There’s something about second-year New England Patriots quarterbacks and playoff games in the snow.
In the 2001 season, Tom Brady and New England were trailing the Oakland Raiders late in the divisional round of his first-ever playoff game, when he had an apparent fumble wiped away by the then-little known — and since-abolished — “ Tuck Rule.”
Brady took advantage of his second chance and guided the Patriots into field-goal position for Adam Vinatieri to tie the game, then drove New England to the winning kick in overtime to ignite the franchise’s run to its first Super Bowl title.
In Sunday’s AFC championship game, it was 23-year-old Drake Maye’s turn when he scored the Patriots’ only touchdown on a 6-yard run in their 10-7 win over the Denver Broncos in snowy conditions to send them back to the title game for the first time since the 2018 season.
Next is a trip to Santa Clara, California, for a Super Bowl 49 rematch against the Seattle Seahawks and a chance to put a cap on an improbable one-year turnaround in their first season under coach Mike Vrabel. The Patriots (17-3) are just the sixth team to reach a Super Bowl after winning five or fewer games in the previous season (4-13).
“I think that’s why you actually do this. You have to believe things, and sometimes before you can see them," Vrabel said.
It’ll be a familiar venue for Maye, a North Carolina native, who attended Super Bowl 50 in Santa Clara as a spectator with his father. Maye’s cheers couldn’t lift Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers to a victory that day.
But 10 years later, he’ll be back with his own opportunity to raise the Lombardi Trophy.
“Pretty cool to be full circle, going back here 10 years later, and I think it’s just a special moment for this whole team,” Maye said.
Maye called Sunday’s win “gritty” and continually praised his teammates after the MVP candidate completed just 10 of 21 passes for a season-low 86 yards. But he was backed by a defense that didn’t allow a point in 10 straight drives after allowing a first-quarter touchdown to Broncos backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham.
It helped New England earn its first playoff victory in Denver after losing its previous four attempts.
“The history and everything about it, it’s a new team, it’s a new era,” Maye said. “I respect and appreciate what the Patriots dynasty did, and unfortunately, they didn’t come out with some wins here, but we changed that narrative and look forward to bringing our best football to Santa Clara. That’ll be pretty special.”
New England continues to thrive on the road and improved to 9-0 away from Massachusetts this season.
The inclement weather certainly played a role in the Patriots’ low-scoring output Sunday. But 10 points and 3.2 yards per play won’t cut it in the Super Bowl opposite a Seahawks team that is averaging 36 points per game in the playoffs.
“It’s hard to find ways to win, especially in the postseason,” wide receiver Stefon Diggs said. “It’s never going to look good. It ended up 10-7 this week. The object of the game is to score more than the opponents."
The Patriots defense. The 26 points the Patriots have allowed this postseason are the fewest in a three-game playoff span since the 2000 Ravens allowed 23 during their Super Bowl-winning run.
New England has also held opponents to just 209.7 yards per game while getting 12 sacks and forcing 12 turnovers.
Offensive line. Maye was sacked five times against the Broncos, bringing his total to 15 through three playoff games. That’s more than any other quarterback this postseason.
Linebacker Robert Spillane left in the first quarter with an ankle issue.
1 — Maye is the first quarterback in NFL history to win three playoff games against top five total defenses in a single postseason (Chargers fifth, Texans first, Broncos second).
The Patriots will play for the franchise’s seventh Super Bowl win, which would break a tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most in NFL history.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs celebrates with the trophy after the AFC Championship NFL football game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/John Locher)
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel celebrates with the trophy after the AFC Championship NFL football game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/John Locher)
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) speaks after the AFC Championship NFL football game against the Denver Broncos, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two federal officers fired shots during the encounter that killed ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, a Customs and Border Protection official told Congress in a notice sent Tuesday.
Officers tried to take Pretti into custody and he resisted, leading to a struggle, according to a notification to Congress obtained by The Associated Press. During the struggle, a Border Patrol agent yelled, “He’s got a gun!” multiple times, the official said.
A Border Patrol officer and a CBP officer each fired Glock pistols, the notice said.
Investigators from CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility conducted the analysis based on a review of body-worn camera footage and agency documentation, the notice said. The law requires the agency to inform relevant congressional committees about deaths in CBP custody within 72 hours.
The notification came a day after President Donald Trump ordered border czar Tom Homan to take over his administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota following Pretti's death, which was the second fatal shooting this month of a person at the hands of immigration law enforcement.
Ecuador’s minister of foreign affairs, meanwhile, filed a protest with the U.S. Embassy after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents tried to enter the Ecuadorian consulate in Minneapolis without permission Tuesday.
A video of the attempt on social media shows a consulate staffer running to the door to turn the ICE agents away, telling them, “This is the Ecuadorian consulate. You’re not allowed to enter.” One ICE officer can be heard responding by threatening to “grab” the staffer if he touched the agent before agreeing to leave.
International law generally prohibits law enforcement authorities from entering foreign consulates or embassies without permission, though sometimes permission may be assumed granted for life-threatening emergencies, like fires.
“Consulate officials immediately prevented the ICE officer from entering the consular building, thus ensuring the protection of the Ecuadorians who were present at the time and activating the emergency protocols issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility,” the ministry wrote on X.
A “note of protest” was filed with the U.S. Embassy in Ecuador so that similar attempts aren’t made at other consulates, the ministry said. The State Department, Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
By sending Homan to Minnesota, “we’re going to de-escalate a little bit,” Trump said during an interview on Fox News’ “Will Cain Show.” That’s significant since White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when questioned repeatedly Monday about Homan’s being dispatched to Minnesota, refused to say that doing so was an effort to calm the situation.
The president added of Homan, “Tom, as tough as he is, gets along” with governors and mayors, even in Democratic areas.
As he left the White House Tuesday, the president was asked whether Alex Pretti’s killing on Saturday was justified. He responded by saying that a “big investigation” was underway. In the hours after Pretti’s death, some administration officials sought to blame the shooting on the 37-year-old intensive care nurse.
Trump said in an interview broadcast Tuesday that he had “great calls” with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on Monday, mirroring comments he made immediately after the calls.
The seemingly softer tone emerged as immigration agents were still active across the Twin Cities region, and it was unclear if officials had changed tactics following the shift by the White House.
Walz’s office said Tuesday that the Democratic governor met with Homan and called for impartial investigations into the shootings involving federal officers. They agreed on the need to continue to talk, according to the governor.
Frey and Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said they also met with Homan and had a “productive conversation.” The mayor added that city leaders would stay in discussion with the border czar.
Homan posted on social media that the discussions “were a productive starting point.” Homan said that Walz, Frey, top law enforcement officials and he all agree that “we need to support our law enforcement officers and get criminals off the streets.”
The White House had tried to blame Democratic leaders for the protests of immigration raids. But after Pretti's killing and videos suggesting he was not an active threat, the administration tapped Homan to take charge of the Minnesota operation from Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino.
Trump said Bovino, the go-to architect for the president’s large-scale city-by-city immigration crackdowns, was “very good” but added “he’s a pretty out-there kind of a guy” and “maybe it wasn’t good here.”
Immigration enforcement activity witnessed by journalists in Minneapolis and surrounding suburbs on Tuesday appeared comparable with recent weeks. As before, most didn’t result in major confrontations with agents. Activists say they continue to monitor enforcement operations through social media and chats on messaging apps.
In Texas, a federal judge issued a temporary order prohibiting the removal of a 5-year-old Ecuadorian boy and his father who were detained last week in Minnesota in an incident that further inflamed divisions on immigration under the Trump administration. U.S. Judge Fred Biery ruled Monday that any removal or transfer of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, is on hold while a court case proceeds.
On Tuesday, federal immigration authorities released an Ecuadorian man whose detention led the chief federal judge in Minnesota to order the head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to appear in his courtroom, the man's attorney said.
Attorney Graham Ojala-Barbour said the man, who is identified in court documents as “Juan T.R.,” was released in Texas. The lawyer said in an email to The Associated Press that he was notified in an email from the U.S. attorneys office in Minneapolis that his client had been freed.
In an order dated Monday, Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz expressed frustration with the Trump administration’s handling of Juan’s and other immigration cases. He took the extraordinary step of ordering Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, to personally appear in his courtroom Friday.
Schiltz had said in his order that he would cancel Lyons’ appearance if the man was released from custody.
“This Court has been extremely patient with respondents, even though respondents decided to send thousands of agents to Minnesota to detain aliens without making any provision for dealing with the hundreds of habeas petitions and other lawsuits that were sure to result,” he wrote.
Schiltz's order followed a federal court hearing Monday on a request by the state and the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul for a judge to halt the immigration enforcement surge. The judge in that case said she would prioritize the ruling but did not give a timeline for a decision.
Schiltz wrote that he recognizes ordering the head of a federal agency to appear personally is extraordinary. “But the extent of ICE’s violation of court orders is likewise extraordinary, and lesser measures have been tried and failed,” he said.
The Associated Press left messages Tuesday with ICE and a DHS spokesperson seeking a response.
Catalini reported from Trenton, New Jersey and Karnowski from Minneapolis. Associated Press writer Tim Sullivan in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
FILE - White House border czar Tom Homan poses for a photo after an interview by Stuart Varney, on the Fox Business Network, in New York, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
A man is detained by federal agents Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A sign for 37-year-old Alex Pretti, who was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol officer earlier in the day, is displayed during a vigil Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A framed photograph of Alex Pretti, along with candles and an American flag, sits at a memorial outside the Minneapolis VA hospital on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP)
Federal agents make a traffic stop on a U.S. citizen as they provide their identification including a passport and drivers license, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A handwritten sign honoring Alex Pretti hangs on a fence outside the Minneapolis VA hospital on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP)
People visit a memorial for Alex Pretti at the scene where the 37-year-old was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol officer over the weekend, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
A drawing of Alex Pretti is displayed at the scene where 37-year-old Pretti was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol officer over the weekend, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
A man in handcuffs gets out of a vehicle and runs to avoid being detailed by federal immigration agents in front of a woman holding her child on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A man in handcuffs runs to avoid being detailed by federal immigration agents on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
FILE - Todd Lyons, acting director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs. Enforcement (ICE), is interviewed on TV on the White House grounds, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025 in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
A demonstrator holds a sign reading "ICE OUT" during a protest outside the office of Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A person holds a sign of Alex Pretti during a protest outside the office of Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
