Winners and losers of NFL playoffs' divisional round: C.J. Stroud, Texans implode

Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz, USA TODAY Mon, January 19, 2026 at 12:01 AM UTC

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Through three games in the NFL playoffs' divisional round, the top seeds are all moving on to the conference championship tilts. Yet it wouldn't be fair to say that things have gone as expected in the postseason.

That certainly held true Jan. 18, when the New England Patriots bested the Houston Texans 28-16 in a contest that featured eight turnovers. In the weekend's finale, will the offenses run cold again when the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams face off in frigid conditions? If the former prevails, each conference will have its top two seeds squaring off for a trip to Super Bowl 60.

Here's our look at the biggest winners and losers from Sunday's divisional-round playoff action:

WinnersPatriots defensive backs

C.J. Stroud sure made their life easier, but New England's cover men came up clutch in several spots. Carlton Davis III set the tone early with an incredible diving interception toward the end of the first quarter, and he secured his second of the day before halftime. Marcus Jones, meanwhile, bounced back from allowing a first-quarter touchdown to Christian Kirk by pulling off a pick-six he returned 25 yards. Rookie safety Craig Woodson accounted for the final pick. Meanwhile, standout cornerback Christian Gonzalez allowed just 58 yards on seven catches despite being targeted 16 times, according to Next Gen Stats. In all, the Patriots tallied an incredible 14 passes defensed.

Milton Williams

His dominant postseason run last year helped vault the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl title before he secured a massive payday from the Patriots. Now, the defensive tackle is once again wreaking havoc in the postseason. After last week's two-sack outing against the Los Angeles Chargers, Williams made himself a mainstay in the Texans' backfield, even though his efforts weren't properly reflected by the box score. And this time, he managed not to bloody Mike Vrabel in his postgame celebration.

Stefon Diggs

A mercurial player on his fourth team in 11 years, Diggs has somehow managed to find greener pastures in almost all of his transitions. And with the Bills bowing out on Saturday and his new team vanquishing the Texans, Diggs managed to pull off the feat yet again as he came off the torn anterior cruciate ligament that upended his lone year in Houston.

It wasn't a particularly prolific outing for the veteran wideout, who finished with four catches for 40 yards. But Diggs snared a tight-window throw in such impressive fashion that even he marveled afterward at his accomplishment.

Drake Maye's passing

The bottom line – 179 yards on 16-of-27 passing – surely wasn't what one would expect from a leading MVP candidate. But the second-year signal-caller managed to do what Stroud couldn't: be judicious about how he attacked his opponent in a game defined by defensive performances. Maye tends to thrive against blitz-heavy teams that provide him the opportunity to punish them for their aggressiveness. That's decidedly not the Texans, who can put quarterbacks in uncomfortable spots without diverting from their established ways. But Maye was largely discerning and at times even opportunistic, with his 32-yard deep shot to Kayshon Boutte essentially putting the game out of reach in the fourth quarter.

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Zak Kuhr

The 37-year-old de facto defensive coordinator for the Patriots – he's served as the play-caller since Week 2 – cooked up quite a plan to keep the Texans in check. In compensating for a pass rush that has had trouble generating pressure organically, Kuhr showed a variety of different looks and brought heat in multiple ways. The result was a barrage of takeaways, with New England taking the mantle from Houston as the defense that dominated the day.

Will Anderson Jr.

The Texans' loss means Anderson won't receive his proper due for a three-sack day that also included two forced fumbles. But anyone watching could identify him as a singular force on the field. Had it not been for Myles Garrett's record-setting campaign, Anderson might have had a strong case for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Count on him as a preseason favorite for the award in 2026. Meanwhile, fellow edge fiend Danielle Hunter bagged two sacks of his own, too. The disruptiveness helped ensure that New England's offense didn't score any points off Houston's barrage of turnovers, with the pick-six standing as the lone payoff.

Jarrett Stidham

In stepping into the Denver Broncos' starting quarterback role in place of Bo Nix, who is out for the rest of the season with a broken bone suffered Saturday night, the seventh-year veteran was assured of a difficult task after not throwing a pass all season. Yet avoiding a meeting with a Texans defense that has essentially engulfed all comers has to be a win for Stidham and Sean Payton. New England will present plenty of distinct challenges for the top-seeded Broncos. But they seem more manageable for a team that was thrown for a loop coming off its biggest triumph.

1 / 0See frigid, snowy scenes from Sunday's NFL playoff gamesNew England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte (9) catches the ball for a touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans in an AFC Divisional Round game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Ma.LosersC.J. Stroud

It sure seemed that things couldn't get worse than his wild-card showing, when the Steelers' own offensive ineptitude overshadowed Stroud's three-turnover outing. Yet the Texans' third-year signal-caller hit a new nadir against New England, throwing four interceptions and holding back a historically dominant defense that was fully up to the task of competing in this game. The blame for his picks shouldn't rest with him, as a pass that should have been a reception glanced off Xavier Hutchinson's hands. The rest, however, were the product of ghastly decision-making. And Stroud was well off the mark and out of sorts in a number of other instances.

Stroud has enjoyed remarkable highs in stretches, proving capable of elevating his supporting cast since his Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign. But he's also one of the league's most volatile presences behind center. After his last two performances, can Houston in good conscience negotiate what surely would be a massive commitment in a contract extension? The better move seems to be exercising his fifth-year option and maintaining some degree of flexibility moving forward.

Drake Maye's handle/running

The elements surely factored in here. But Maye's four fumbles – two of which were lost – threatened to put New England in a perilous spot in a game in which it should have had an even greater turnover advantage. And Maye ran just four times for 10 yards despite Houston's defense showing some vulnerability against mobile quarterbacks.

Texans' run game

A more standard offense would have focused its efforts more heavily on the ground game, especially given Stroud's struggles and the slick conditions. But Houston's inert rushing attack couldn't get anything going, logging just 48 yards on 22 carries. Lead back Woody Marks was stuffed for a loss or no gain on eight of his team-high 14 carries, according to Next Gen Stats. That led the Texans to embrace an unhealthy imbalance, with Stroud attempting 47 passes despite how off-kilter the quarterback was. A reworking of this phase has to be atop the offseason priority list.

Will Campbell

At least the Patriots' rookie left tackle recovered two of Maye's fumbles to avert further disaster. Safe to say that was pretty much the only positive on the day for Campbell, who was routinely beaten off the edge when he didn't receive help. To be fair, the Texans' pass-rushing tandem is an exceedingly difficult matchup for even the savviest veterans. But Maye and the rest of the Patriots' offense can't be feeling at ease heading into a showdown with a Broncos defense that paced the league in sacks.

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