Going into Wild Card Weekend, many NFL fans were questioning the Patriots because of their easy schedule in the regular season, but the team erased all doubts as they moved past a good Chargers team. In the first playoff game at Gillette Stadium not featuring Tom Brady as the starting quarterback for the Patriots, the fans packed the stadium for a primetime game, creating a true playoff atmosphere.
The game got off to a slow start, offensively at least, with neither team scoring any points in the first quarter. On the Patriots’ second drive, one of Maye’s passes got tipped by a defensive lineman and the Chargers picked it off inside the Patriots ten yard line. Giving the Chargers the ball inside the red zone this early in the game definitely frightened many Patriots fans, but the defense still stood its ground. The strong run defense, led by star Milton Williams coming off of an injury that sidelined him for most of the second half of the season, kept the Chargers out of the end zone and forced them to go for it on fourth down. On fourth down, Christian Gonzalez forced an incompletion, keeping the Chargers off the scoreboard and giving the Patriots the ball back.
At the beginning of the second quarter, both teams traded field goals and punts, and it looked like they were going to go into halftime tied up at three. However, the Patriots got the ball back with thirty seconds left and tried to score one more time. Powered by a big 37 yard Drake Maye scramble, they drove down the field and kicked a field goal to go into halftime up 6-3.
The third quarter started off slow as well, with both teams trading punts, but towards the end of the third quarter, the Patriots offense finally started to click. The Patriots kicked another field goal at the end of the third quarter, and then on their next drive drove down the field; they capped off the drive with a 28 yard touchdown from Drake Maye to Hunter Henry, putting the game on ice.
The Chargers tried to drive down the field and get back in the game, but the way the Patriots defense had been playing, especially at the line, made it a tough battle for the Chargers to win. With eight minutes left in the game, K’Lavon Chaisson stripped the ball from Justin Herbert and Christian Ellis recovered it for the Patriots, giving the Patriots the ball with a two-score lead late in the game. The Chargers got the ball back one more time, but they still couldn’t do anything against the dominant Patriots defense, leading to the Patriots getting the ball back and ending the game in victory formation.
With this win, the Patriots play the Texans on Sunday, who are coming off a big win versus the Steelers on Monday night. The Texans also have a dominant defense as displayed in their Wild Card win, so it will be a great defensive battle between the two and the five seed in the AFC. As sophomore Jamie Franklin put it, “It will be a great game versus the Texans, but I think the Patriots have a better offense, which will give them a slight edge.”
Despite the win, there was definitely room for improvement for the Patriots, especially for the young rising stars. The offensive line struggled all game, giving up five sacks and putting Drake Maye under pressure, which will be important to clean up before a matchup with a very strong Texans defensive line. The Chargers offensive line also played terribly, giving up six sacks and allowing the defense to pressure Herbert on more than half his throws. Going into this game, the Chargers had the worst O-Line in the NFL, so it was expected that Herbert would be running for his life trying to make plays.
Sophomore Sam Ferrara, describing the Chargers struggles at the line, explained, “The main reason the Chargers lost was because Herbert had no protection. He was pressured on almost every passing play they called.” Despite neither team having their best game, the Patriots found their rhythm in the second half and rode a strong defensive performance to victory.
