Story byYahoo Sports StaffMon, January 19, 2026 at 1:50 AM UTC·2 min readThe New England Patriots are no longer wandering in the quarterback wilderness after Tom Brady’s exit from the franchise. Yep, the Patriots are back in familiar playoff position, deep into the AFC postseason and a win away from the Super Bowl with quarterback/MVP candidate Drake Maye and head coach Mike Vrabel leading. The Patriots got here via a 28-16 win over the Houston Texans in the divisional playoffs on Sunday. Here are some notable numbers on New England’s retrenchment in the AFC playoffs:AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement16Number of AFC title games the Patriots have made in their history.