MANCHESTER, N.H. —
The New England Patriots are looking to make history on Sunday against the Houston Texans.
If the Patriots win and the 49ers lose their matchup with the Seattle Seahawks, New England will tie San Francisco for the most postseason wins in NFL history.
A Patriots win would also send them to their 16th AFC Championship game, tying the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most ever.
Practice continued Thursday at Gillette Stadium ahead of Sunday’s showdown. Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez was on the field without a red noncontact jersey, indicating he’s in good shape to clear concussion protocol.
>> PATRIOTS ON WMUR: Patriots to host Texans for next playoff game Sunday at 3 p.m. on WMUR-TV <<
One of the most important Patriots on the field Sunday isn’t a player. It’s offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and his game plan for the suffocating Texans defense. McDaniels said the Houston defense does everything well.
“The effort that they play with is elite, and we’re going to have to match the effort and play to the whistle on every play, because they make a lot of plays because they play harder than you do. They play longer than you do,” McDaniels said.
McDaniels’ younger brother, Ben, is the receivers coach and passing game coordinator for Houston. Josh McDaniels said he knows his brother is trying to beat him, just like he’s trying to beat his brother.