DENVER – This morning, a thought crossed the mind of Yours Truly.
The last time the Patriots played in an AFC Championship game was in 2018. Where was it? Did you say Kansas City?
Arrowhead Stadium was another NFL road stadium where they seldom won. Back in 2004, they won their first game in that city since 1964. Generally referred to as the loudest stadium in the NFL, the Patriots seldom played well there, and the Chiefs seemed a sure bet to earn a trip to Super Bowl LIII.
Except it was the Patriots who won, 37-31 in overtime against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. Add that to your “it can be done” notes.
In a game that turned into the second coming of the Snow Bowl, the Patriots entered into a new era of Patriot Football and rekindled a lot of pleasant memories for Patriot Nation. The Patriots went into a city and a stadium where they never saw any kind of postseason success, and exorcised a whole bunch of demons in punching their tickets to Super Bowl LX. It was a tough battle made tougher by the elements, but the Patriots did everything they needed to do and walked out of Empower Field in Denver on Sunday with a 10-7 win and their 12th AFC Championship.
This soon-to-be 12th Super Bowl for the Patriots extends their NFL record for most Super Bowl appearances by one team. It will be played at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, the home of the 49ers, and a much more comfortable weather environment than the previous three games for the Patriots. Their opponent will be the Seattle Seahawks, 31-27 winners over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday in Seattle.
Of course, the Seahawks present a rematch with a past opponent. Seattle no longer has Pete Carroll, Darrell Bevell, or Marshawn Lynch. But the Patriots no longer have Tom Brady, Julian Edelman, or Malcolm Butler. This will be a great matchup in quite a different way.
To get to this game, the Patriots needed to ask even more from their defense than the previous two playoff games. Drake Maye was more help to the Patriots with his rushes than he was with his passes. But he misfired on several throws, and he still looks like he is not totally comfortable in the postseason. Still, Maye committed zero turnovers while the Bronco offense, led by former Patriot Jarrett Stidham, suffered two turnovers, which both proved lethal to the Broncos.
Two sequences proved critical in the Patriots’ win.
In the second quarter, the Broncos began at the Patriots’ 47 and drove to the 23. They made it to the 14, 4th down and 1. Sean Payton decided to go for it rather than to take a chip-shot field goal. Stidham tried to hit R.J. Harvey in the right flat, but the throw was too far to the right and was nearly picked off by Craig Woodson. So the Broncos drove 43 yards and came away with nothing.
The Patriots took over, drove from the 14 to the 38, and then punted, flipping the field position nicely. Denver took over at its 17 yard line. Six plays later, they were at their own 33 when one of the more bizarre plays of this season happened.
Stidham dropped back and was under an intense rush by Christian Elliss. Stidham turned to his left and, just as Elliss was about to hit his arm, flung the ball to the sidelines in a backward direction. Elijah Ponder picked up the ball and ran it in for what should have been a scoop-and-score touchdown. A flag was thrown.
The flag was intentional grounding on Stidham. Referee Alex Kemp did a review and then set the ball at the Denver 12 yard line, Patriot ball. The touchdown did not stand because there was a whistle that blew when Ponder picked up the loose ball. CBS officiating expert Gene Steratore told the audience that by blowing the whistle, the ball could not be advanced. Since Ponder made a clear recovery, the ball was placed at the 12.
On first down, Maye hit Kayshawn Boutte on a quick right slant for six yards. On second down, the Grand Canyon opened up over right tackle, and Maye easily ran it in to tie the game at 7-7.
Four field goals were missed by the two kickers. One was made. On the opening drive of the second half, the Patriots took the ball and drove from the Patriots’ 31 to the Denver 5. With the snow now coming in more noticeably, Rhamondre Stevenson was featured on this drive. When the drive stalled at the five, Andres Borregales went out and hit the one field goal in the game, from 23 yards. Mike Vrabel took the three instead of going for it. Result: Payton’s decision resulted in a turnover, while Vrabel’s decision won the game for the Patriots.
The fourth quarter was unlike most any of recent memory. By now the field was almost completely white, the snow was still coming down, and the passing offenses for both teams was about nil. The first three drives for the Patriots were all three and outs, featuring mostly runs by Stevenson. It became clear what Vrabel and Josh McDaniels were doing. Under these conditions, the Patriots were only too happy to burn some clock, then give the ball back to Denver.
By now, Stidham was totally useless, and the Broncos had no viable option at running back. The Patriots knew this and had Denver by the throat.
On Denver’s last possession which began at their 32, Stidham handed off to Harvey for one yard. On second down, Stidham tried to hit Marvin Mims Jr. on a deep right seam pass, but Christian Gonzalez made an easy pick to seal the win.
Actually, the win was sealed by Maye. After the pick, the Patriots forced Denver to use up all their timeouts, then on third down and six at their 40, Maye did a bootleg fake and ran left towards the first down marker. He was pursued by Jonah Elliss (Christian’s brother), but ran out of bounds just as he crossed the line to gain. Victory formations ensued.
The Patriots won this game largely by making weather adjustments, and doing exactly what was needed to win. They will need to do this again in the Super Bowl against Seattle, but give the Patriots credit for successfully reinventing themselves in this Vrabel’s first season as Patriot head coach.
The trophy presentation was wonderful to watch, headed by honorary captain Adam Vinatieri. A ton of Patriot fans, none of whom care one iota about flying problems that await them as they attempt to head home, witnessed the event. Bob Kraft accepted the Lamar Hunt Trophy from Vinatieri and pontificated only briefly. Vrabel can become the first in NFL history to win a Super Bowl as both a player and a coach with the same team.
Winning in Denver will pale in two weeks if the Patriots do go on to win Super Bowl LX. But this amazing season continues now for two more weeks, and will conclude in NoCal two weeks from now. The game will be a very entertaining renewal of Super Bowl XLIX, one of the most dramatic Super Bowls in history.
For now, the Patriots will also attempt to fly home amidst one of the worst snowstorms in recent years. But they have their Hunt Trophy and their tickets punched for the Bay Area.
With a new sentence dancing through their heads. It can be done, and we did it.
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Covering Boston Sports since 1997. Native of Worcester, Mass. Attended UMass and Univ of Michigan. Lives in California. Just recently retired after 40 years of public school teaching. Podcasts on YouTube at @thepic4139
