Patriots Bounce Back From Losses, Clobber Texans in Houston

After back-to-back losses, the New England Patriots bounced back in a big way with a 27-6 walloping of the Houston Texans on the road Sunday night.

Off The Skid- New England, of course, got back in the win column tonight, after a couple of dismal weeks. Though they continue to play short-handed on both sides of the ball, and lost more guys tonight, the Pats were able to come into a hostile environment on prime time and shut down this Houston team.

Back On Top- After dropping to third place in the AFC standings last week, the Patriots are back atop the conference tonight thanks to their win and losses by both Cincinnati and Denver. The Pats are now back in prime position for the first round bye and home field advantage in the playoffs. The Patriots also became the first AFC team to clinch a playoff spot tonight.

Defensive Domination- The Patriots defense was absolutely dominant, tonight. They held the Texans to just 189 total yards and only allowed them to get seven first downs on the game. They also limited Houston to just three completions on 14 third down attempts and two turnovers on downs.

Sack Party- One of the top reasons why the defense was so dominant all night long was the play of the unit's front seven, who tallied six sacks for a loss of 57 yards on the night. The sack party was led by defensive end Jabaal Sheard and defensive tackle Akiem Hicks, who both had monster games. On the night, Sheard made five tackles including two sacks and a tackle for loss, forced a fumble and had three quarterback hits. Hicks, who saw his playing time increase after starter Dominique Easley left with an apparent knee injury, also played at a high level, making six total tackles. Hicks has two sacks and two tackles for loss along with three quarterback hits as well.

More Injuries- The Patriots were, once again, hit hard by the injury bug in tonight's action. First, power back LeGarrette Blount left the game in the second quarter with an apparent hip injury and did not return. Losing him left the team with only two running backs on the active roster. Starting safety and defensive leader Devin McCourty was also lost to an ankle injury in the second half, along with Easley, who suffered a knee injury and Jonathan Freeny, who missed most of the night's action with a wrist injury. That's four more guys, who play big roles on the team, that were lost. Hopefully the injuries aren't serious, but only time will tell.

Bolden Breaks Out- Midway through the first half Blount really got going and started to have his way with the Texans defense, rushing 10 times for 53 yards. When he went down with the hip injury, the team turned to backup running back and key special teamer Brandon Bolden, and the second option didn't disappoint. Bolden carried the ball 16 times for 51 yards, mainly in the second half, and got a bulk of his yards after first contact.

Quietly Effective- Patriots quarterback Tom Brady threw for just 226 yards in the game, but did connect with both Rob Gronkowski and Keshawn Martin on goal line touchdowns and completed 73 percent of his passes. While the gaudy yards totals weren't there, Brady led this banged up Patriots team through a successful game plan to secure the win.

Where Was Watt?- The broken hand injury that Houston defensive end JJ Watt suffered during practice this week, seemed to throw the defensive super star off of his game tonight. On the night, Watt made just three tackles including one tackle for loss and was called for multiple penalties, including a roughing the passer call.

Another Top Target Taken Away- As Bill Belichick usually does, he found a way to take away his opponent's top option on offense. Houston's top big play threat DeAndre Hopkins was shut down, throughout the game, by cornerback Logan Ryan, who has played well all season long. For most of the night Belichick and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia had Ryan on Hopkins with safety coverage over the top. That game plan yielded just three catches for 52 yards for Hopkins on the night, with one big play that happened in the fourth quarter with the game pretty well in hand. It's just another example of Belichick taking away his opponent's top threat.

Though the Pats lost four more men to injuries, the night was a hug success for New England. They not only showed their dominance in prime time on the road, but they also slid right back into first place in the conference and, once again, control their own destiny. With Gronk and Amendola back healthy, and Julian Edelman returning to practice, the offense will only be getting better in the next few weeks. As long as the injuries, especially the one to McCourty aren't really serious, this team is getting back on track and back to their old form of complete dominance. Next week against the Titans should be another easy win for New England and a chance to get some guys healthy and ready for the playoffs.