In a crucial AFC matchup, Sean Payton saw momentum building and chose aggression over safety. Instead of taking the easy points, the Denver Broncos boss chased a bigger moment on fourth-and-1. The gamble backfired. The turnover on downs killed Denver’s momentum, and the Patriots capitalized, eventually taking a 10-7 lead. Since then, that call has been criticized, and now Peyton Manning has also joined in.

“We were all sitting [at] Peyton Manning’s suite, and it was me, and it was Stokely, and it was Mike Shanahan, and it was Peyton,” Mark Schlereth said on the Dan Patrick Show. “And we all looked at it, go just like this. You got a backup quarterback. You got a chance to go up ten-nothing. And you know, when your defense is balling out of control, like, kick, we’re all of us were in agreement at that point, just kick the field goal.”

“I was like, kick the field goal, take the points, man. Ten-nothing is a big score, especially with the weather report that, you know, it was going to get nasty in the second half,” Schlereth added.

Jarrett Stidham had a clean start, first with a deep strike to Marvin Mims and then a touchdown toss to Courtland Sutton. Up 7-0, momentum firmly on Denver’s side, the Broncos stared at a short fourth down. With Bo Nix sidelined, most expected Sean Payton to bank points and settle things down. Instead, he played aggressively. From there, the night took a sharp turn.

Opting to go for it, Denver’s offense returned to the field, and right away, the call looked uneasy, and the Pats smelled it. New England blew it up without much resistance. No two-score lead, no early cushion. Just like that, the energy drained. Soon after, Drake Maye and his squad responded, leveling the game and then pulling ahead. From that point on, the Broncos’ offense never found its footing again.

“I wanted 14-0,” Payton later told ESPN’s Seth Wickersham.

While Sean Payton had a plan, the Broncos failed to execute it. And the head coach made his feelings clear after the game ended.

Sean Payton shared his thoughts over the call

In his post-game press conference, the Broncos’ head coach did not duck the heat or spin the call.

“There’s always regret,” Payton said. “I mean, look, I felt here we are fourth and one, we felt close enough that, and it’s 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, yeah, there will always be second thoughts.”

Then, as he walked out of the stadium, Payton went even deeper.

“I wish I’d stayed with the initial play call,” he said. “The look they showed on film, and the look we saw, wasn’t the look we got.”

Still, that fourth down was not the only wound. Denver stumbled in key areas, struggled to run and catch cleanly, and left points behind with two missed field goals. On top of that, a second-quarter turnover by Stidham set up the Patriots’ only touchdown, while a late interception sealed the pain.

Meanwhile, the Broncos’ defense held New England to just 10 points in brutal conditions, but they still came up short where it mattered most. Denver stressed all week about containing Drake Maye, yet Maye still burned them with his legs, finishing with 65 rushing yards and the Patriots’ only touchdown, including a clutch late run that helped ice the game for New England.

Still, when it all circles back, Payton’s fourth-down choice sits at the center. Sometimes it rewards boldness. Other times, like this night in the Mile-High City, it leaves nothing but regret.