Four Takeaways From Patriots’ Playoff Victory Over Chargers

The New England Patriots are moving on after picking up a wild-card victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

New England scratched and clawed to slowly build its lead throughout what ultimately became a 16-3 victory at Gillette Stadium, setting up a playoff matchup with either the four-seed Pittsburgh Steelers or five-seed Houston Texans.

I’ve got your takeaways:

KUHR’S CURVEBALL

Zak Kuhr deserves his flowers.

Kuhr, who has just six seasons of coaching experience on the defensive side of the football, has been tasked with filling in for defensive coordinator Terrell Williams since Sept. 10.

It’s been an up-and-down few months for the unit, which keeps teams off the scoreboard (17.9 opponent points per game; 3rd) but also struggled mightily in the red area (64.29% opponent red zone touchdown percentage; 27th) and couldn’t seem to get opposing quarterbacks on the ground (6.84% sack percentage; 17th) — but that all changed on Sunday.

The Patriots allowed just three total points, kept their opponent out of the end zone despite taking two separate trips to the red zone and finished with six sacks to set a franchise record for a single playoff game. Kuhr was the catalyst, too, changing up his philosophy to include 48% man-coverage despite playing 67.1% zone-coverage throughout the regular season, which made all the difference in a low-scoring affair.

The Chargers had no idea what was coming, with several players even admitting as much following the game to Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane.

“I’d tell you that this means a lot to him — those players mean a lot to him,” Mike Vrabel said following the game, per team-provided video. “I’d say that they want to do well for Zak… I’m proud of Zak, not only for the performance calling the game but for the preparation that he put into it.”

WINNING FORMULA

The Patriots didn’t exactly establish the run in a traditional sense — averaging just 4.2 yards per carry when handing it off to Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson — but they found a way control clock with the help of Drake Maye.

Maye’s ability to scramble proved paramount on three of his club’s four scoring drives on Sunday — as he led the team in rushing yards (66) and picked up five first downs with his legs.

Stevenson and Henderson were extremely effective in the passing game, however, serving as an extension of the running game by moving the chains as check down options.

It’s how you win football games in the postseason, and will be paramount to this offense’s future success.

COMPLETE EFFORT

I’d be hard pressed to name every single person who had a direct impact on the victory, because almost every single person on the roster had a standout moment.

Milton Williams’ game-sealing sack was incredible. Craig Woodson and Christian Gonzalez were nearly flawless in the secondary. Kayshon Boutte stepped up when needed. Hunter Henry continued to be as steady as they come. Efton Chism III even made a big catch immediately after screwing up his chance at being on everyone’s playoff highlight reels.

Maye, Stevenson and Kuhr got their own special mention.

It’s the kind of game that reminds you just how important it is to build a strong culture, which is exactly what they have down at One Patriot Place.

NOWHERE TO GO BUT UP

Drake Maye ran off the field to chants of “MVP! MVP! MVP!”

It’ll remain to be seen whether they ring true, but the sophomore signal-caller didn’t exactly play to his standard on Sunday.

“It wasn’t my best tonight, but hey, that’s why you have teammates — they picked me up tonight,” Maye said following the game, per team-provided video. “… I’ve got to be better.”

Maye, who turned the ball over twice and was one lucky bounce away from doing it a third time, was inconsistent at best and downright sloppy with the football at worst — but there’s zero doubt that he’ll pick up the pieces moving forward.

The Houston Texans (47 sacks; 7th) and Pittsburgh Steelers (48 sacks; 6th) were among the best teams in the NFL at bringing the pressure in 2025, so no matter who ends up winning, the competition is only going to get stiffer next weekend — but perhaps the youngster’s first playoff performance will serve as a lesson learned.