SANTA CLARA, CA – As ‘Sea!’ ‘Hawks!’ chants rang throughout Levi’s Stadium on Sunday afternoon starting three hours before the game and even outside in the NFL Pro Shop, you knew Pats fans were outnumbered.

But, what I didn’t know – sitting in the auxiliary press box in the Pats end zone – was just how much of a disadvantage the ‘road warriors’ would be at in Super Bowl LX.

New England was technically the home team against Seattle, but the Pats of course chose white uniforms after going 9-0 on the road this season. It was fitting, because the offense struggled mightily to handle the noise and environment created by the ‘12s’ and the whole ‘road warrior’ thing was put to the test – a test that was failed miserably – in the 29-13 Super Bowl loss.

While Pats fans woke up this morning with that miserable feeling we all felt in 2008, 2012, 2018 and now 2026, in a few weeks we can all look at this season as a rousing success. Unfortunately, in the here and now, this was a golden opportunity to steal a seventh Super Bowl that was completely wasted by the Patriots.

Drake Maye revealed postgame that the shoulder many of us assumed was ‘fine’ was in fact injured enough that he had to shoot it up pregame. Rookie left tackle had legitimately the worst game of the season for an offensive lineman, giving up a wild 14 pressures. Josh McDaniels – who had the most experience of anyone in the organization with Super Bowls – had no answers  for the Seattle defense. 

Basically, everything that could go wrong did go wrong for New England on the worst night possible. 

A 17-4 record, a Coach of the Year, an Assistant Coach of the Year, a runner up in the MVP race and a ton of young guys that got invaluable Super Bowl experience. That’s what fans should be happy about in the big picture. On the flip side, the ‘We All We Got, We All We Need’ mantra clearly wasn’t accurate, as this roster needs some serious additions on the O-line, at receiver, at edge rusher and it can probably afford to get younger at tight end too. 

Rosters never look the same whether you win or lose a Super Bowl, but this mix of veterans and youth was perfect for Mike Vrabel’s first season. Everyone bought in and for the most part, this squad never went through any true adversity from a football standpoint. Off the field, there were some tragic circumstances that guys had to battle though, but in terms of in between the white lines, this was the longest ‘honey moon period’ for a head coach I can ever recall. 

Now, what happens when the Pats are no longer sneaking up on people? What happens if the team starts 2-4 and guys start pointing fingers? What happens if Drake Maye eventually starts to feel like the team isn’t putting enough around him or in front of him to get back and win The Big One? These are all things Vrabel didn’t have to deal with this year, that could very easily pop up in 2026.

With the NFL so wide open, the Patriots and Seahawks took advantage of the opportunity to reach Santa Clara, In the grand scheme of things, this magical run for Pats fans should be one looked back on fondly. 

But, when the final whistle was blown and the wrong color confetti rained down inside Levi’s Stadium, it’s hard not to look at this as a massive wasted opportunity for Vrabel, Maye and everyone at One Patriot Place.