The New England Patriots are preparing for the AFC Championship Game against the Denver Broncos after a hard-fought win over the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round. The team is one victory away from reaching another Super Bowl.
Denver will be without starting quarterback Bo Nix, who suffered an ankle injury during their previous game against Buffalo. Instead, former Patriots draft pick Jarrett Stidham will start at quarterback for the Broncos. Stidham has not thrown a pass in an NFL game since 2023.
Despite losing their starter, Denver remains strong on both sides of the line and features a defense considered among the best in the league. Historically, playoff games at Mile High Stadium have been challenging for New England, which has lost four times to Denver in postseason play, including two AFC Championships in 2013 and 2015.
One key area of focus for New England is maintaining defensive pressure. The return of Milton Williams has improved both their interior pass rush and run defense. Head coach Mike Vrabel commented on Denver’s offensive strategy: “They do a nice job with moving the pocket, different throws, and not just standing back there,” said Vrabel this week. “Sean [Payton] and his staff have done a great job of finding the balance of when to throw in the pocket and seven-man protection sometimes on third down. And then, again, when they don’t, they block them. They do a nice job of blocking them on the edges. And they try to stay firm in the middle.”
Robert Spillane’s return has also helped solidify New England’s run defense. If they can limit Denver’s ground game early and force Stidham into difficult passing situations on third down, it could give New England’s defense an advantage.
Quarterback Drake Maye has led New England to two playoff wins with several notable throws but has also taken ten sacks and fumbled six times during this postseason run. Despite these issues, Maye leads all quarterbacks remaining in playoff touchdown passes (four), yards per attempt (8.0), and yards per catch (13.5). When protected well by his offensive line, he is capable of making big plays downfield.
The Broncos’ defense ranks near or at the top across multiple categories: third in points allowed; second in total yards allowed; second on third downs; first in red zone defense; eighth by EPA; and eighth by DVOA metrics this season. While turnovers have been rare for them overall—just 14 all year—they forced five takeaways last week against Buffalo.
Maye acknowledged Denver’s challenge: “We’ve got to be firing all cylinders with protection,” said Maye this week. “In the run game, they do a good job of getting TFLs and getting after the quarterback in the passing game… So just knowing if they heat us up… depending on how the game’s going, they could heat us up more or heat us up less and just kind of take it from there.”
New England is undefeated on the road this season (8–0), but playing at Mile High presents unique difficulties due to past losses there during critical playoff games.
“I think playing on the road is – one of the coolest things is coming off the field at their place, with screaming fans, and coming out with a win,” said Maye. “I think it’s pretty cool to celebrate and celebrating in an away locker room that’s different. Coach [Vrabel] has always been saying ‘Road warriors.’ So we’re trying to find that one more time… We’ve got a tough job and a tough challenge but I think guys will be pumped up and ready for it.”
If successful against Denver’s strong defensive front—and able to protect possession—the Patriots would advance to their twelfth Super Bowl appearance.
