Patriots players dismiss 'Cinderella' label ahead of AFC Championship Game vs. Broncos

A New England Patriots side that finished the 2024 season with a record of 4-13 is now a win over the Denver Broncos in the upcoming AFC Championship Game away from securing a trip to Super Bowl LX. 

Following New England's 28-16 victory over the Houston Texans in Sunday's divisional-round playoff matchup, multiple Patriots players spoke with NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated and made it known they don't view the club's ongoing postseason journey as any kind of "Cinderella" run.

Patriots are more "a good football team" than a Cinderella story

"I don’t think we buy into what everyone else [says]," Patriots receiver Stefon Diggs told Breer. "Everybody that comes into work each and every day here ain’t over here saying we got a Cinderella story. Like, nah, we come in and work hard, we do what we are supposed to — and we try our best on Sundays. It’s not too much of a story. Everybody else can buy into that narrative. For us, we try to be a good football team, a well-coached football team, and do the right things consistently." 

It was roughly 12 months ago when Patriots owner Robert Kraft moved on from head coach Jerod Mayo after Mayo won just four games in his only season in the role. Kraft subsequently replaced Mayo with Mike Vrabel, and the combination of Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels helped second-year quarterback Drake Maye develop into a Most Valuable Player Award candidate. 

On Sunday, New England's defense intercepted Houston's C.J. Stroud on four occasions over the game's first two quarters. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson has played for the Patriots since they drafted him in 2021, and he is among the New England players who weren't surprised the club earned a double-digit win over a Houston side that featured what had been called the best defense participating in the ongoing postseason tournament.

Patriots want to hear "no Cinderella stories" ahead of AFC title game

"This has become a really good team," Stevenson added about the Patriots. "We know what the Texans’ defense brought and what they were going to bring throughout the week — great defense, especially when you look at the numbers and stats. They’re up there in everything. So we knew it was going to be a hard fight. But we knew we’re good, too. Our offense is good, too. We know how to get the ball rolling good up front. We’re disciplined. So, no Cinderella stories around here."

As of Monday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Patriots as 5.5-point road favorites over a Denver team that will be starting backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham. The Broncos will be the emotional darlings of that game with starting signal-caller Bo Nix sidelined due to a broken bone in his ankle, but the Patriots won't be bothered by such talk. 

"We’re not trying to prove anybody wrong or anybody right," Maye told Breer. "And when we’re in games, we’re playing good defense, trying to show good teams that we can play with them. I think we’ve done that all year. I don’t think we’ve shied away yet. We haven’t really gotten our butts kicked by anybody."