Sean Payton Critical of Himself Over 4th-and-1 Call in AFCCG

As one might imagine in a three-point loss, there were several turning-point moments in the Denver Broncos' 10-7 defeat to the New England Patriots in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.

None, however, had the butterfly effect like head coach Sean Payton's now-ill-fated decision to go for it on 4th-and-1 from the Patriots' 14-yard line with about 9:28 left in the second quarter, nursing a tenous 7-0 lead.

“Yes, it just felt like we had momentum to get up 14. It felt like we had a good call," Payton told reporters during his postgame press conference. "What were we at yard-line-wise there? Yes, I think the feeling was, ‘Man, let’s be aggressive.’ To get up 14, I was just watching the way our defense was playing. Look the turnover on our end resulting in a touchdown, and outside of that, I thought we did a good job in containing them. There’ll be a number of things when we watch the tape I’ll look at. You know, critique and pay close attention to."

What happens next for the Broncos? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

Rather than build a two-possession advantage with backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham under center, Payton dialed up a short pass play to running back R.J. Harvey, which fell incomplete. If he could do it over, Payton admitted, he would've settled for the chip-shot field goal instead.

“There are always regrets," Payton conceded. "Yes. I mean look, I felt like here we are, fourth-and-1. We felt close enough that, and it is also a call you make based on the team you’re playing and what you’re watching on the other side of the ball. So yes, there’ll always be second thoughts.”

The NFL is truly a game of inches, and the Broncos — after a season of miraculous comebacks — squandered a few more of them than New England did. There were player execution issues on the field, without a doubt, but it's the directives from the sideline that will haunt all involved.

“Well decisions like that," Payton said when asked what he's most critical of himself for. "The tough ones, fourth-and-1. I was frustrated. I felt like we’d be able to run the ball more consistently. I thought that was going to be important. We felt like we had one of our better run plans going in. I have to see the film. We got, I would say, right from the beginning, we got a good mix of pressure. We hit some big plays, but I think the big thing was that first half, that first half momentum and field position didn’t yield what it needed to yield. Like we needed more than that, and they’ll start there.”

Payton Assesses Stiddy's Performance

Replacing star quarterback Bo Nix was no easy task to begin with for the veteran Stidham, who was making only his fifth career start. Add into that the absence of WR Troy Franklin (hamstring), the loss of WR Pat Bryant (hamstring), and the continued lack of a running game — mixed in with a little Mother Nature — and it was a recipe for disaster.

"Disaster" occurred in the second quarter when Stidham lost a fumble that New England soon after converted into a touchdown, the deciding points in a narrow defeat. He later tossed an interception that officially sent the Broncos packing, finishing 17-of-31 for 133 yards, one touchdown, and the pick.

“I thought he fought hard in tough conditions," Payton said. "I think we’re going to look at the film. I know this. I’m going to look at it and be critical of myself, and I think there were a number of things that we just had to do better. We didn’t finish some runs, and we dropped some passes. Again, felt like that was a problem all year. Early when we had the momentum, we didn’t it felt like… Let’s just say, most of the first half and we didn’t come away with enough. Having had that momentum and that field position.”