“Patriots give Mayes first start to Texans”

The Texans came out strong with an 11-play, 65-yard touchdown drive, converting two third-down opportunities. The first went to Stefon Diggs on 3rd-and-6 when CJ Stroud hit Diggs on a corner route, while the second came via a pass interference penalty on Marte Mapu, who was a little too long on the tight end for the referee's liking Dalton Schultz held .

The Patriots defense struggled to pressure Stroud on his first pass attempts as the Texans quarterback had time to comfortably survey the field. While the Pats had some solid stops against the run, Mapu's penalty in the end zone proved to be too much and Houston took an early 7-0 lead, paving the way for rookie Drake Maye to make the field for the first start to take over his NFL career.

But it was a quick three-and-out for Maye after two runs that only gained one yard and a skyed pass on third down that got nowhere near anyone.

Rookie Ben Brown made the surprise start at center after only signing with the team on Wednesday evening. The reasoning was unclear, although last week's starter, Nick Leverette, was on the injury report all week with an ankle injury.

After a 40-yard punt by Bryce Baringer was returned for 19 yards, Houston took over the second possession at the New England 45-yard line.

They quickly added another touchdown and kept the drive alive with another third-down pass interference call. The drive lasted eight plays and 45 yards, with Joe Mixon scoring the second touchdown of the game.

The score was 14-0 for Houston, as the Texans played 19 plays, the Patriots played three and quickly built a double-digit lead.