Patriots Ups & Downs: Who stood out in an AFC Championship win?

The New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl for the first time since the 2018 season after edging out the Denver Broncos by a 10-7 final in the AFC Championship Game at Mile High Stadium. It was a game marked by defense, critical turnovers, and one of the wildest mid-game shifts in weather conditions in NFL playoff history. Who stood out in that environment, for both good or bad reasons? Let's go over the list...

Maye had a rough day passing, especially in the first half, when his throwing accuracy was notably off. But Maye gets an UP for this game overall because he made big plays with his legs, including the Patriots' only touchdown, a massive 28-yard scramble that set up the go-ahead field goal, and the final third-and-6 run to pick up the game-sealing first down. He also had his first turnover-free game of the playoffs, a welcome change, especially considering the weather and the hostile Denver crowd.

The quarterback's first career playoff run hasn't been overly impressive from a production standpoint, and the Patriots will have to hope that he can string together another clean game in the Super Bowl. But just like the first two playoff games, Maye made just enough plays to supplement another dominating defensive performance, and more importantly, he made more plays (and fewer negative plays) than the other quarterback.

The rookie's rough playoff run continued Sunday. He had another tough matchup against the Broncos' Nik Bonitto, but despite Campbell's confident reactions to the public criticism he's faced, he hasn't been able to silence his critics. If the Patriots end up losing the Super Bowl, it's likely that leaky pass protection on the left side plays a role.

An unsung hero of the Patriots' playoff run, Stevenson deserves credit for his hard running, even after the snow began to pour down. His one misstep was literally a misstep, when he slipped in the snow before he could even get the handoff. But Stevenson has been running well throughout the playoffs and has protected the ball as well. He's peaking at the perfect time.

Baringer picked a horrid time to play perhaps his worst game of the season. It certainly was far from an easy punting environment, but Baringer can't blame the snow for a first-quarter boot that traveled only 33 yards. At the same time, Broncos punter Jeremy Crawshaw was arguably their best player position-for-position. Field position was at a premium in this game, and the Patriots struggled mightily in that department, having to overcome Baringer's ugly day.

Bradbury has had a great season, and gets an honorary nod for the interior of the Patriots offensive line. The Pats not only had consistent success running the ball up the middle, but even protected well enough against star defensive tackle Zach Allen. Bradbury just had arguably his best game at the most opportune time.

Hawkins got caught out of position on the Broncos' only touchdown of the day, an easy pitch-and-catch between Jarrett Stidham and a wide-open Courtland Sutton. Busted coverages are a very real concern for the Patriots defense, especially since they are guaranteed to face at least one elite wide receiver in the Super Bowl. Hawkins also missed at least one tackle trying to step up against the run. Hawkins had been playing well down the stretch, so this was an unfortunate step back.

My colleague Alex Barth called it: last time Barmore matched up against the Broncos' Quinn Meinerz, he ate his lunch. Sunday felt like more of the same for Barmore, who flushed Stidham out of the pocket on multiple occasions. If the Patriots ultimately hoist the Lombardi Trophy, Barmore's instant disruption up the middle of the line will likely be a factor.

Taylor made the sneakiest big play of the game when he got a hand on a field goal try by the Broncos' Will Lutz. Points were at a premium in this one as much as any game all season, and those three points made the ultimate difference for the Patriots. Taylor has a case to say he made the play of the game.

Elliss was the one to finally crack Stidham with his second-quarter forced fumble, and Ponder made a heads-up play to recover the loose ball. It proved to be one of, if not the biggest defensive plays of the game. The Patriots are certainly thrilled to see Ponder step up and make a play with Harold Landry out of the lineup.