The 10-1 New England Patriots are in town to face the 7-4 Houston Texans on Sunday Night Football. A highly anticipated matchup between two of the league’s most intriguing teams, the matchup should be one of thrills and eyes glued to screens.
The Patriots come in as the favorites. If the Texans want to update, they must play a clean game of football while getting their stars going against a terrifying defense. However, don’t let a writer tell you that. Instead, let the players do so.
qb Deshaun Watson: Don’t look at the past
The Patriots, since the beginning of the Bill Belichick-era, have the best of most teams, including the Texans. In their 11 matchups, the Patriots are 10-1 against the Texans. New England has won the last eight against Houston, solidifying their dominance over them in the last decade.
Watson, who will face the Patriots for the third time, calls for the Texans to forget the past.
“Every year is different, every game is different. It’s a new week, a new opportunity, we’re both 0-0 and we’re both trying to be 1-0 Sunday night. That’s how we have to look at it. We can’t look in the past, we can’t look in the future,” said Watson on Wednesday. “We’ve got to focus on this moment now, and what we’re focused on is we’re focused on Wednesday practice. We’re going to focus on these meetings after practice and take it brick by brick and step by step. If we can do that, we’ll be just fine.”
coach Bill O’Brien: Take care of the ball, don’t let them be opportunistic
Winning the turnovers battle is key against any team. However, it’s even more so against the Patriots. If you make a mistake, the detail-orientated squad up North will take advantage of it.
No turnovers, costly penalties, errant passes, muffed punts, nothing. No mistakes.
“Yeah, you can say this for every game, but it’s especially true when you play the Patriots,” O’Brien said on Monday. “If you look at the games that they’ve won, they’ve just done a really good job of being opportunistic. They’ve blocked the punt or they’ve intercepted a pass, or they’ve batted a ball or punched a ball out, got the ball, get on a short field.”
Since 2001, the Patriots are plus-208 in the turnover battle. When they win it in individual games, they are 154-13. Through 12 weeks of 2019 play, New England leads the NFL in turnover differential, sitting at an outstanding plus-19.
“They just do a lot of things well, so you have to do a lot of things well,” continued O’Brien. “You’ve got to take care of the ball, you’ve got to be in manageable third downs, you have to cover kicks well, you have to do the best you can to try to take the ball away if you can. It’s just that type of a game, and they’re a great team. They’re 10-1 for a reason and we just need to go in there and play one play at a time.”
oc Tim Kelly: Counter Stephon Gilmore with DeAndre Hopkins
Gilmore is in the top-two for NFL cornerbacks. He’s not No. 2.
Gilmore, an All-Pro in 2018, is playing the part of the NFL’s best shutdown cornerback in 2019. The Patriots superstar — who is questionable with an illness — has allowed a measly 39.5 passer rating in coverage in 2019, per Pro Football Reference.
“He’s playing really, really well. He’s productive, he’s doing a good job of really taking the number one receivers away,” said offensive coordinator Tim Kelly on Wednesday. “You look at what he did last week against Amari (Cooper). So, he’s doing a good job being patient, he plays the ball well, he’s got good size, he runs well.”
Gilmore is expected to shadow back-to-back All-Pro wide-out DeAndre Hopkins, a tough task on both sides. Kelly explains how he will need to play on Sunday night.
“I think just using good route technique and playing the way Hop (DeAndre Hopkins) always plays,” said Kelly. “Hop’s a warrior, he’s a competitor, he goes out there and play hard every single snap. That’s what we’re expecting him to do on Sunday.”
Deshaun Watson: Forget about the opponent and bright lights, play Texans football
As a member of the Texans, Watson is 5-2 in primetime games. His tilt with the Patriots will be in prime time, on “Sunday Night Football.” For him, there is no difference between playing them at night and noon, other than being the only game on.
“The only difference is we’re the only game on,” said Watson on Wednesday. “Outside of that it’s still football, still the same.”
Watson emphasizes that prime time isn’t a factor. It’s just a time of day. He also emphasizes that no matter the opponent, the Texans have to one thing among all else: play Texans football, even if the Patriots appear to be daunting.
“We just have to go out there and play Texans football and play smart and don’t create any turnovers or self-penalties and we’ll be fine,” said Watson.
The Texans’ players and coaching staff have all keyed in on treating the Patriots like another opponent. The worst thing they can do when they face Belichick and Co. is getting in their own head. They are avoiding that.
