Recipe for a disaster …
Five plays. Just five plays, out of 135 — on a dreadful Monday night in the Boston suburbs. Take away five plays, or simply rescript them, and the Texans would have stayed in a game they got blown out of 42-14 by the New England Patriots, a humbling experience from which they still haven’t fully recovered.
1. The scenario: Patriots’ ball on their first series of the game. 4:40 elapsed. First-and-goal at the Texans’ 4-yard line. Stevan Ridley plowed into the middle, where Earl Mitchell was waiting. The Texans’ nose tackle pawed the football from Ridley’s hands, and it skittered off to the left. Cornerback Kareem Jackson was well-positioned to make the recovery, but perhaps he tried to do too much or simply didn’t focus. Whatever happened, Jackson couldn’t secure possession, and the Patriots’ Aaron Hernandez pounced, thwarting what would have been a crucial Texans takeaway.
The upshot: On the next play, Tom Brady threw a 7-yard TD pass to Hernandez. Patriots 7-0.
2. The scenario: Texans’ ball. 9:19 elapsed in the first quarter. Second-and-8 at the Patriots’ 21. Matt Schaub looked for Kevin Walter over the middle a yard deep in the end zone, but the ball was slightly underthrown, and New England corner Devin McCourty got there first for the interception.
The upshot: Taking over at his 18, Brady needed only six plays to go 82 yards, finishing with a 37-yard TD pass to Brandon Lloyd. Patriots 14-0.