptions, which means passes caught by the other team.
- Sk: sacks, which means the quarterback was tackled before he threw the ball.
- Fmb / FL: fumbles, and fumbles lost to the other team.
- Tgt / Rec: times a receiver was thrown to, and passes he caught.
- Rating: passer rating, a number that mixes several passing stats. A perfect score is 158.3.
Where to Find Player Stats
You can check full player stats on trusted sports websites. Pro Football Reference has detailed box scores for old and new games. ESPN, CBS Sports and theScore show player and team stats, and Covers has stats with betting information. The team websites for the Texans and Patriots also post official game stats.
Final Thoughts
The Texans vs Patriots game on January 18, 2026 was not a game of big yard totals. Both teams had around 240 yards. It was a game of mistakes and big moments. The Patriots made the key plays, Maye threw three touchdowns, and the defense took the ball away again and again. For Houston, the defense and the kicker did their jobs, but the offense could not stop giving the ball away.
If you want to follow the next Texans or Patriots game, check the box score after the final whistle. Looking at passing, rushing and turnover numbers together tells you the real story of a game much better than the final score alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won the last Texans vs Patriots game?
The Patriots won the most recent game. They beat the Texans 28 to 16 in the AFC Divisional Round on January 18, 2026, at Gillette Stadium.
Which player had the best stats in the Texans vs Patriots game?
Drake Maye had the best overall day for the Patriots. He threw for 179 yards and three touchdowns. Kayshon Boutte had the most receiving yards with 75 and scored the final touchdown. On the Texans side, Jayden Higgins led the team with six catches, and Ka’imi Fairbairn made three field goals. C.J. Stroud had the most passing yards at 212, but he threw four interceptions.
How many turnovers were in the Texans vs Patriots game?
There were eight turnovers in total. The Texans had five, including four interceptions by Stroud and one fumble lost. The Patriots had three, which were one interception and two lost fumbles by Maye.
