Efton Chism III’s fourth-quarter, one-handed touchdown against the Buffalo Bills was the sort of play that spreads like wildfire among NFL fans on a Sunday.
For his parents, the moment wasn’t seen so much as heard. From their vantage point in the new Highmark Stadium, they knew quarterback Drake Maye targeted their son for the go-ahead score, but they didn’t have a clear view of how the play ended.
It was a hush that fell over the Buffalo crowd around them that told them he had just done something big. Something that really upset the table-breakers.
“I knew something was up because it did go deafening quiet,” Chism’s father, Efton Chism II told WEEI.com in a phone call. “I think everyone was trying to figure out, was it a catch or not, at that point.”
When their son’s play was ruled a touchdown, Efton II and his wife, Kristy, were so stunned, he said they “almost kind of sat down,” before jumping for joy.
“I didn’t know how to handle my emotions, quite honestly,” Efton II said. “I probably started crying, because I didn't know what else to do. It was pretty powerful. I was like, holy crap. That just happened. Right? Pretty surreal. Shoot. We were walking out of the stadium hours later going, ‘Holy crap, that happened.’”
“My heart just felt like it was going to explode,” Kristy said. “There definitely were some tears. We were just so happy for him. He's worked so hard and he's had so many extra trainings and practices and work, and that's just how he is. And I was just so excited.”
The 23-yard catch, which put the Patriots up 27-26, wasn’t Efton III’s first touchdown in an NFL game, but it was the first one witnessed by his parents, in-person, during the regular season.
Following a stadium-hopping professional athlete is no easy feat, especially when he’s over 2,400 miles from home.
The Chisms first broke out the whiteboard to map out their son’s schedule in their Monroe, Washington home last year, after he made the 53-man roster.
Efton III fought an uphill battle to get on the squad in 2025. He was an undrafted free agent out of Eastern Washington University, a Football Championship Subdivision school. He beat out the likes of Ja’Lynn Polk and Kendrick Bourne for his spot after a hyper-productive preseason that included two touchdowns. Efton II and Kristy hopped on a plane to see one of those preseason games at Gillette.
“It was our first rodeo,” Efton II said. “We didn't know any better. We wanted to get in the building. So, we actually had seven friends with us and we're like, okay, let's just get in the building. It was like section 320-something.”
The Chisms were pleasantly surprised to be greeted by Patriots fans, sitting near them some seven rows down from the top of the bleachers, who were already well-aware of their son and his jersey number. They quickly realized, however, they’d need serious binoculars to take in the action.
“He was like an ant,” Kristy laughed.
“We couldn’t even see his number,” Efton II laughed. “Is that 86 or is that 88 or something like that? Yeah. We decided, hey, if we're going to come this far and experience this with our boy, we probably need to move down a little and get so we can enjoy it a little better.”
So, when the Chisms got back to the Pacific Northwest, they drew up a travel plan on the dry-erase board. Lower bowl tickets don’t come cheap and neither do cross-country flights. It was a stretch to try to get to as many away games in the 2025 regular season, but they made it out to Route 1 as often as they could.
Efton Chism III poses with his parents Kristy and Efton Chism II in Buffalo. Photo courtesy of Kristy Chism
“We put every game on the whiteboard and then we kind of work it out from there,” Kristy said. “The home games are obviously the best ones to go to. We get to spend more time with him. He loves for us to cook him a meal. I got him an air bed at his apartment so we can crash there. Speaking as a financially responsible parent, those are the ones that pencil out.”
Efton II is a customer representative for a construction company and Kristy teaches third grade. They’re both hard workers, and to help cushion the financial blow of so much travel, Kristy picked up summer jobs in retail and at a local winery. It was something she first started doing when their daughter, Camille, got into college, and it continued when they began budgeting out their son’s NFL games.
Intrigued by the Bills’ new Highmark Stadium, Efton II and Kristy decided to make a trip in Week 4. They had no way of knowing the game they circled on the whiteboard would be Buffalo’s first loss in their new home – courtesy of their son.
The Chisms took two flights to get to Buffalo from Seattle and arrived at the field when the gates opened, as is their ritual. Kristy likes to get a pregame hug before Efton III gets “in the zone.”
Their son also has a knack for early arrivals, often getting to the Patriots’ practice facilities as early as 5:30 a.m. to start his day. His work ethic was clear even in high school, when he’d forego snowboarding trips with friends to focus on his health and training.
“In a way, maybe, it was a sacrifice in our eyes. But maybe it wasn’t. He knew exactly what he wanted all along, and he was just going to go get it. So maybe he doesn’t view it that way, which is pretty powerful in itself, too,” Efton II said.
They sat near the 30-yard line in Buffalo, hoping their son would get opportunities in the biggest game of the Patriots' season thus far. He played in eight regular season games last year and two playoff games, but they understand life in the NFL is unpredictable.
In Week 1, the Chism family looked forward to Efton III playing in front of a hometown crowd in Seattle. A crew of more than 50 friends, family, and coaches came to the game at Lumen Field, but he didn’t suit up. Kristy was proud of how her son came back to the group after his postgame commitments to greet and thank every person.
“He's just so positive and encouraging and kind, he kind of makes me want to be like him,” she said.
On Sunday, he made a lot of folks around New England want to be like him – the kind of hero fans are eager to celebrate.
Buffalo fans? Not so much.
A minute remained on the clock in Orchard Park following Efton III’s second catch, and a Bills fan sitting next to the Chisms realized he was their son after the emotional reaction.
“He’s like, ‘That's really awesome. I still want you to lose,’” Efton II recalled.
The Chisms had to fly back to Washington that night so they could both work Monday morning. Kristy’s personalized Chism 86 sweatshirt wasn’t well-received at Buffalo Niagara International Airport.
“There were so many Buffalo people everywhere, and they were sad,” Kristy recalled. “The TSA people were like – I had one guy say to me, ‘That shirt’s going to burn up when you go through security.’ Nobody was outright rude, but that atmosphere, for them, you could see that they were sad.”
Efton III’s parents, on the other hand, were elated on their flight back home. Kristy doesn’t tend to sleep on flights, and she sure as heck didn’t sleep on that one. She and Efton II traded social media clips back and forth mid-air.
Their son’s catch was the highlight of the season. For Kristy and Efton II, it was the culmination of years of work – and many miles for them.
“Everyone's talking about that catch,” Kristy said. “But I feel, maybe people don't get it as much as the preparation that goes into [that], and all those gentlemen. It's just the blood, sweat and tears that they put in for a thing that they love so much.”
