Houston Antwine arrived in Boston after being drafted by both the Oilers and the Lions, and the Southern Illinois product chose the Patriots over Detroit. The decision paid off quickly. After limited action in his first two seasons, he locked down the right defensive tackle spot in 1963 and immediately began drawing double teams.

That 1963 campaign brought first-team All-AFL recognition from multiple outlets and the first of six straight AFL All-Star selections. Antwine stayed in that tier for the rest of the decade. He earned second-team All-AFL nods in several of those years while pairing with Jim Lee Hunt to form one of the better interior duos in the league. Pro Football Reference credits him with 38 career sacks, and he led the Patriots in that category from 1967 through 1969, posting a career-high 7.5 in 1968. Opposing quarterbacks who tried to step up in the pocket often found Antwine arriving faster than expected for a 270-pounder.

The production remained steady through the late 1960s even as the supporting cast around him changed. Antwine continued starting into the early 1970s before his role decreased. After the 1971 season, he left the Patriots and was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. His eleven years in New England ended there. With the Patriots, he appeared in 142 games and started 115 of them while recording 36 of those 38 sacks, one interception, and multiple fumble recoveries. He posted those numbers while serving as a consistent disruptor on a defense that rarely featured other elite talent up front.

Antwine played one season in Philadelphia in 1972 before retiring. The Patriots later placed him in their Hall of Fame in 2015, and he was also named to the All-Time All-AFL Team.