Both the Patriots and the Texans entered Sunday’s game in Houston with identical 1-3 records that indicated similar early-season statuses in the NFL. And that played out as Bill Belichick’s team found itself in a dogfight on the road, rookie Texans QB Davis Mills leading the home squad to a 22-9 lead before fellow rookie Mac Jones led the Patriots to the 25-22 comeback win.
Before turning the page to next week’s return to Gillette Stadium to face the star-studded Cowboys, here's a look at the Patriots personnel highs and lows from Sunday’s key win in Houston to pull to 2-3 on the young season:
Thumbs up
Mac Jones – Given that 80 percent of his offensive line was out of action and he had no real running game to speak of, the Patriots rookie QB put forth another pretty impressive performance on the road in Houston. Jones led the visitors on a 10-play scoring drive on his first possession. He was far from perfect, including another interception and a few other throws that were certainly ill-advised, but Jones was good enough to pull off the comeback win on a day when New England left a lot to be desired in a lot of areas. Jones finished the comeback win completing 23 of 30 passes for 231 yards with one touchdown and one interception for a 95.3 passer rating.
Hunter Henry – One of the prizes of the offseason free agency spending spree, Henry is starting to pay off in recent weeks. After notching his first Patriots touchdown against the Bucs, Henry scored again with a 13-yard reception from Jones in the fourth quarter to pull the visitors to the 22-22 tie. Henry has been a more frequent target of late, with at least four catches in each of the last three games. Henry finished the comeback win in Houston with 6 catches for 75 yards and the touchdown.
Matt Judon – As has been the cast most of his first season in New England, Judon was arguably New England’s best defensive player in Houston. Judon had a pair of sacks in a three-play span late in the second quarter in the red zone to force the Texans to settle for a short field goal. Judon finished with 4 tackles the two sacks and three QB hits. Through five games Judon’s 6.5 sacks not only lead the Patriots but are already more than any Patriots defender a year ago, when Chase Winovich led the team with 5.5 sacks on the season.
Offensive line – Though it’s always dangerous to assess line play without reviewing the film, New England’s front filled with backups did not fall apart in Houston. Jones dealt with some pressure. The backs didn’t find a ton of room to work. But it wasn’t a disaeaster and it was good enough for the comeback win. That’s really all that matters when a line is without four of its five starters on the road.
Thumbs down
Offensive line health – Eighty percent of the Patriots starting offensive line was inactive in Houston with Isiah Wynn and Mike Onwenu on the COVID list, Shaq Mason (abdominal) missing practice all week and Trent Brown placed on IR with the calf injury that’s sidelined him since the first quarter of the season opener. That left practice squad call-ups and unproven backups to surround center David Andrews against the Texans.
Damien Harris – After fumbling the game away in Week 1 against Miami, New England’s lead back clearly has defenders smelling turnover blood each week. The Texans forced another Harris turnover when cornerback Terrance Mitchell punched the ball out of Harris’ hands just prior to crossing the goal line in the second quarter. Originally called a touchdown, it was changed to a turnover upon review. Harris also dealt with a number of health issues in the game, going to the locker room with a chest injury at one point and then being helped again later in the comeback.
J.C. Jackson – Less than a week after Stephon Gilmore’s trade out of town, Jackson struggled as New England’s No. 1 cornerback. Jackson had an early pass interference covering Texans top target Brandin Cooks. The ball-hawking corner was then out jumped for a 67-yard touchdown. He was also beaten for a fourth-down slant by Cooks in the second quarter and then flagged for holding on the goal line. It was a tough all-around day for Jackson, now firmly established as New England’s No. 1 corner as he heads toward free agency after the season.
Third/fourth-down defense – Houston controlled the ball and the score early on thanks to its ablity to convert on third downs and fourth downs. The Texans kept the conversion chances manageable and the Patriots couldn’t manage to make enough plays to end drives. Houston had scoring drives of 15 and 18 plays in the first half, including multiple fourth-down conversations on simple slant patterns on the outside. Houston’s 30th ranked offense wasn’t forced to punt until almost midway through the third quarter.