New England Patriots
“He continues to show up, game in and game out.”
FOXBOROUGH — Kayshon Boutte wasn’t lacking in terms of confidence earlier this week.
For most of the last week, most of the discourse surrounding New England’s divisional-round matchup against the Texans revolved around how the Patriots were going to counter an elite and aggressive Houston defense.
As daunting as Houston’s defense has been all season, Boutte pushed back against the assertion that New England’s offense — ranked second in the NFL in points scored per game (28.8) — wasn’t going to be able to land punches against the Texans on Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
“I wouldn’t say one of the toughest,” Boutte told reporters about Houston’s defense. “At the end of the day, we know we’re going to get man coverage. We’ve gotta beat it. It’s that simple.
“We’re going to do the same things we’ve been doing. At the end of the day, we want to make them try to adjust to how we play. They’re not too complicated on defense. Not too many different looks. We get a good tell at what they’re doing. But just being us.”
On Sunday, Boutte let his play do the talking against Houston’s vaunted defense.
Yes, Drake Maye and the Patriots had plenty of tough sledding against Houston — with the Texans strip-sacking the New England QB four times in the game.
It was far from the best showing from Maye against a suffocating defense.
But when the signal-caller needed to make a play in a five-point game, he turned to his best deep-ball threat in the fourth quarter.
Staring at a 3rd-and-4 situation from Houston’s 32-yard line, Maye sailed a ball down the sideline to Boutte, who had already forced a defensive pass interference call against All-Pro cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. earlier in that drive.
Once again, Boutte got the better of Stingley — reeling in Maye’s pass via a one-armed catch in the end zone to finally give New England some breathing room.
As impressive as Boutte’s catch was, it stood as a familiar sight for Maye.
After all, Maye’s first TD pass of his NFL came against the Texans in October 2024 — with the QB connecting with Boutte in the end zone with Stingley in coverage.
“He keeps on making them,” Maye said of Boutte after New England’s win over the Texans. “He keeps on making plays, making me look good. I’m proud to be able to give him some throws to make a play on it. A one-handed catch, not much else to say about it. It was pretty sweet.
“Kind of the same type of throw as my first one to him. And he made an even better catch this time. Props to Kayshon for keep on playing. He was huge for us tonight. That receiver room just keeps on doing good things. Good job in the running game. I think I could have more chances downfield and make better throws. But you can’t be too hard on myself and move on to the next one.”
Boutte, 23, was New England’s top receiving threat in what was largely an up-and-down showing from the Patriots’ passing game.
Boutte finished with three catches for 75 yards in the victory — with his other two catches coming on the same second-quarter drive that was capped with a Stefon Diggs touchdown.
Boutte’s emergence as a legitimate deep-ball threat has been one of several factors that has helped New England’s offense go from 30th in the league in points per game to second overall in the span of a year.
On the season, Boutte has reeled in 33 catches for 551 yards and six touchdowns. He’s also developed a knack for getting the better of All-Pro defensive backs.
As noted by ESPN’s Field Yates, Stingley has labored against Boutte in their last two matchups — allowing two catches on two targets for 72 yards and two touchdowns.
Against all other wideouts since the 2024 season, Stingley has only allowed two catches on 34 targets off of throws of 20-plus air yards.
Boutte could be matched up against another elite corner next week in the AFC championship game in Denver.
With a trip to Super Bowl LX on the line, Boutte could be matched up against the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year in Broncos star CB Patrick Surtain II.
“I was impressed,” Diggs said of Boutte’s performance, adding: “He’s a hell of a player. But he continues to show up, game in and game out. He’s just one of the guys that we’re going to continue to motivate, push and talk a lot of junk to.
“But he shows up, he makes a lot of plays and I’m proud of that guy. It’s hard to get the ball around here. When guys do get it, they’re taking advantage of their odds.”
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