Broncos’ Jarrett Stidham speaks up on huge blunder in loss to Patriots

The Denver Broncos’ 2025 season ended with a gut-check 10–7 defeat to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game at Empower Field at Mile High. It was a low-scoring, weather-affected defensive battle that came down to a mistake quarterback Jarrett Stidham openly took responsibility for. Making his first start of the season after Bo Nix suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the divisional round, Stidham was asked to lead Denver despite not attempting a pass all year before Sunday.

Stidham opened the game brilliantly. After an early exchange of punts, he completed a 52-yard pass to Marvin Mims Jr., setting up first-and-goal. Two plays later, Stidham threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton, giving the Broncos a 7-0 lead with 10:19 remaining in the first quarter. Denver’s defense backed the start by forcing multiple punts and recording three sacks in the first half, holding New England scoreless through most of the opening two quarters.

The turning point came in the second quarter with the Broncos leading 7-0. Facing third-and-four from his own 33-yard line, Stidham took the snap out of shotgun and was immediately pressured. Attempting to get rid of the ball, he released what officials later ruled a backward pass. The Patriots recovered the fumble at Denver’s 12-yard line. Two plays later, New England quarterback Drake Maye scored on a six-yard run, tying the game at 7-7 just before halftime. Outside of that short-field touchdown, the Broncos’ defense limited the Patriots to a single scoring drive that resulted in a field goal.

After the game, Stidham took full responsibility for the play.

“Obviously, I can’t put our team in a bad position like that,” he said. “I was trying to throw it away to (Tyler Badie), he was in the area, and yeah, the pressure he just got on me real fast. And I was just trying to get rid of it, and like I said, I just can’t put the ball in a position like that. So, that was completely on me.”

“I thought I had thrown it forward, and obviously, the replay or whatever said differently,” Stidham said when asked if he thought it was a forward pass. “Probably should’ve just eaten the sack anyway and let Jeremy (Crawshaw) and the punt team punt it down the field and flip the field. But like I said, I can’t do that.”

It was a close game the whole way through. Both teams missed long field goals in the first half, including a 54-yard attempt by Denver’s Wil Lutz and a 63-yard try by New England’s Andres Borregales. Snowfall in the second half slowed offenses, and the Patriots opened the third quarter with a 16-play, 64-yard drive that consumed over nine minutes and ended with a 23-yard Borregales field goal, giving New England its first and only lead at 10-7.

The Broncos had opportunities late. Lutz missed a 45-yard field goal with 4:42 remaining, and on Denver’s final drive, Stidham threw an interception to Christian Gonzalez. The Patriots then ran out the clock. Stidham finished the game with 133 passing yards, one touchdown, and one interception.

The wait continues for the Broncos’ Super Bowl dreams. Meanwhile, New England heads to Santa Clara, California, for Super Bowl LX, where the Patriots will meet either the Seattle Seahawks or the Los Angeles Rams at Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 8.

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