Drake Maye, Mike Vrabel, Patriots Make NFL History By Reaching Super Bowl 60 After Beating Broncos

With their AFC Championship win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday, the New England Patriots and head coach Mike Vrabel made history.

Per ESPN, the Patriots are the only team in the Super Bowl era to reach the Super Bowl after hiring a new coach and winning four games or fewer in the season before.

Additionally, Vrabel is the first person in NFL history to start in a conference championship win as a player and win a conference championship as a head coach of the same franchise, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero noted.

Star quarterback Drake Maye joined his head coach in making history, as he’s now the second-youngest quarterback to play in the Super Bowl, just behind Miami Dolphins legend Dan Marino.

The Patriots have been one of the biggest turnaround stories in recent history this year. New England faced a severe decline in the years after Tom Brady’s exit, and things hit a low point over the last two years when the team went 4-13 in both 2023 and 2024.

But a coaching change — plus the addition of Maye — has swiftly turned things around, and now the Patriots have the chance to win their first Super Bowl since 2018.