Texans’ top-ranked defense looks to slow down Drake Maye and the Patriots in divisional matchup

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) - Drake Maye made his first NFL start against the Houston Texans. The New England Patriots' second-year quarterback has come a long way in the 15 months since.

"That feels like, shoot, 10 years ago. It's been a long journey," Maye said. "Running out there with the first-snap jitters was pretty cool. It was fun to look back on. We'll hopefully have a different outcome from (that) game."

Maye and C.J. Stroud each threw three touchdown passes that day, but Maye also was intercepted twice and sacked four times in the Texans' 41-21 win.

Houston (13-5) and New England (15-3) meet again Sunday, this time with a trip to the AFC championship game at stake.

The Patriots are seeking their first appearance in the title game since the 2018 season, when they went on to win a sixth Super Bowl. The Texans have never made it that far, having lost in the divisional round in each of the past two seasons under third-year coach DeMeco Ryans.

"We've been in this position before. I think we've learned from those things. Now it's time to go put it on tape," Stroud said.

Both teams have exceeded expectations. The Patriots went from worst to first in the AFC East, while the Texans recovered from an 0-3 start and are riding a 10-game winning streak.

It's a matchup of strength against strength. The Patriots averaged an AFC-best 28.8 points per game, and the Texans have the NFL's top-ranked defense.

"I respect how hard they play," New England coach Mike Vrabel said. "They're not only talented, but they have a play demeanor that I can appreciate."

Ryans believes much of the Patriots' offensive success can be traced to Maye's growth under offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. He's impressed with how much freedom Maye - the league's most accurate passer - has been given to run.

"I think he is doing a really good job of not making bad decisions with the football," Ryans said. "Where he's taking that next step is his ability to escape the pocket. I think it really doesn't get talked about much, but his athletic ability, his ability to escape the pocket has been really clutch for them."

The Texans' top receiver, Pro Bowler Nico Collins, is expected to miss the game after sustaining his second concussion of the season in Monday night's wild-card win at Pittsburgh.

Christian Kirk had a big game against the Steelers and the Texans are hoping for a repeat performance. The eight-year veteran set a career high and franchise playoff record with 144 yards receiving.

Kirk had just 239 yards receiving in the regular season.

Houston will also look for rookies Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel to pitch in after the college teammates from Iowa State combined for 817 yards receiving and eight touchdowns in the regular season.

The Texans will also try to get tight end Dalton Schultz more involved after he had just 12 yards receiving on Monday night.

"I'm the most confident in everybody in there to get the job done," Stroud said.

Stroud fumbled just twice in his 14 regular-season games but coughed up the ball five times against the Steelers, two of them leading to turnovers. He also threw an interception.

Stroud hopes to take better care of the ball, but he said mistakes happen against strong opponents in the playoffs and the key is not letting those miscues affect the next play.

"I watched almost all the wild-card games since we played the last game," Stroud said. "Everybody made mistakes. Everybody had that moment where it was like, 'Dang, we're messing this up.' Then the teams who find a way to fight through that and keep going were the teams that came out on top."

Stroud also threw for 250 yards and a touchdown as he became the fourth quarterback in NFL history to start and win a playoff game in each of his first three seasons.

One thing Patriots rookie left tackle Will Campbell has learned this season is how to ignore naysayers.

Campbell was criticized on social media after yielding a team-high six pressures and two sacks - including a strip-sack - in the Patriots' wild-card win over the Chargers. Now he'll face a stiffer challenge against Houston's fearsome defensive ends, All-Pro Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter.

"I don't give a (expletive) what anyone says to be honest with you," Campbell said. "It's easy to type behind a Twitter account that is fake. I hold myself to the highest expectation of anybody. ... These are the best teams with the best defenses and the best offenses, the best players. They're in the playoffs for a reason."

Patriots receiver Stefon Diggs welcomes the chance to shine against the Texans, for whom he played one injury-shortened season.

Diggs was traded by Buffalo to Houston following the 2023 season. He played eight games for the Texans in 2024 before suffering a season-ending knee injury. He then signed with New England and led the team with 85 catches and 1,013 receiving yards.

"He's very explosive after he catches the football," Ryans said. "Another guy we've got to make sure we have eyes on."