As the fourth quarter began in the divisional round matchup at a snowy Gillette Stadium, the Patriots offense had seen its previous four drives end in either a punt or a turnover.
Holding just a five-point led, the group knew they needed to make a play.
In came Kayshon Boutte.
Facing a 3rd-and-4 from the Houston 32-yard line, quarterback Drake Maye took a shot downfield, trusting his receiver in one-on-one coverage against All-Pro cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. Boutte rewarded that trust, hauling in a diving one-handed catch that ultimately sealed the Patriots’ spot in the AFC Championship Game.
In the moment, though, Boutte didn’t even realize he had only used one hand to secure the catch.
“I still look back and I was wondering, ‘How did I catch that?’” he said. “I never realized that it was one-handed till I got to the sideline and was watching it on the screen.”
The connection marked a league-high fifth deep touchdown of 20-plus air yards between Maye and Boutte this season. It also brought back memories of when the duo connected on each other’s first career touchdown in Maye’s first start last season against the Texans.
“Kind of the same type of throw as my first one to him. And he made an even better catch this time,” Maye said. “Props to Kayshon for keep on playing. He was huge for us tonight.”
“It was the exact same route, same end zone, same corner of the end zone on the same person,” Boutte added. “That was my first touchdown and his first touchdown, and I asked him if he wanted the game ball last year too and he told me I could keep it.”
Boutte led the team with 75 receiving yards in New England’s win over Houston, as the 23-year-old also had a pair of downfield receptions on the team’s second touchdown drive.
“We talked all week about staying aggressive,” Boutte said. “I think you could say that was one of the plays that we did decide to take a shot. Early in that drive, we tried to back shoulder. We got the pass interference call, so we went right back at it. Shoutout to Drake on the throw. Shoutout for him for being confident, O-line blocking, just making a play. We knew, like Vrabes talk about, it’s all going to come down to somebody making a play.”
“He keeps on making them,” Maye said of Boutte. “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.”
The performance came nearly one year after Mike Vrabel was named the Patriots’ new head coach last January — a moment that left Boutte uncertain about his future with the team. On Sunday, the two shared a moment in the tunnel following the win, emblematic of how Boutte has grown into a key piece of Vrabel’s offense.
“It was a great moment. I think he had told he me was proud of the way I was going,” Boutte said. “I’m thankful he believed in me when he came in. There was a lot of talks about where I would be, possibly traded and stuff like that.
“But he believed. I believed. And it’s been great.”
