{"id":672714,"date":"2026-01-13T00:35:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T00:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/672714\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T00:35:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T00:35:16","slug":"nobody-liked-us-patriots-silence-critics-with-playoff-win-over-chargers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/672714\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Nobody liked us:\u2019 Patriots silence critics with playoff win over Chargers"},"content":{"rendered":"

FOXBOROUGH \u2013 Stefon Diggs<\/a> has made pre-game speeches to his Patriots teammates all season long.<\/p>\n

On Sunday night, the veteran receiver had a special message:<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t nobody liked us! Ain\u2019t nobody believed in us! I like us, man! Go lay it on the line for your brother!\u201d<\/p>\n

The message resonated with his teammates before, during, and after their wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Coming off back-to-back four-win seasons, the Patriots<\/a> weren\u2019t the favorites to start this season. The oddsmakers predicted improvement, with the team\u2019s over\/under set at 8.5 wins, but no one expected this \u2013 a 14-3 regular season, AFC East title, and a playoff win at home.<\/p>\n

As Mike Vrabel\u2019s team started to win, they heard the noise and the naysayers. Diggs said doubt fueled this Patriots team.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think nobody really liked us. Nobody, well, believed in us,\u201d Diggs said. \u201cWe were a young team. We got a young quarterback, and throughout the season, we just grew. We grew together. And as we\u2019ve had this success, everybody\u2019s been humbled, everybody\u2019s been unselfish, and everybody just wants to win.\u201d <\/p>\n

Sunday night\u2019s game wasn\u2019t perfect. <\/p>\n

The Patriots\u2019 offense labored through this 16-3 victory. They lost the turnover battle, 2-1. Drake Maye (17\/29 for 268 yards) threw one crucial touchdown but also had an interception and two fumbles (one recovered by the Patriots). The run game was efficient, but the pass game wasn\u2019t what Patriots fans had grown accustomed to.<\/p>\n

On this night, it didn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n

Vrabel\u2019s defense was dominant. The unit stymied the Chargers\u2019 offense and then hit quarterback Justin Herbert often \u2013 and viciously. After the game, players said this win encapsulated the Patriots\u2019 bond. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe play team football all the time,\u201d cornerback Carlton Davis said. \u201cWhether our offense is up or down, we\u2019re going to have their back. They\u2019re going to do the same for us. We know that. As long as we trust each other, play complementary football, we\u2019ll be good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re relentless,\u201d added running back Rhamondre Stevenson. \u201cWe\u2019re going to fight together, no matter if it\u2019s a good play or a bad play. (If we\u2019re) going through some ups and downs and things like that, we\u2019re going to fight together and see what happens at the end of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Players also noted that this matchup proved critics wrong.<\/p>\n

The Patriots finished this season tied for the best record in the NFL. However, detractors pointed to their strength of schedule (.391) as a reason not to believe in this team. When it comes to the MVP conversation, people also point to the team\u2019s strength of schedule as a reason Drake Maye shouldn\u2019t get the honor.<\/p>\n

This season, the Chargers beat the Kansas City Chiefs twice (once with Patrick Mahomes), the Denver Broncos, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Philadelphia Eagles. They came into Gillette Stadium with more wins against playoff opponents and a better strength of schedule (.469).<\/p>\n

They left with a loss.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear everybody saying, strength of schedule, this, that, Drake\u2019s not the MVP, a whole bunch of stuff and narratives,\u201d safety Jaylinn Hawkins said. \u201cIt\u2019s like, \u2018OK, you can all say that, but the proof is in the pudding.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re coming off a 4-win season,\u201d edge rusher Anfernee Jennings added. \u201cI don\u2019t think a lot of people believed in us. From Day 1, we believed in us. We put the work in, creating our identity and belief that we could do what we set out to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Throughout this season, the Patriots have had a close bond. Players have often talked about how much they care for one another. That starts at the top with Vrabel and his messaging. <\/p>\n

The Patriots coach worked hard to instill a new culture once he got to New England. It\u2019s one where players root for one another and pick up their teammates.<\/p>\n

Adversity hits every team in the NFL. The best ones can overcome it. <\/p>\n

That happened plenty during the Tom Brady and Bill Belichick era. That type of dynastic success may never happen again in this region. However, this season, Vrabel\u2019s Patriots are making things interesting.<\/p>\n

On Sunday, the Patriots won their first playoff game since the 2018 season. That year ended with the franchise\u2019s last Super Bowl championship. <\/p>\n

It would be a surprise to many if this year\u2019s run ended the same way. At least to those outside Gillette Stadium.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy I said it (pregame) is because it\u2019s the truth,\u201d Diggs said. \u201cNobody liked us but us. And I love us. I like us a lot. I tell them every time you continue to grow and become that team, that we believe.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Expletive), they\u2019ll start liking us eventually. By that time, it\u2019ll be too late. I hope.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"FOXBOROUGH \u2013 Stefon Diggs has made pre-game speeches to his Patriots teammates all season long. On Sunday night,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":672715,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2026],"tags":[265,7],"class_list":{"0":"post-672714","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-american-football","9":"tag-football"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115884990727617591","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/672714","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=672714"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/672714\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/672715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=672714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=672714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=672714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}