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Patriots put perfect road record to test vs. Broncos' Mile-High setup
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- Patriots put perfect road record to test vs. Broncos' Mile-High setup
FOXBOROUGH, MA – At the end of the regular season, New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel presented each player with a pair of commemorative game balls to honor a pair of accomplishments.
One congratulated them for winning the AFC East, something the Patriots had not done since 2019 and Tom Brady was the quarterback. The other was more custom-made and unusual.
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The other ball was inscribed with "Road Warriors" and "Our Identity Travels," along with the scores of each game the team won on the road in 2025 – which would be eight, for a perfect 8-0 record on the road, something that's been done only 12 times in NFL history (the 2024 Detroit Lions were the most recent before New England ).
The second-seeded Pats now face the No. 1 seed Denver Broncos in the Jan. 25 AFC championship game , a challenge made tougher by the altitude demands and raucous environment created by fans at the behest – and quiet assurance – of head coach Sean Payton. The Pats are 0-4 at Mile High in the playoffs, the most recent defeat coming 10 years ago in the conference title game (and another one two years before that).
"I look forward to obviously changing that," linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson said.
The effect of that "identity," linebacker Jack Gibbens said, is an unselfish group with a "whatever-it-takes mentality."
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"I think that's what we've carried with us throughout the season," he said. "But especially on the road, just kind of being able to bond together, do whatever it takes to get the win.
"It comes down to identity and belief."
That identity, Gibbens added, is a combination of playing with effort, physicality and finishing the play.
"I think we try to preach it through the entire offseason and being able to establish an identity that travels," Vrabel said. "Overcoming mistakes that happen in the game, which there always are. I think that you have to be resilient. There's going to be some swings of momentum. You're going to have to be able to handle the environment offensively and not put yourself in bad situations because your operation isn't very good. So, there's a lot of things that we try to practice, knowing that we're going to have to play half of our games on the road."
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Patriots seek to break Mile High losing streak with 'Road Warrior' mentality
The 2007 New England Patriots , obviously, were perfect on the road, as they were for 18 games before losing in the Super Bowl to the New York Giants . The 1972 Miami Dolphins also fall into the "obviously" category, and the 1982 Washington squad benefited from a strike-shortened, nine-game season to earn their spot on the list of the NFL's top road warriors. The Bill Walsh-era San Francisco 49ers did it three times (1984, 1989, 1990), and the St. Louis Rams did it before losing to the Patriots in Super Bowl 36.
The Seattle Seahawks were the lone team with one loss on the road this season and had an extra game away from Lumen Field.
One of the coolest feelings in the NFL, quarterback Drake Maye said, is coming off the field at "their place, with screaming fans, and coming out with a win."
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"I think it's pretty cool to celebrate and celebrating in an away locker room that's different. Coach has always been saying, 'Road warriors.' So, we're trying to find that one more time and finish out strong what we've done this year. We've got a tough job and a tough challenge, but I think the guys will be pumped up and ready for it."
Maye said he's used a silent count for almost every road game this season. The second-year quarterback guessed the decibel levels that will be reached at Empower Field at Mile High will dwarf what he's heard this season – it's the AFC championship game, after all.
A famous sign by the visiting team's entrance to Mile High reads "Altitude sickness is real" and has the elevation of the stadium (5,280 feet). Pats tight end Austin Hooper said that the altitude effects are real.
"You can let it affect you if you want to," he said. "At the end of the day, guys are in shape. Get out there, run around, stay hydrated, be ready to go."
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Maye said he's never played at elevation, either. His plan is to feel out how the thinner air affects his passes during warmups. Fatigue is more of a concern.
"Maybe throw a few extra deep ones, see how it is. I think it'll be pretty cool," he said. "Get a few extra yards on a deep ball, you can always use that."
For the special teams unit, they'll have to figure out how the altitude impacts kicker Andy Borregales ' distance, which will also be dependent on how cold it is, special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer said. Punt returner Marcus Jones could have to adjust for elongated hang time while making his decision on whether to run after the catch or to call for a fair catch.
"Road warriors," Hooper said, "we got one more to do it."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Patriots, Broncos' playoff history spices up Pats' perfect road record
