Vrabel hails his road warriors as New England Patriots edge out Broncos in snowy Denver

Mike Vrabel hailed his ‘road warriors’ after the New England Patriots defied expectations – and the snow sweeping in off the Rocky Mountains – to secure a place in Super Bowl LX.

The Patriots won just four games last season but the arrival of Vrabel as head coach just over 12 months ago has transformed their fortunes.

Their success has been built on remarkable form away from Foxborough with a 9-0 record on the road powering them through to a place in the showpiece in California in two weeks’ time.

That was in evidence once again as the Pats edged past the Denver Broncos 10-7 in a game that was severely impacted by a second half blizzard that made it a war of attrition.

New England thrive in such conditions and another defensive masterclass ensured they progressed to face the Seattle Seahawks.

“We have a great group of guys, and they continued to believe in the things we did, and they formed and created an identity and try to protect it,” said Vrabel. “And today was an example as things kind of change and unfold [with the weather], our ability to adjust. We did enough to win the football game in tough conditions.”

Vrabel and Patriots defense keys to success

Vrabel’s impact has been seismic. He has breathed life into a franchise that had fallen on hard times after the glory years of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. 

Nobody expected the Pats to reach an NFL record 12th Super Bowl this season. That they have is down to Vrabel’s strategy based around a defense that has given up just 26 points in the playoffs.

Their record is stellar but the protagonists still don’t think they are getting the credit they deserve.

Defensive tackle Milton Williams said: “We have one more game to take care of business and see if we can get some credit then. We have that chip on our shoulder every time we step between the white lines to show everybody who we are.”

Pro Bowl cornerback Christian Gonzalez added: “It’s been two weeks in a row – they talked about the Texans’ defense, and this week it was all about the Broncos’ defense. Like Milt said, it’s great if you want to count us out.”

Payton frustrated by one that got away from Broncos

The change in conditions after half-time placed the emphasis on trying to get as many points on the board as possible before the snow made offense much more difficult.

And Broncos head coach Sean Payton admitted he had blundered in trying to go for a fourth-and-1 conversion midway through the second quarter, the throw from stand-in quarterback Jarrett Stidham falling incomplete. Denver managed just 32 net yards of offense and one first down in the second half.

“[I’m] hurting for every one of those players in that locker room,” Payton said. “There’ll be a number of things when we watch the tape and I’ll look at and critique and pay close attention to. It was a hard-fought game, and we didn’t do enough to win it.

“There’s always regrets. I felt like here we are fourth-and-1, close enough and it’s also a call you make based on the team you’re playing and what you’re watching on the other side of the ball. So, yeah, there’ll always be second thoughts.”