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Patriots’ unsung hero goes from practice squad to making key play vs. Broncos
"I went from a losing team to a Super Bowl team, so it’s pretty great."
It’s been an interesting season for Leonard Taylor.
The 23-year-old defensive tackle out of the University of Miami opened the 2025 season with the New York Jets — only to find himself on the roster bubble for one of the cellar-dwellers in the AFC.
After being deemed a healthy scratch in four out of New York’s first six games, he was released by the Jets earlier this fall.
Just a few months later, Taylor went from a cast-off on an 0-6 team to being a key contributor in an AFC championship game.
“I went from a losing team to a Super Bowl team, so it’s pretty great,” Taylor said postgame after New England’s 10-7 win over the Broncos. “It’s pretty amazing, just knowing that all the hard work I put in has finally been noticed and seen.”
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Taylor, now in the midst of his second NFL season, helped New England preserve their slim lead in the fourth quarter — getting his hand on a potential game-tying field goal from Denver’s Wil Lutz with under five minutes to go in regulation.
Taylor’s game-saving stop was the byproduct of an eventful journey with New England — who initially signed him to their practice squad on Oct. 15.
The athletic defensive lineman quickly ingratiated himself to New England’s coaching staff — earning six elevations to the active roster for the Patriots, including reps in all three of the team’s playoff bouts so far.
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Taylor — a 6-foot, 305-pound lineman — started logging reps on special teams last week against the Texans in the AFC divisional round before getting another opportunity against Denver.
“Amazing coach,” Taylor said of Vrabel. “Soon as I walked in the building, it was all smiles with him. He welcomed me in. Started off in and out the P-squad, just learning everything I had to do and understand what I needed to do for when it’s time to play. Then after that, it was up. After that, I got an opportunity to play, show my ability.”
Vrabel and his staff’s faith in Taylor paid off on Sunday, with the defensive tackle pushing forward at the line, leaping into the air and getting a hand on the football as Lutz kicked into adverse conditions at Empower Field at Mile High.
For Taylor, it stood as the first time in football career that he blocked a field goal. He picked a good time to do, as both he and his teammates will now take on the Seahawks in Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8 at Levi’s Stadium.
“I started with the Jets at first, a lot of up and downs coming there. Came to this organization. They let me in with open arms. Everybody was nice to me,” Taylor said. “Got me to understand everything I had to do.
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“It’s amazing to go from a losing team to a winning team. And we’re going to the Super Bowl like that. I was dreaming about that since I was a kid, since I first started. So God is good.”
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