New England Patriots Advance to AFC Championship Game

On Saturday night, the New England Patriots were able to defeat the Houston Texans to advance to the AFC Championship Game.

The New England Patriots were able to handle their business against the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional Round. Early on, the Patriots appeared like they were going to walk all over the Texans.

A Dion Lewis kick return for a touchdown really sparked the team, but the Texans did not give up. Surprisingly, the Patriots really struggled to protect the ball in the first half of the game. Starting with a Tom Brady interception, the Patriots’ offense actually put the defense in some really tough spots in this game.

In addition to Brady’s interception in the first half, Lewis followed it up with a fumble on the kick return after he scored a touchdown. Luckily, the Texans’ offense wasn’t able to score touchdowns on both of the turnovers. However, it did give them a spark.

Despite the first-half mistakes, the Patriots were able to enter halftime with a 17-13 lead. However, Brady threw his second interception of the game in the second half, which made things interesting once again. After throwing just two interceptions in the entire regular season, Brady was intercepted twice on Saturday by the Texans.

Luckily for the Patriots, Brock Osweiler did not play well as expected. He threw three interceptions in the game to even the turnover differential in the second half. With the turnover battle being even, it was no surprise to see the Patriots win by a score of 34-16.

Even though they won, the Patriots will have to be better next week. We will have to wait and see until Sunday night who they are playing, but both the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers are better than the Texans.

Next: 5 Reasons Why Pats Will Win Super Bowl 51

In the AFC Championship Game, expect to see a very focused team. The mistakes didn’t hurt them on Saturday night, but they can in the future.