The New England Patriots are gearing up for their biggest game of the year — an AFC Championship Game matchup with the top-seeded Denver Broncos.
New England got there by knocking off the Houston Texans 28-16 in the AFC divisional round last weekend.
The Patriots used a smothering defensive effort — they forced 4 C.J. Stroud interceptions and limited the Texans to just 48 yards rushing as a team — to dictate the pace and control the momentum.
New England limited Houston running back Woody Marks to just 17 yards on 14 carries — a 1.2 yards per carry average. But that wasn’t the only thing fans will remember about Marks’ performance from that game.
Marks Fined for Incident vs. Patriots
GettyHouston Texans RB Woody Marks tackles New England Patriots DB Craig Woodson
When the NFL released its list of weekly fines on Saturday, and Marks’ name was on it.
The 25-year-old tailback was hit with a $6,061 fine for use of the helmet at the 8:37 mark of the second quarter.
The incident happened after a Stroud interception by rookie defensive back Craig Woodson. Marks closed in on the tackle, but he led with the crown of his helmet, which caught the NFL league office’s attention.
Though Marks was not flagged for unnecessary roughness on the play, the NFL rule book states a player can still be fined for leading with his helmet even if there’s no penalty called on the play.
Rule 12, Section 2, Article 10 states: “It is a foul if a player: (a) lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent; or (b) uses any part of his helmet or facemask to butt or make forcible contact to an opponent’s head or neck.”
Outside of his interception, Woodson played one heck of a game. He finished with 5 tackles, 3 passes defensed, a QB hit, and an interception. Woodson also didn’t allow a catch on 3 targets in coverage, per Pro Football Focus. He also allowed a 0.0 passer rating against across 52 defensive snaps, 47 of which came in coverage.
Pats Get Brutal Injury News Before AFC Title Game
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Patriots will be without star edge-rusher Harold Landry for Sunday’s winner-take-all matchup in Denver.
“For the AFC Title Game: The #Patriots have ruled out leading sacker Harold Landry because of a knee injury,” Rapoport wrote on X. “Meanwhile, WR Mack Hollins (abdomen) is questionable, with optimism that he goes.”
Landry led the Pats with 8.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss this season — his first with the team.
He also logged 48 pressures, 29 hurries, and 10 QB hits, according to Pro Football Focus, and his 11.9% pass-rush win-rate was also second-highest among New England edge-rushers, behind only K’Lavon Chaisson (14.9%).
Being without their $43.5 million edge-rusher, the Patriots will have to rely heavily on fellow pass-rushing specialist K’Lavon Chaisson, who totaled 54 pressures, 34 hurries and 7.5 sacks, which was second-most on the team behind Landry.
Linebacker Elijah Ponder, who had 15 pressures, 9 hurries, and 4 sacks during the regular season, and Milton Williams, who contributed 36 pressures, 27 hurries, and 3.5 sacks, will also have to pick up some of the slack with Landry sidelined.
Texans Player Hit With NFL Punishment for Incident vs Patriots