The Patriots held off the Broncos in the AFC Championship to return to the Super Bowl. Mark Schofield explains how they made history this year.
The New England Patriots are headed to Super Bowl XL.
Thanks to their scrappy 10-7 win over the Denver Broncos, Mike Vrabel and company are off to the Super Bowl, just one season after finishing at the bottom of both the AFC East. That sets up a rematch in the big game, as they’ll take on either the Seattle Seahawks or the Los Angeles Rams.
With the win, the Patriots also made a little history.
New England is the first team to finish 9-0 on the road
The AFC Championship Game was played in Denver, as the Broncos secured the No. 1 seed in the AFC as well as the sole bye week in the conference. The Broncos and the Patriots finished with matching 14-3 records, but Denver’s record against common opponents — and in particular New England’s loss back in Week 1 to the Las Vegas Raiders — secured the top spot for Denver.
That meant Sunday’s game was New England’s ninth road game this season, and the Patriots won them all. New England had eight road games in the regular season, winning all eight:
- Week 2 at Miami (33-27)
- Week 5 at Buffalo (23-20)
- Week 6 at New Orleans (25-19)
- Week 7 at Tennessee (31-13)
- Week 10 at Tampa Bay (28-23)
- Week 12 at Cincinnati (26-20)
- Week 16 at Baltimore (28-24)
- Week 17 at New York Jets (42-10)
- AFC Championship at Denver (10-7)
That makes the Patriots the first team in league history to win nine game on the road in a single season.
For those wondering, the Super Bowl is considered a neutral-site game. In addition, the AFC — and therefore the Patriots — are the designated home team for Super Bowl LX.
Patriots become first 13-loss team to reach Super Bowl
As mentioned above, the Patriots finished with a 4-13 record in both 2023 and 2024.
But by advancing to Super Bowl LX, the Patriots are the first team in NFL history to reach the Super Bowl after losing 13 games the previous year.
“It’ll be the players that’ll win the game,” said head coach Mike Vrabel after the game. “It won’t be me that’ll win, it, but I’ll do everything I can with our staff to have them ready for the game.”
Vrabel can also make some history in Super Bowl LX, as he could become the first person in league history to win a Super Bowl with the same team as both a player, and a head coach. Vrabel won three Super Bowls (36, 38, and 39) as a player for the New England Patriots.
Category: General Sports
