An officiating mistake cost the New England Patriots a defensive touchdown against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
But Drake Maye deemed the error moot by running for a touchdown two plays later to get the Patriots on the scoreboard and cap a pivotal sequence in the AFC championship game.
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The sequence started late in the second quarter as the Broncos held a 7-0 lead. Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who was playing for injured starter Bo Nix, faced pressure on third-and-3 and carelessly released the ball near Denver’s 14-yard line.
Patriots linebacker Elijah Ponder picked the ball up and ran into the end zone for what looked like a New England touchdown. But officials blew the whistle as Ponder picked up the ball, killing the play.
Officials initially ruled that Stidham had committed intentional grounding, setting Denver up with what would have been fourth-and-24. But they reviewed the play and determined that Stidham had thrown a backward pass, which meant a fumble and a live ball.
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Ponder had a clear path to the end zone for what should have been a touchdown after he recovered it. But because officials blew the whistle, the play was dead at the time of his recovery. Instead of scoring a touchdown, the Patriots faced first-and-10 at the Denver 12-yard line.
Maye ensured that the officials’ mistake did not hurt the Patriots. After a 6-yard completion on first down, Maye took it in himself on a 6-yard touchdown draw to tie the game at 7-7 with 2:10 remaining before halftime.
And momentum swung in New England’s favor just before halftime.
Denver came into Sunday’s game needing Stidham to limit his mistakes against an aggressive Patriots defense. This was the exact type of play the Broncos were seeking to avoid with their starting quarterback watching the game in street clothes.
