Patriots Pregame Thread Pre-Game thread - 2025 AFC Championship at Denver Broncos

Real fan 02 said:

Hard to see us giving up 20 points.. unless Drake Turns it over.. and gives the ball back in the red zone.

I expect a safe and conservative game plan for Stidham.. as I've said back ups in the NFL are back ups for a reason...

Now think of this.. would you say anyone thought of Nix as a top 10 QB.. maybe top 15ish.?

Now we are facing his backup! I feel like the patiots defense smells blood.

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15th in QBR, 25th in comp %, 28th in yds/comp, 9th in TDs, tied for 7th most INTs, 26th in QB rating

in the middle of the league in terms of EPA on pressured drop backs, but he gets pressured less, too.....his numbers dropped with the loss of Dobbins, so the better running game def was to his benefit (i feel this is probably the case with most QBs, but it hit him pretty good)

In terms of building around a young QB, he's in the middle; personally I like him better than say a Caleb, in that his floor is higher to be a consistent, every play QB and I'd rather that than the high ceiling on big plays that I think Caleb offers.....but realistically he's closer to a Shough or Penix than he is to a Maye.....in terms of starters in the league, 15th might even be a little high.....he's the product of a solid Oline and good offensive coach


that being said, it makes the loss of Nix a little less of a deal than say a loss of Hebert for the Chargers; the drop off from a Nix to a Stidham is much less than say a Hebert to a Lance; Stidham MIGHT be able to run most of the offense, he night even be able to do it close to a Nix level (because Nix is actually fairly mid); one might even argue that Nix is playing to develop, and that Stidham may actually be pretty close to him skill-wise, and might even do some things better, like throwing the ball downfield (not a Nix strength)

because I don't over rate nix, losing him will not be as huge an impact on the outcome; thing is, I would be more confident coming into this game with or without nix than I was coming into the Houston game; overall the Denver D is not as good as Houston, they are arguably the Chargers......Pats show up and play, and they win this one regardles of Denver QB

dannydyn said:

Agreed. He played under McDaniels in LV. McDaniels at worst, knows his weaknesses and will transfer that knowledge to our defense.

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Agreed. This isn't getting spoken about as much and I truly believe prior to Vrabel signing Dobbs is why he targeted Stidham as a backup due to Josh's familiarity with him. The level the defense is playing at right now along with the intimate knowledge of Stidham this defense is hungry. Surtland is thier biggest threat on offense.

DomCasual said:

He's likely to get some of that. I'm not talking trash with anyone here, by the way. I have no idea what will happen. It's the most interesting game I can remember, with all the oddities. I hope like heck we win. But I sort of feel we're playing with the house's money, at this point.

I do think that those here who are expecting a blowout are going to be much more tense Sunday than they expected. It's going to be a keep it close until someone makes the first mistake kind of game.

Another thing to throw out there - we activated JK Dobbins today. Not sure how much he will be able to help, but our offense completely changed when he went down.

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This is an incorrect statement. The Broncos did not activate Dobbins. They started his practice window. Meaning that he's still on the IR, but depending on how he practices, he could be removed and placed on the Active Roster before the AFCCG.

upstater1 said:

I mean, even Romo saw this and called it out before the play. He said Payton is going to throw this at Savage, you watch,

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What I find stunning is that people think this is somehow a genius move.. It's only one done by every NFL Coach in the league. When a defense loses a key player in the secondary, the Opposing coach always targets the new guy. It's a no-brainer type move.. It's not something that is to be impressed by, imho.

Triumph said:

Pats will likely wear White jerseys.

Wearing total white the Pats haven't lost on the road in 2025.

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I think the winning combo is:

Home: Blue tops, silver bottoms
Away: All whites

Rob0729 said:

Can we give Elliot Wolf a little credit for this. I don't think Vrabel is the one scouring waiver wires and practice squads for hidden gems.

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How do you know it's NOT Vrabel? Or John Streicher? Or Ryan Cowden?

How do we know that Todd Downing didn't mention Leonard Taylor to the Pats Scouting Staff as someone who could help with the D-Line. Downing was with the Jets last year. Much like the connection with Moses and Schweitzer that was talked about. Or the connections that were shown for a multitude of players that the Pats brought in.

DomCasual said:

Have I missed said insanity?

Most of what I see is along the lines of, "He's probably not going to be as bad as a lot of you think," followed by, "What the hell? Stop saying this guy is going to be in Canton! Dumbass!" (And the one guy who seems to end all his posts with hahahahahahaha - he's a peach.)

I think a lot of you read what you want to read, see what you want to see, and hear what you want to hear. Broncos fans generally feel as if they have something of a puncher's chance in this game. If Maye puts the ball on the ground, and we protect it, we can win. If Bo Nix played, I'd feel differently. But in all likelihood, our season essentially ended when they took the x-ray of his leg. But honestly, a lot of you sort of remind me why it would be really cool to see Stidham come out, throw for 4 TDs, and make Patriots fans go back to being generally miserable about life. (Hey, no offense - I feel the same way about Celtics, Bruins, and Red Sox fans - don't take it personally. But I digress. I'm digressing.)

I kid. Sort of. Some of you seem delightful.

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Stiddy isn't Rocky.

Ross12 said:

I think the winning combo is:

Home: Blue tops, silver bottoms
Away: All whites

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Screw all that. The blue/gray Nor'easters. Bring a storm in there.

Ross12 said:

I think the winning combo is:

Home: Blue tops, silver bottoms
Away: All whites

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I was never a fan of all whites until the Pats rolled out their 2025 version.

Rob0729 said:

Can we give Elliot Wolf a little credit for this. I don't think Vrabel is the one scouring waiver wires and practice squads for hidden gems.

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Absolutely. I'd also like to give TW and Zak some credit behind the scenes in prepping these guys.

PatsFan2 said:

Drake Maye missed Kyle Williams on a beautiful release that would have went for 7 last game. We can't miss those on Sunday.

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Lassiter was committing PIs all game.. if you're supposed to be a top CB you shouldn't need to hold... weather also played a part.. but I like Williams on Riley moss all game long...

Is anyone else like me?

I had supreme confidence before the San Diego and Texans games.

But I don't have the same confidence about this upcoming game in Denver.

I'm 50% on it. I think they can easily lose this one.

DomCasual said:

You a Boston sports fan, across the board? Red Sox fan?

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Yup

denverpatsfan said:

They must have gone up. They were 375...
I'm gonna wait till the weekend to buy a seat.

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Yup, the price will gradually come down as the game approaches. Also, on Wednesday both teams return tickets that they wont be using. So that is a prudent time to keep an eye on the ticket websites. That paid off for me when I scored a 50 yard line low level for the Pats vs Bears in 2002 @ U of Illinois stadium.

Craigslist is full of scammers with sob stories and $300 tickets that are going for $800 everywhere else. Sometimes you can find a legit deal, but folks that I met at SB46 got robbed at gunpoint because they were careless. Once the seller starts interjecting personal problems like - the money is for my sick mother in the hospital - its 99% sure to be a scam.

Rob0729 said:

I think a big thing to monitor this week is what WRs for Denver are practicing. If Troy Franklin (hamstring) and Pat Bryant (concussion) aren't practicing, I think Stidham is toast. How can you lose your starting QB and your #2 and #3 WR and be effective in the AFCCG.

I know Broncos fans are excited about the prospect of JK Dobbins coming back, but how good is he going to be coming off a Liscfranc tear?

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QB1 - Nix (OUT)
QB2 - Stidham

RB1 - Dobbins (MIGHT be in; coming off Lisfranc injury; very hard to return from)
RB2 - Harvey

WR1 - Sutton
WR2 - Franklin (potentially OUT)
WR3 - Bryant (potentially OUT)
WR4 - Mims
WR5 - Humphrey

Not a great setup there.

shmessy said:

Is there something lost in translation there? Garrett had 5 sacks that game - - he was on Drake more than Ann Michael.

.

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Yeah what's lost is Garrett is one elite guy. Texans and chargers have two a piece. You can't roll right because you roll into Hunter

PatsFan2 said:

Even though Myles Garrett is Great: his overall impact was felt as much as Will Anderson's. The Texans Defense is excellent overall compared to the Browns.

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Yes one to one but whose the left end for the browns?

upstater1 said:

Is anyone else like me?

I had supreme confidence before the San Diego and Texans games.

But I don't have the same confidence about this upcoming game in Denver.

I'm 50% on it. I think they can easily lose this one.

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looking at the brackets at the start of the playoffs, i assumed denver would be one and done, and they should have been

more confidence than the texans game for sure, probably as much or more confident than the chargers matchup

upstater1 said:

Is anyone else like me?

I had supreme confidence before the San Diego and Texans games.

But I don't have the same confidence about this upcoming game in Denver.

I'm 50% on it. I think they can easily lose this one.

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LA I was fairly confident.

Houston I was deathly afraid.

Denver I am back to being fairly confident especially with Stiddy.