Marcus Jones is paid to shut down receivers but the 27-year-old cornerback is proving to have a nose for the end zone when he records an interception.
Jones notched his seventh interception in four NFL seasons on Sunday and the third pick-six of his career was one of the biggest plays as the New England Patriots qualified for the AFC Championship Game with a 28-16 victory over the Houston Texans at Foxborough, Mass.
New England will play at the top-seeded Denver Broncos next Sunday for a berth in Super
Bowl LX.
The Patriots intercepted Houston's C.J. Stroud four times in the first half of the divisional-round matchup, and Jones' 26-yard interception return in the second quarter put the Patriots in the lead for good in a contest played in cold and snowy conditions.
Stroud was under pressure on the play and threw the ball up for grabs. Jones intercepted it and returned it for a score to give New England a 14-10 lead.
"Just trying to be in the right place at the right time," Jones said. "We put in a lot of work. We know what we invested in and all the work and preparation stuff so we had a situation of confidence."
Drake Maye threw three touchdown passes while Carlton Davis III picked off two passes and Craig Woodson had one. The Patriots forced five turnovers while advancing to their 16th AFC title game and their first since the 2018 season.
Kayshon Boutte made a stellar touchdown grab, and DeMario Douglas and Stefon Diggs also had scoring receptions for second-seeded New England. Maye completed 16 of 27 passes for 179 yards while also throwing one interception and losing two fumbles.
"Everybody is stepping up," Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said. "Everybody is making plays, everybody is helping us win. Also, they're not satisfied and I can tell that."
Stroud committed seven turnovers (five picks, two fumbles) in fifth-seeded Houston's two postseason games. He completed 20 of 47 passes for 212 yards and one touchdown Sunday.
Adding three more fumbles his team recovered, Stroud became the first player in NFL history with five fumbles and five interceptions in a single postseason.
"I look back and I feel like I let people down, and I'm not happy about it, that hurts," Stroud said. "I didn't play my best this year. ...
"I was too loose with the football (in the playoffs). My whole team trusts me. They believe in me. I take full responsibility. Ball security is everything."
Christian Kirk had a scoring catch for the Texans, who are 0-7 all-time in the divisional round of the playoffs. Will Anderson Jr. recorded three sacks and forced two fumbles, and Danielle Hunter had two sacks and one forced fumble.
The Texans played without three-time 1,000-yard receiver Nico Collins (concussion). They also lost standout tight end Dalton Schultz (calf) in the first quarter and second-string tight end Cade Stover (knee) in the fourth quarter.
"Things don't go your way, you have bad performances, it's not a time to point fingers or say it's on one person," Houston coach DeMeco Ryans said. "It all starts with me. As the head coach of this team, we didn't perform well. Obviously, I didn't have our guys ready to go in this moment. So that starts with me."
The Patriots figure to be slight road favorites in the AFC title game after the Broncos lost standout quarterback Bo Nix to a broken ankle.
"It's heartbreaking for the guy he is and the player he is," Maye said of Nix's injury. "They have a good team and it will be a tough one next week."
Houston trailed by 11 at halftime but moved within 21-16 late in the third quarter on Ka'imi Fairbairn field goals of 25 and 51 yards just as the snow picked up.
But New England regained momentum when Boutte made a one-handed 32-yard touchdown grab from Maye to give the Patriots a 12-point lead with 12:58 to play. Boutte beat Texans standout cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. on the play.
"One-hand catch," Maye said. "There's not much more to say, that's pretty sweet."
Davis exited in the fourth quarter for New England due to a head injury.
New England led 21-10 at halftime as the Texans were hindered by Stroud's four interceptions.
The Patriots struck first on Maye's 28-yard touchdown pass to Douglas with 9:35 left in the first quarter.
Houston scored the next 10 points on Fairbairn's 25-yard field goal in the opening quarter and Stroud's 10-yard touchdown throw to Kirk with 12:51 remaining in the half.
Two-plus minutes later, Jones' pick six gave New England the lead for good.
Later in the quarter, Maye tossed a 7-yard touchdown pass to Diggs with 3:12 remaining in the half.
--Field Level Media
