It is officially January in Foxborough. That means the air is biting, the tailgates are rowdy, and the stakes are as high as they’ve been in years. Honestly, if you told a Patriots fan back in August that Mike Vrabel would have this team at 14–3 and sitting on a first-round playoff win, they probably would’ve laughed you out of the room. But here we are.
The New England Patriots remaining football schedule is no longer a list of seventeen weekly chores. It’s a gauntlet. The regular season is in the rearview mirror, and the "second season" is in full swing. After a suffocating 16–3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card Round, the path to Santa Clara and Super Bowl LX is suddenly very real, very tangible, and very difficult.
The Divisional Round: Houston Comes to Town
The next big hurdle is right in front of us. This Sunday, January 18, 2026, the Houston Texans land at Gillette Stadium for a 3:00 PM EST kickoff. This isn't the same Houston team we used to bully in the 2010s. They are coming in hot with a 10-game winning streak.
Basically, this is the ultimate "unstoppable force meets immovable object" scenario. The Texans' defense is legitimate nightmare fuel. They rank first in total yards allowed. They have Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. coming off the edges—a duo that combined for 27 sacks this year. If the Patriots want to keep their season alive, Drake Maye has to stay upright.
Maye has been incredible, don't get me wrong. Being a second-team All-Pro as a rookie (or near-rookie depending on how you count his starts) is wild. But he took five sacks against the Chargers. He had two turnovers. He can’t do that against Houston. If he does, the Texans' defense will feast on those mistakes just like they did against Pittsburgh last week.
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The Left Side of the Line
Keep an eye on the left side of the Patriots' offensive line. Rookie left tackle Will Campbell and rookie guard Jared Wilson are the keys to the kingdom right now. They struggled a bit against the Chargers' pass rush. Now, they have to face Anderson and Hunter. It’s a "welcome to the big leagues" moment that will likely decide whether New England advances to the AFC Championship or starts booking tee times in Florida.
Looking Ahead: The AFC Championship Game
If the Patriots manage to dismantle the Texans, the New England Patriots remaining football schedule gets even more intense. The AFC Championship is set for Sunday, January 25, 2026.
The opponent? That’s still up in the air, but you can bet it’ll be a heavyweight. We’re likely looking at a showdown with either the top-seeded Denver Broncos or the Buffalo Bills.
- The Denver Factor: Denver took the No. 1 seed on a tiebreaker. They have Bo Nix playing out of his mind and a defense that’s just as stingy as New England’s. A trip to the altitude of Mile High is the last thing anyone wants in late January.
- The Buffalo Rivalry: If it’s the Bills, throw the record books out. The road team won both matchups between these two in 2025. Josh Allen versus Drake Maye is becoming the new "Brady vs. Manning" of the AFC East, and a playoff version of that rivalry would be electric.
Health is Wealth: The Injury Report
You can't talk about a playoff run without looking at the training room. The good news? Christian Gonzalez is back. The Pro Bowl corner cleared concussion protocol and is off the injury report. That is huge. You need your best eraser on the field when you're facing elite playoff receivers.
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However, it’s not all sunshine. Harold Landry III is currently questionable with a knee issue. He’s been a vital part of Vrabel's defensive scheme. We also saw some movement on the roster this weekend:
- Alex Austin was activated from IR. He’s a special teams ace and adds depth to the secondary.
- D'Ernest Johnson and Leonard Taylor III were elevated from the practice squad.
- Mack Hollins remains on IR with an abdomen injury, which thins out the receiving corps slightly.
The 2025 Turnaround: How We Got Here
It’s worth pausing to realize how historic this run actually is. This 14–3 season tied the NFL record for the largest single-season turnaround in history (a 10-game improvement). After the misery of the last couple of years, Mike Vrabel has restored the "Patriot Way," but with a modern, aggressive twist.
The defense is ranked 4th in the league in points against. They’ve only allowed 18.8 points per game. That’s the kind of math that wins championships. When you combine that with an offense that finally has a vertical threat in Maye, you have a team that nobody wants to see in their bracket.
Mapping Out the Remaining Potential Dates
If you're planning your life around the Patriots, here are the dates you need to circle:
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- Divisional Round: Sunday, Jan 18 vs. Houston (3:00 PM EST, ABC/ESPN)
- AFC Championship: Sunday, Jan 25 (Time/Opponent TBD)
- Super Bowl LX: Sunday, Feb 8 at Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara (6:30 PM EST, NBC)
Actionable Steps for Fans
If you're heading to the stadium or watching from home, the "remaining schedule" is down to a maximum of three games.
First, keep a close watch on the active/inactive list which drops 90 minutes before kickoff on Sunday. If Harold Landry III is out, the pass rush rotation changes significantly. Second, monitor the weather in Foxborough. January games at Gillette are often won on the ground; if the wind picks up, expect a heavy dose of Rhamondre Stevenson and a lot of short, tactical throws from Maye to Hunter Henry.
The path is narrow, but for the first time in the post-Belichick era, the New England Patriots have a legitimate map to the Super Bowl. It all starts with neutralizing Houston's pass rush. If they can do that, the AFC Championship is within reach.