Chad Ryland drills 56-yard field goal to give Patriots dramatic victory over Broncos on Christmas Eve

BOSTON -- The Patriots went out to Denver on Christmas Eve and won a football game. They almost let that game get away from them, but an unlikely hero emerged to save the game.

That hero was rookie kicker Chad Ryland, who had missed a field goal and an extra point earlier in the game when he stepped onto the field to attempt a 56-yard field goal at the end of the fourth quarter. Unlike his misses, though, this one was perfect, with Ryland's kick sailing straight through the uprights to give the Patriots a 26-23 lead with 2 seconds left in the game.

The Patriots secured the win with a squib kick and one offensive play for Denver, improving their record to 4-11 while dropping Denver to 7-8.

Bailey Zappe was 25-for-33 for 256 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Ezekiel Elliott and Mike Gesicki caught the touchdowns, while Demario Douglas led all receivers with 74 yards.

Christian Barmore recorded three sacks for the New England defense, while Mack Wilson and Josh Uche had one apiece.

Russell Wilson was 25-for-37 for 238 yards with two touchdowns and no picks.

The Patriots scored 20 points in the third quarter to that a 23-7 lead but allowed Denver to score 16 points in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 23-all. The winning field goal was set up by a 27-yard connection between Zappe and DeVante Parker.

The game began with a wild back-and-forth, starting with Bailey Zappe fumbling on the first offensive snap of the night.

Denver couldn't capitalize on the turnover though, opting to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line but failing to get into the end zone when Javonte Williams tripped on an offensive lineman's legs.

The Broncos did get on the board first when Williams plunged into the end zone on an inside run from the 3-yard line with 5:15 left in the first quarter. The score came after a 52-yard punt return by Marvin Mims Jr. 

The Patriots responded with an impressive scoring drive, moving the ball 61 yards on 13 plays, featuring a third-and-2 completion from Zappe to Pharaoh Brown and a 28-yard connection from Zappe to Jalen Reagor. A third-and-7 completion to Demario Douglas only went for 3 yards, though, and the Patriots had to settle for a Chad Ryland field goal to cut the Denver lead to 7-3.

Both teams missed field goals in the final minute of the first half, with Ryland missing from 47 yards and Will Lutz missing from 57. Those misses kept the score at 7-3 for Denver at halftime.

New England forced a Denver three-and-out to start the second half and then quickly moved 70 yards for a touchdown drive. Zappe hit Douglas for a 41-yard completion to start the drive, and then connected with him for a 13-yard catch-and-run two plays later. On second-and-10 from the 15, Zappe hit Ezekiel Elliott in the right flat, and the veteran running back showed that he's still got legs left when he hurdled a defender en route to a touchdown. It was Elliott's second receiving touchdown in three weeks.

Ryland, though, missed the PAT, making the score 9-7 for the Patriots.

Christian Barmore picked up his second sack of the night on a third down deep in Denver territory, sacking Russell Wilson at the Denver 3-yard line. The Patriots took advantage of the resulting field position after an 8-yard Myles Bryant punt return got the ball to the Denver 42-yard line. A 30-yard jump ball to DeVante Parker up the left sideline was successful, and Zappe made a picture-perfect throw to Mike Gesicki in the back of the end zone to put the Patriots up 16-7.

Somewhat shockingly, the Patriots immediately added another touchdown, with Marvin Mims Jr. fumbling on his kick return. Marte Mapu knocked the ball free from Mims after he had recovered his own muffed kick, and Cody Davis scooped and scored for the Patriots. 

The Broncos came back with a touchdown drive of their own, though, thanks in large part to a 47-yard completion from Wilson to Mims. Belichick challenged the play, as the ball did touch the ground, but the catch was upheld on replay. Wilson hit Lucas Krull for a touchdown pass three plays later, and a two-point conversion cut New England's lead to 23-15.

Following a New England three-and-out, the Broncos embarked on a 10-play, 67-yard touchdown drive to cut the Patriots' lead to two points.

Wilson ran a play-fake with Williams and then hit Williams when he broke open to the right flat on the two-point conversion, tying the game at 23 with 2:53 left in the game.

With the Denver crowd -- which spent the third quarter booing the home team -- suddenly at full volume, the Patriots promptly went three-and-out, punting back to the Broncos just inside the two-minute warning. But the Broncos went nowhere, punting the ball back to New England with less than a minute to go.

The Patriots ran the ball twice, leading Denver to take two timeouts, before Zappe took the deep shot for Parker to help set up the game-winning kick.

The Patriots get back to work next week in Buffalo, when they'll face the 9-6 Bills.