Last-second field goal crushes hopes of both Patriots, Broncos

The New England Patriots held off a Denver Broncos rally to win their Christmas Eve matchup, 26-23. 

It was a game where winning meant everything to Denver, sitting at 7-7 on the fringes of the AFC wild-card race. Losing meant everything for the Patriots, out of the playoffs, with each loss giving them a higher draft choice.

But former backup Bailey Zappe wasn’t invested in helping his team get a high pick to draft a new quarterback. Zappe completed 25-of-33 passes and threw for two touchdowns, his second win in his last three as a starter.

In those last three starts, Zappe has thrown six TD passes and gone 67-for-92, a 73% completion rate. 

Meanwhile the Patriots have “dropped” from the No. 2 overall pick to the No. 4 pick as a result of the win.

As for the Broncos, they dropped to 7-8 and are now sitting behind four 8-7 teams, hoping for the last AFC wild-card spot. 

It looked like they’d blown the game early when they fumbled a New England kickoff, giving the Patriots a two touchdowns in six seconds and a 23-7 lead.

Ryland missed a field goal and an extra point in the game, but came through at the crucial moment with his 56-yard effort. A fourth-round pick in 2023’s draft, the rookie kicker also had no interest in improving his team’s draft position, and perhaps enabling them to draft his replacement, just like Zappe.

It just goes to show that while NFL teams might want to tank, the individual players still very much want to win. Patriots fans shouldn’t take a high draft pick for granted. The Denver Broncos may have gravely misfired by taking a victory for granted themselves.