Denver Broncos at New England Patriots
DEN7-2
5-4NE
@
Sunday 2027-01-03 · 13:00 ET·Gillette Stadium·No line yet
Ball:
O: 3WR 1TE — published depth chart · snapshot 2026-11-10D: Base 3-4 D + nickel — published depth chart (lowest-snap LB sits)Ring = offense/defense snap % in last game played · stats thru Wk 9
Field
outdoors · fieldturf
Weather
no forecast yet
Rest
DEN 9d · NE 7d
Referee
TBA — crews post late in the week
DEN form
7-2PF 198 · PA 186Home 4-0Away 3-2
QB Bo Nix 31–12 as starter · playoffs 1–1 · last 10: 8–2 · since 2024
NE form
5-4PF 211 · PA 207Home 3-1Away 2-3
QB Drake Maye 22–16 as starter · playoffs 3–1 · last 10: 6–4 · since 2024
| DEN | Season efficiency | NE |
|---|---|---|
| -0.014 | Off EPA / play | 0.041 |
| 39.1 | Off success % | 45.5 |
| 7 | Off explosive % | 11.5 |
| 32.7 | 3rd-down conv % | 41.5 |
| -0.008 | Def EPA / play allowed | 0.043 |
| 41.1 | Def success % allowed | 43.7 |
QB record = games he actually started (1999–), regular season; playoffs broken outWk 17 best ball playoffs
Coaching Intel
DEN staff
HCSean Payton1–2 vs VrabelOCDavis WebbDCVance Joseph0–2 vs McDaniels
4th-down go 15.2% · PROE +0.6 · no-huddle 12.4%
NE staff
HCMike Vrabel2–1 vs PaytonOCJosh McDaniels2–0 vs JosephDCZak Kuhr
4th-down go 19.5% · PROE -1.2 · no-huddle 3.4%
Head Coach vs Head Coach
Sean Payton1–2Mike VrabelVrabel leadsboth as head coaches, any team, 1999–
| Date ▾ | Matchup | Score | Yards | Winning coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-25 | NE @ DEN | 10–7 | 209–181 | Mike Vrabel |
| 2021-11-14 | NO @ TEN | 21–23 | 373–266 | Mike Vrabel |
| 2019-12-22 | NO @ TEN | 38–28 | 380–397 | Sean Payton |
DEN offense vs NE defense
Davis Webb(OC)vsZak Kuhr(DC)first career meeting
NE offense vs DEN defense
Josh McDaniels(OC)2–0Vance Joseph(DC)McDaniels leads2 true OC-vs-DC games — his offense against this coach's defense
| Date ▾ | Offense | Defense | Off–Def | Off yds | Margin | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-25 | NE | DEN | 10–7 | 209 | +3 | W |
| 2020-11-29 | NE | ARI | 20–17 | 179 | +3 | W |
they also crossed paths 2× in other role combinations (counting every opposing-staff game: 3–1)
result and margin read from the offense's side
Franchise Meetings involving a current head coach
| Date ▾ | Matchup | Score | Winner | Coaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-25 | NE @ DEN | 10–7 | NE | Mike Vrabel / Sean Payton |
| 2023-12-24 | NE @ DEN | 26–23 | NE | Bill Belichick / Sean Payton |
games under departed-on-both-sides staffs are excluded