This week’s slate of NFL playoff games will feature a familiar pairing. For the third time in the last 14 years, the New England Patriots will play hosts to the Houston Texans in the divisional round.
The matchup is one the Patriots have some fond memories of. They won both of the previous meetings in rather. dominant fashion, beating the Texans 41-28 during the 2012 playoffs and 34-16 four years later.
Let’s take a look back at those games.
Patriots vs. Texans NFL playoff history
2012 AFC divisional round: The rematch of the famous “Letterman
Jacket Game” took place five weeks later and ended in the same fashion: with a lopsided New England victory. After a 42-14 shellacking in Week 14, the Patriots beat the visiting Texans 41-28 in the divisional playoffs. The game was still relatively close at the half, but 21 unanswered points in the third and early fourth quarter allowed the Patriots to pull away. When all was said and done, Tom Brady had thrown three touchdown passes, Wes Welker had gained 131 yards on eight catches, Shane Vereen had scored three times — twice as a receiver and once as a runner — and Rob Ninkovich hauled in an interception. | Highlights
2016 AFC divisional round: Take a bow, Dion Lewis. Four years after Shane Vereen scored three touchdowns versus the Texans, Lewis did as well — albeit in slightly different fashion: he found the end zone as a receiver, as a runner, and on a 98-yard kickoff return. That said, neither he nor the rest of the offense were flawless. Lewis lost a fumble, while Tom Brady paired his two touchdown passes with two interceptions. Luckily for the Patriots, their defense also took the ball away three times, with former Rutgers teammates Devin McCourty, Logan Ryan and Duron Harmon all catching one interception. When all was said and done, the eventual Super Bowl champions advanced with a final score of 34-16. | Highlights
In addition to those two games, the Patriots also have a third contest against a Houston-based team on their. playoff history: they lost 31-14 to the Oilers in the 1978 divisional round. The Oilers, however, have no links to the Texans besides residing in the same city. The franchise later relocated to Tennessee in 1999 and was later rebranded as the Titans.
