Quick Hits: Patriots vs. Texans

As if losing to the Cleveland Browns last week wasn’t enough, the man responsible for inflicting former Houston Texans head coach/general manager Bill O’Brien is coming to town and bringing his New England Patriots with him. While Texans fans enjoyed one of the biggest wins in recent memory the last time these two teams met, back on 12/1/2019 when the Texans beat the Tom Brady led Patriots 28-22, this current iteration of the Houston Texans is clearly inferior to the one that beat Bill Belichick and company nearly a year ago.

On a side note, are you as surprised as some of the rest of us that Tom Brady is doing better without the Patriots than New England is doing without their former quarterback? So much for the theory that Brady was nothing but a product of Belichick’s system. Anyway, on to the thing that matters most in all the land: stats!

• Patriots lead the all-time series 8-2.
• Patriots won last week against the Baltimore Ravens 23-17.
• Texans lost last week to the Cleveland Browns 10-7.
• Bill Belichick is 8-2 vs the Texans.
• Romeo Crennel is 0-1 against the Patriots.
• New England is averaging 21.0 points scored per game and giving up only 23.9.
• Houston is averaging 22.2 points per game and giving up 28.0.
• The Patriots’ offense is averaging 355.9 yards per game.
• The Texans’ offense is averaging 354.4 yards per game.
• Cam Newton currently has 143 completions on 208 attempts for 1,535 yards, 3 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, and a QB rating of 80.9,
• Deshaun Watson currently has 205 completions on 301 attempts for 2,539 yards, 18 touchdowns, 5 interceptions, and a QB rating of 107.0,

—>How can Houston’s offense be so bad with those stats from Watson?

• Damien Harris leads the Patriots with 85 rushing attempts for 471 yards, a 5.5 yards per carry average, and 1 score.
• Deshaun Watson leads the Texans with 48 carries for 233 yards, a 4.9 yards per carry average, and 1 touchdown.
• Jakobi Meyers is the Patriots’ pass catching leader with 28 receptions for 353 yards and no scores.
• Will Fuller V is the Texans’ pass catching leader with 41 receptions for 628 yards and 6 scores.
• New England’s defense is surrendering 353.3 yards per game (ranked 12th best overall).
• Houston’s defense is giving away 409.1 yards per game (ranked 26th best overall).
• Chase Winovich leads the Patriots’ defense with 2.5 sacks.
• J.J. Watt leads the Texans’ defense with 4.0 sacks.
• J.C. Jackson leads the Patriots (and the NFL) with 6 interceptions.
• Vernon Hargreaves III and Bradley Roby share the Texans’ interception lead with 1 apiece.
• New England is 15/15 in the turnover battle, a differential of 0.
• Houston is 5/9 in the turnover battle, a differential of -4.
• Cam Newton is trying to have his fourth game in row with a rushing TD. Newton has 5 TDs (4 pass, 1 rush) and 1 INT in two career games versus Houston.
• Deshaun Watson seeks to post his fifth game in row with no interceptions. DW4 has 2+ TD passes and a 105+ rating in six of his past seven games. Watson passed for 234 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, and a 140.7 rating in his last meeting with the Patriots. Against his last three AFC East opponents, Watson has 10 TDs, 0 INTs, and a 149.4 rating.
• J.C. Jackson has an interception in five straight games, the longest active streak in the NFL.
• J.J. Watt had 5 tackles and 1 tackle for loss last week. He’s aiming for his fourth game in a row with a sack against AFC East opponents.