The New England Patriots watched the Houston Texans defense fly around the field at Acrisure Stadium on Monday night.
Yet, second-year quarterback Drake Maye has a plan of action to avoid falling victim to the ultra-aggressive Texans defense the same way Aaron Rodgers did.
Maye spoke about needing to protect himself when he decides to scramble during the Patriots’ upcoming game against the Texans on Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium.
The Texans defense finished first in the NFL in yards-against per game (277.2) and were second in points-against per game (17.4) behind only the Seattle Seahawks. Houston limited Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers to just 175 total yards in its 30-6 rout in the wild-card round.
Drake Maye Intends To Protect Himself Against The Texans Defense
The one weakness in Houston’s defense, if you can call it that, is in the run game. The Texans allowed 93.7 rushing-yards per game, which was fourth-best in the league, but did get gashed for 140-plus yards by the Las Vegas Raiders, Buffalo Bills and Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier in the season.
Maye is an integral piece of the Patriots rushing attack. He finished fourth in the NFL in rushing among quarterbacks (450) during the regular seaons and was New England’s leading rusher with 66 yards in its 16-3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card Round on Sunday night.
Yet, he knows he’ll need to protect himself against Houston.
“They’re going to try and take your head off, and I respect them for it,” Maye said. “They tackle the ball carrier hard, and they’ll punish him and make you pay for it.
“You’ve got to have a good feel for when to take chances and when to be smart, because the linebackers are good and they do a good job of delivering some big-time hits.”
Maye also has a plan in place to protect himself against Houston’s aggressive defense, though it is no different than what he’d do against any other opponent.
“If somebody on defense is going to hit me hard, I’m just gonna go down,” Maye said. “If there’s somewhere where I can make a play and there’s room to scramble a bit, I’ve got to go make a play.”
Drake Maye Played Against The Texans In 2024
The Mike Vrabel-and-Josh McDaniels-led Patriots did not meet this Texans team in 2025. But Maye has experience going against the DeMeco Ryans-led unit, though with not-great results.
Houston routed New England 41-21 in Week 6 of 2024 at NRG Stadium. Maye was New England’s leading rusher with 38 yards but was sacked four times, and was intercepted twice, despite throwing for 243 yards and three touchdowns.
“I think I scrambled sometimes last year,” Maye said. “You can see some of those guys on tape, [and] they take some guys out of the game. Even their corners are good players in the run game and tackling.”
Though Maye has taken a massive leap in Year 2, where he is a bona fide NFL MVP candidate, the Texans have been successful against running QBs. Josh Allen amassed just 20 yards on the ground in the Bills’ 23-19 loss in Houston, and Justin Herbert had 37 yards in Houston’s 20-16 win over the Chargers in Week 17.
Patriots QB Drake Maye Reveals Plan for Scrambling Against Hard-Hitting Texans Defense