For a second straight week, Robert Spillane was all smiles at the Gillette Stadium podium on Sunday. He had good reason to be: the New England Patriots had just beaten the Houston Texans 28-16 to advance to the AFC Championship Game for the first time in seven years.
But while the defensive captain was clearly pleased with his team’s performance, he also wanted to make something clear about the Patriots season: it ain’t over yet.
“A work in progress. We’re not finished,” Spillane explained. “We’ll
just going to continue to put our heads down, bring the energy required each and every day to this game-planning of the week and pour our hearts into it like we all have. Every man in that locker room, every coach just poured their hearts into this season, and we’re going to continue to do that and let the chips fall where they may.”
Spillane was not the only one to sing that tune after the game. Head coach Mike Vrabel also spoke about his players already looking ahead during his own postgame presser.
“I’m always excited for our organization, excited for the players,” Vrabel said. “I am appreciative of their work and their efforts. Everybody’s stepping up. We’re using everybody. Everybody’s making plays. Everybody’s helping us win. I’m excited for these guys, but also, they’re not satisfied, and I can tell that.”
Thanks to their win over the Texans, the Patriots remain as one of only four teams left standing this season. After back-to-back home playoff games, however, they will now have to travel to Denver to take on the top-seeded Broncos in one of the most challenging environments in the NFL.
The task will be significant, but the Broncos having lost starting quarterback Bo Nix to an ankle injury changes the outlook. Former Patriots fourth-round draft pick Jarrett Stidham will start in Nix’s place, his first extended game action since starting two games for the team during the 2023 season.
Stidham will be going up against a Patriots team that will waste no time getting ready for the challenge ahead.
“It’s great to be in the position that we are,” said cornerback Marcus Jones, who scored a pick-six against Houston, “but we’re one of those teams that love to flip the page.”
“We know we’ve got to go on the road to a No. 1 seed in the AFC, and it’s not going to be easy,” added Vrabel. “But we’ll come out and be ready to go.”
