Before Santa Claus’ sleigh left the North Pole, the New England Patriots were pulling off a Christmas miracle at Mile High on Sunday against the Denver Broncos.
After blowing a 16-point lead, Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe led the offense on a game-winning drive that was bookended by an improbable 56-yard field goal from rookie kicker Chad Ryland. The win officially knocked the Broncos out of the playoff hunt and helped the Patriots improve to 2-2 with Zappe as the starter this season.
Typically, a victory would have generated an overall rush of excitement for a team, but the Patriots also potentially knocked themselves out of a top-three pick in the 2024 NFL draft.