In the first 10 games of the 2025 postseason, 15 lead changes happened in the fourth quarter. It’s an all-time record.
There were no fourth-quarter lead changes in either of Sunday’s games. There were no fourth-quarter lead changes because, in both the AFC Championship and NFC Championship, there were zero fourth-quarter points scored.
None. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. The final points scored in Rams-Seahawks happened with 17 minutes remaining. In Patriots-Broncos, 20:29 remained when New England took a 10-7 lead.
That’s 37:29 of total action with no scoring to end the two games.
In Denver, it wasn’t a surprise. The weather took a turn for the treacherous, and neither offense could do anything. In Seattle, the fourth quarter consisted mainly of a long Rams drive that failed on fourth and four from the six, and a clock-churning clincher from the Seahawks that left the Rams without enough time to do much of anything.
Despite the absence of scoring, both games were exciting until the end, or close to it.
Before the AFC Championship Game got underway on Sunday, there was a report that Broncos quarterbacks coach/pass game coordinator Davis Webb was expected to have a second interview with the Raiders for their head coaching job this week.
That report also indicated that the Bills have interest in interviewing Webb, but the timing of a conversation was contingent on the result of their game against the Patriots. The Bills did not fire Sean McDermott until last week, which meant they did not have a virtual first-round interview with Webb and would have to wait to speak with him until after the Super Bowl if Denver beat New England.
The Patriots won 10-7 on Sunday and that means Webb is now free to interview with any interested teams and could be hired at any time. Per multiple reports, Webb is expected to speak with both the Bills and the Raiders on Monday.
The same is true for Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula, offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur, and offensive pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase in the wake of their loss to the Seahawks. Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak has also interviewed for head coaching vacancies and he can have second meetings this week, but no team can hire him until after Super Bowl LX.
The Cardinals and Browns join the Bills and Raiders as teams still looking for head coaches.
In the days leading up to the AFC Championship Game, one of the big questions was how Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham would fair in his first start since Week 18 of the 2023 season.
Stidham hit a deep shot to Marvin Mims on the second offensive possession of the game to set up a touchdown pass and provide hope that the moment would not prove to be too big for him. That feeling faded in the second quarter when Stidham was pressured by Patriots linebacker Christian Elliss on a third down play. Stidham backpedaled furiously and tried to throw the ball away, but wound up throwing it backward and the Patriots recovered on Denver’s 12-yard line to set up their only touchdown of the afternoon.
The Broncos had shut New England down on defense until that point and Stidham said after the 10-7 loss that he “probably should have just eaten the sack.”
“Obviously, I can’t put our team in a bad position like that,’' Stidham said. “I was trying to throw it away. ... The pressure, he just got up on me real fast and I was just trying to get rid of it. Like I said, I just can’t put the ball in a position like that. That was completely on me.”
The Broncos had a lot of other chances after the Patriots tied the game 7-7, but their offense never clicked before or after the weather turned treacherous in the second half. There’s no way to know if things would have been any different with Bo Nix in the lineup and the Broncos will now have to start all over after falling short at the worst possible time.
The first half of Sunday’s AFC Championship included an officiating error that robbed the Patriots of a defensive touchdown. And while they still ended up with possession (and scoring on a 12-yard drive), the officials mistakenly ruled a backward pass to be an incomplete forward pass.
After the game, referee Alex Kemp spoke to pool reporter Jeff Legwold. And Kemp took responsibility for the mistake.
Here’s the full transcript:
“Q: What were the dynamics of the second quarter ruling that changed the call from an incomplete pass to a backward pass recovered by New England?
“Kemp: I initially ruled it as a forward pass, which was incorrect. I proceeded to go through the administration of an intentional grounding foul. The down judge and the umpire came and talked to me and provided more information. The down judge explained that he extended his right arm to signal that he had a backward pass and at that point we determined that New England had picked up the then backward pass. We awarded possession to New England with no advance, because at that point we are not allowed to permit an advance.
“Q: Was there an inadvertent whistle?
“Kemp: The whistle stopped the play, but it was after the New England player picked up the ball.”
They got it right, after they got it wrong. But the play should have kept going, and the Patriots should have had a touchdown. The safer approach is to let it keep going, because replay is available to turn the mistaken ruling of a backward pass into an incompletion.
It would be irresponsible to downplay the moment or excuse the mistake because the Patriots eventually scored. With replay not available to keep the play alive, plays like that should be kept alive.
Especially in a game of that magnitude.
The Patriots will be celebrating their latest Super Bowl berth in Colorado. For now.
Per the team, the Patriots will fly home on Monday, due to the ongoing snow event in Boston.
Fortunately, there’s a two-week delay until the Super Bowl. The delayed flight won’t be a factor in their preparations for Super Bowl LX.
Wherever they are, they’ll be happy tonight. But they also know this isn’t the end of the road. They’ll have a chance to break a lingering tie with the Steelers to become the first NFL franchise to win seven Super Bowls.
And it was snow in Denver that helped the Patriots hold off the Broncos. Once it started to stick, both offenses were stuck in neutral. The Patriots trusted their defense to keep the Broncos from tying the game — and a blocked field goal ultimately was the difference.
