How the Patriots pulled off the Super Bowl’s biggest 1-year turnaround ever

The New England Patriots are headed to Super Bowl LX.

How in the world did we get here?

There are several factors for New England’s dream season, factors that will be discussed and debated over the next two weeks.

Let’s start that process today. Just how did the New England Patriots go from a 4-13 team a year ago and a team listed at +8000 before the year to win the Super Bowl, to the big game itself?

The rise of Drake Maye

The easiest aspect of New England’s rise to point to?

The emergence of Drake Maye as a franchise quarterback.

After being selected third overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, Maye showed flashes for New England when he took over as the team’s starting quarterback midway through his rookie season. But those flashes are nothing compared to what Maye did this year, in just his second season in the league. Not only did he guide the Patriots to an AFC East division title and a spot in Super Bowl LX, but he emerged as a finalist for league MVP honors.

How?

Several aspects of his development stand out. Maye was among the league’s best passers in the face of pressure this season. According to charting data from Pro Football Focus, Maye posted an Adjusted Completion Percentage (ACP) of 71.8% this year when pressured, tied with Daniel Jones among qualified passers for the best mark in the league. He also posted an ACP of 77.1% when blitzed this year, the fourth-best mark in the league among qualified passers.

He also developed into one of the best deep-ball throwers in the league this year. Again, charting data from Pro Football Focus has Maye with an ACP of 54.9% on throws over 20 yards this year, second-best in the NFL.

Only Sam Darnold — the quarterback he’ll meet in Super Bowl LX — has been better.

On those throws, Maye has connected on 11 touchdowns against just a pair of interceptions.

Maye has been rather inconsistent in the playoffs, but Sunday’s AFC Championship Game showcased another element he brings to the table: His athleticism. Not only did he score New England’s only touchdown in the game on a quarterback draw, but to ice the game offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels called for a bootleg design, giving Maye the chance to throw or run to pick up the biggest first down of the game.

Maye used his legs, running not just to the first-down marker but to Super Bowl LX.

The Patriots crushed free agency and the draft

Drake Maye is not the only reason the Patriots are headed to Super Bowl LX.

We can also look at New England’s offseason. Thanks to their 4-13 record, the Patriots entered the 2026 NFL Draft cycle with the fourth-overall selection. But with Maye in place, New England could address other issues with their first pick.

They added Will Campbell, one of the top offensive linemen in last year’s class and the player New England hopes will be the cornerstone of their offensive line for years to come.

But while Campbell drew the headlines, he was not the only player they drafted, and he is certainly not the only contributor to this team’s run to the Super Bowl. In the second round New England added Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson, who developed into a big-play maker for the Patriots’ offense this year as he scored ten touchdowns, including breaking off some long touchdown runs for New England. Third-round pick Kyle Williams became a weapon in the vertical passing game, catching three touchdowns this season, and fourth round pick Craig Woodson stepped into the starting lineup at safety, and was in place for a pivotal fourth-down play against the Broncos on Sunday.

In the sixth round New England added Andres Borregales, a kicker out of Miami. He took over as the team’s kicker this season, and has contributed some big kicks for New England over the course of the year.

Of course, the draft is just one part of the off-season. New England also entered last spring with a massive amount of cap space, and they went to work almost immediately. Some of the players they added? Wide receiver Stefon Diggs, pass rusher Harold Landry, linebacker Robert Spillane, cornerback Carlton Davis, offensive tackle Morgan Moses, defensive lineman Milton Williams, wide receiver Mack Hollins, and defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga.

All have been key contributors to this team’s run to Super Bowl LX.

Firing Jarod Mayo for Mike Vrabel worked wonders

Arguably the first key contributor the Patriots added ahead of the 2025 NFL season?

Mike Vrabel.

After parting ways with Jerod Mayo at the end of a dismal 4-13 season, New England moved quickly to ink the former linebacker as their next head coach. Vrabel won three Super Bowls with the Patriots, and his familiarity with the organization allowed him to hit the ground running.

And after Sunday’s win in the AFC Championship game, many in the New England locker room were singing his praises.

“I play hard for that man,’ defensive lineman Christian Barmore said. “The things that man taught me, how he coaches me, I really respect the man with my life.”

“It’s the most fun I’ve had since high school,” Campbell said. “This is just everything I could’ve asked for coming into the league. I’m just super grateful for him.”

“He’s absolutely unbelievable,” center Garrett Bradbury said. “This player-friendly term gets thrown around a lot, but it looks different. He’s hard on us when he needs to be. But he’s also a lot of fun at times. This whole locker room will ride with that guy.

“He’s been leading the charge since he took the job. He’s done an unbelievable job. Just to be a small part of helping build this is the most rewarding year of my career.”

“He’s a great coach. At the end of the day, he’s one of us,” receiver Kayshon Boutte said. “He played. He’s been through it. He experienced it. He played in the Super Bowl, too. He’s happy for us, but without him, we wouldn’t be where we are today.”

But Vrabel is not the only coaching hire that played a pivotal role. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels returned to New England, where he coached Tom Brady, tasked with turning Maye into a better version of himself.

He turned him into an MVP candidate.

There is also the job done by Zak Kuhr, the team’s linebackers coach who took over defensive play-calling duties as defensive coordinator Terrell Williams spent the season dealing with a health crisis. Kuhr helped this defense find its identity over the course of the season, building into the unit that flustered Justin Herbert and C.J. Stroud en route to the Super Bowl.

But it all starts with Vrabel.

Schedule, and luck

There are, of course, a few more factors consider.

One starts with New England’s schedule.

The Patriots finished fourth in the AFC East last season, meaning they played a fourth-place schedule this year. That mean games against other fourth-place finishers such as the Tennessee Titans and the Las Vegas Raiders. New England, and the AFC overall, matched with the NFC South this year, adding a few more easy games to their schedule.

Then there was the travel component. As we noted yesterday the Patriots became the first team in NFL history to go 9-0 in road games in a single season, and their relatively easy travel schedule could have been a factor. New England’s longest trips this year were to Tampa Bay, New Orleans, and Nashville.

By the time the season ended, New England’s strength of schedule was just .391, the only sub-.400 team in the league this year.

Then there was the luck the Patriots faced along the way, which continued into the playoffs. They faced the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card game without their starting tackles. In the Divisional Round against the Houston Texans, C.J. Stroud was more than happy to keep turning the football over, and the Texans lost tight end Dalton Schultz early in that contest, a key component of their passing game.

And then came the AFC Championship game, which saw starting quarterback Bo Nix fracture his ankle at the end of the Divisional Round, forcing the Denver Broncos to turn to Jarrett Stidham. Factor in the weather in the second half which made it hard to move the ball, and New England has caught a fair share of breaks over the playoffs.

Still, they also faced three of the best defenses in football over that stretch. And there is also the argument that, well, you make your own luck.

But you put all these pieces together, and you have a team on their way to the Super Bowl.