For the third straight year, the New England Patriots will travel to the Houston Texans, as they begin two consecutive games against Texas teams. The Patriots will host Dallas the following week.
The Patriots will play Houston for the seventh straight season despite not being in the same division. That mark is tied for the second-longest streak of games against a non-division opponent for New England. The Patriots faced Indianapolis for 10 straight seasons (2003-12) and Denver for seven straight seasons (2011-17). The only other non-division teams to meet at least seven consecutive seasons since 2002 were Buffalo and Kansas City, who played eight straight seasons from 2008-15.