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Dion Lewis Makes NFL History In Postseason Debut

Bryan Altman

BOSTON (CBS) -- It's been a trying season for Patriots' running back Dion Lewis, but the dual-threat running back is healthy and making history that now he's getting a chance to play in the postseason.

Lewis made his presence felt immediately in his first ever playoff game on Saturday night against the Houston Texans. After the Patriots' defense forced the Texans into a three-and-out to start the game, Tom Brady and the offense got to work, moving down the field with relative ease. A 30-yard pass interference penalty combined with a 22-yard connection to Chris Hogan put that Patriots at the Texans' 13-yard line, and from there Lewis did the rest.

Brady fed Lewis the ball in the left flat and, the back used his speed to streak down the sideline and into the end zone for the first touchdown of the game, giving the Patriots an early 7-0 lead.

Then, after the Texans cut the Patriots' lead to 7-3, Lewis struck again.

On the ensuing kickoff, Lewis took it to the house for 98 yards to give the Patriots a 14-3 lead over the Texans without Brady and the offense having to step foot on the field. The kick return touchdown was the first ever by the Patriots in the postseason.

And Lewis wasn't done yet. He ran for a one-yard score in the fourth quarter, making him the first player in NFL history to run for a touchdown, catch a touchdown and return a kick for a touchdown in the same playoff game. Not a bad postseason debut for the 5-foot-8 running back.

But after New England's 34-16 win, he was more focused on a fumble he lost on a kickoff return in the second quarter, which the Texans quickly turned into a touchdown to cut New England's lead to 14-13.

"[Scoring three different ways is] nice, but I'm just disappointed because I put my team in jeopardy," said Lewis, saying overall he had an "OK" game. "I've got a lot of work to do and that's what most of my focus is going to most be on."

After tearing his ACL in Week 9 of the 2015 season, Lewis remained on the PUP list until Week 11, when he was finally activated for the Patriots' win against the San Francisco 49ers. Now he's off to the AFC Championship game, which the Patriots will host next Sunday against either the Pittsburgh Steelers or Kansas City Chiefs.

"It's a great feeling," he said. "Nothing is guaranteed in this game, everybody knows that. So to go to the playoffs and get a win is exciting. We'll enjoy this the next couple of days and once we figure out who we're going to play, we know we've got a lot of work to do."

Lewis hasn't returned to his usual workload just yet, but him merely being on the team's active roster is a big deal for New England.

In fact, the Patriots have never lost a game in which Lewis has been on the field, so suffice it to say that the running back is a major difference-maker when he's healthy and contributing.

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