Jerod Mayo on the Patriots' attempt to score a record-setting field goal against the Colts

The Indianapolis Colts successfully converted a two-point attempt with 12 seconds left in their Week 13 game against the New England Patriots to take a 25-24 lead.

The Patriots were able to put together an impressive performance in those 12 seconds and set themselves up for a potential game-winning score. Quarterback Drake Maye completed two passes for 20 yards to get the team to midfield with one second left.

At this point, most assumed the Patriots would allow Maye to attempt a Hail Mary to end regulation.

Instead, Patriots coach Jerod Mayo sent his kicker Joey Slye to attempt a 68-yarder kick, a kick that is two yards longer than Justin Tucker’s NFL record 66 yards.

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Slye’s kick was strong and direct, but it narrowly missed the goal posts, giving the Colts a 25-24 victory.

What was the reason for Mayo’s decision to terminate at the end of regulation? The first-year coach said after the game that the call was “100% mine” and explained why he was comfortable trusting Slye with the record-setting kick.

“Look, Slye scored well before the game and I felt like that was the best thing we could do to help our team win the football game,” Mayo said during his postgame press conference. “I’m not sure how the numbers at Hail Marys compare to the field goal there, but I thought that was true.”

For those wondering, according to an ESPN report from October, about one in 12 Hail Mary passes since 2009 have been successful. That would have given Maye and the offense about an 8.3% chance of scoring a touchdown on a heave in the end zone.

In comparison, no NFL kicker has attempted from more than 66 yards. However, NFL kickers entered Week 13 having made 4 of 10 attempts from over 60 yards in the 2024 NFL season. This included a 63-yard strike by Slye in Week 4 against the San Francisco 49ers.

According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Slye had a sharp workout before the game when he made a 62-yard kick. So it’s understandable that the Patriots were willing to give him a chance at the end of the regular season.

But given the historic nature of the kick, temperatures hovering around 30 degrees during the game and Slye’s 25-yard miss at the end of the first half, it’s also easy to understand why many would question the first-year head coach’s wisdom.

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