The AFC’s top two seeds meet in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday when the No. 2 New England Patriots visit the No. 1 Denver Broncos.
Jarrett Stidham after Bo Nix fractured his ankle in the divisional round. Stidham is the second quarterback in NFL history to make his first start of the season in the conference championship or later, according to ESPN Research. On the other side, Drake Maye enters with 16 wins on the season, tied for the most by a first- or second-year quarterback.
It’s the first playoff matchup between the two franchises since the 2015 AFC Championship Game, which pitted Tom Brady and Peyton Manning against each other for the final time. Brady had 310 passing yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, while Manning threw for 176 yards and two touchdowns. The Patriots had a chance to send the game to overtime, but Broncos cornerback Bradley Roby intercepted Brady on the 2-point conversion attempt to secure the 20-18 victory in Denver.
Before Denver and New England meet again in the AFC title game, here’s a look back at sports and pop culture trends the last time they met with a spot in the Super Bowl at stake: Jan. 24, 2016.
Justin Bieber headlines Billboard Hot 100
Justin Bieber’s November 2015 pop album «Purpose» sold more than a million copies and went triple platinum. It also included three No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including one that reached the top on Jan. 23, 2016: «Sorry.»
The track was slotted at No. 2 the week prior and spent 42 total weeks on the Hot 100, one of his career’s longest-charted tracks. Bieber had two other songs in the top 10 that week with «Love Yourself» at No. 3 and «What Do You Mean?» at No. 8.
Other songs on the Billboard Hot 100 included Adele’s «Hello» at No. 2, Drake’s «Hotline Bling» at No. 4 and Twenty One Pilots’ «Stressed Out» at No. 5.
NBA season full of memorable storylines
Golden State Warriors going 73-9, surpassing the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls’ 72-10 mark for the best in league history.
The Warriors began the season with 24 consecutive wins, the best start to an NBA campaign ever. They held a 40-4 record while the Broncos and Patriots faced off and were in the midst of an 11-game winning streak. Golden State would go all the way to the 2016 NBA Finals but lost in seven games to the Cleveland Cavaliers, becoming the first team to lose the Finals after holding a 3-1 series lead.
On the other side of the NBA standings, the Los Angeles Lakers were the worst team in the Western Conference as franchise legend Kobe Bryant concluded the final season of his playing career. Bryant struggled throughout the season, averaging 17.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
However, Bryant dropped 60 points in the final game of his career on April 13, 2016, in one of his most remarkable performances.
DiCaprio approaching first Oscar
Released in December 2015, «The Revenant» was the second-highest-grossing film the next month, behind «Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens.» Most notably, it included a consequential performance from star Leonardo DiCaprio.
Across his career to that point, DiCaprio had been nominated for best actor four times at the Oscars, but had never taken home the honor. That changed with «The Revenant,» a performance that DiCaprio called the hardest of his career.
It ended up paying dividends, as he received a standing ovation when he won best actor at the 88th Academy Awards.
UConn women in midst of historic stretch
SMU 90-37 for its 55th straight win. The roster included eight future WNBA pros: Breanna Stewart, Napheesa Collier, Moriah Jefferson, Morgan Tuck, Katie Lou Samuelson, Kia Nurse, Gabby Williams and Saniya Chong.
‘Hamilton’ taking over Broadway
The legendary musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda debuted on Broadway in July 2015 and took the stage by storm.
Miranda blended hip-hop, R&B and traditional Broadway sounds to tell the story of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton. It grossed $3.3 million in a single November 2016 week, the most money ever made in a single week by a Broadway show, according to The New York Times. The performance also became the first Broadway production to gross more than $3 million across an eight-performance week.
A month after the Broncos beat the Patriots, «Hamilton» won a Grammy Award for best musical theater album. In April 2016, Miranda received the Pulitzer Prize for drama. «Hamilton» also became the musical production with the most Tony nominations with 16, winning 11 of them.
Serena stunned at Australian Open
With a chance to match Steffi Graf’s record of 22 major wins, Serena Williams was defeated by No. 7 seeded Angelique Kerber 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 for her first major title.
Williams struggled with 46 unforced errors in her first loss in a major final since the US Open in 2011. She had dropped just 26 total games en route to the final, the fewest of her Grand Slam career. Williams later rebounded against Kerber, however, defeating her in the 2016 Wimbledon final to match Graf’s record.
