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Who do Patriots play next in NFL playoffs? New England awaits Monday Night Football winner.

The New England Patriots are moving on to the divisional round of the NFL playoffs. Now they have to wait until Monday night to find out who they will play.

New England, the No. 2 seed in the AFC after a 14-3 regular season, advanced in the postseason with a 16-3 win on Sunday night over the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium.

Who do the Patriots play next?

The Patriots will play next weekend against an undetermined opponent. All that is known for sure is that it will be either the Pittsburgh Steelers or Houston Texans, and that the game will take place Sunday, Jan. 18. The time will be announced on Monday.

The third-seeded Jacksonville Jaguars fell to the No. 6 Buffalo Bills Sunday afternoon. If the Jaguars had won, they would have been coming to Foxboro.

Instead, Buffalo assured itself a trip to Denver to face the No. 1 seeded Broncos because they are the lowest remaining seed with the Chargers now eliminated.

So as a result, the Patriots will now play the winner of the Monday Night showdown between the Texans and Steelers. The game will take place at Gillette Stadium.

Recent history vs. Steelers and Texans

The Patriots and Steelers played in Week 3. Drake Maye passed for 268 yards and the Patriots offense had success moving the ball against Pittsburgh, but they turned the ball over five times on the day. That included two fumbles near the goal line.

Pittsburgh went on to win the AFC North with a record of 10-7 thanks to the Baltimore Ravens missing a last-minute field goal in a winner-take-all showdown in Week 18.

Houston, meanwhile, earned the No. 5 seed as the top wild-card team after a 12-5 regular season.

The Texans and Patriots did not play this year. Maye did make his first ever NFL start last season against Houston, which has become known for having one of the most ferocious defenses in the league. 

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