Big Brother 28 · Taylor’s Final Story · Finale spoilers

Taylor Helped Get Herself to the Final Two. Winning Was Another Matter.

Taylor had more influence than the ‘carried to the end’ argument allows. She also needed other people to keep her. Her season shows the difference between changing a decision, staying in the house, and winning the jury.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor Brown
Taylor BrownRunner-up · Big Brother 28

Her full Power history

A late HOH creates the biggest jump.

Scale: 6–24
Taylor’s Total Power Score, Episode 1 through the FinaleStarts at 9, reaches 11 in Episode 3 and 12 in Episode 17. Peaks at 18 with final-four HOH in Episode 34. Returns to 12 when HOH ends in Episode 35. Finishes at 13 after the final-two offer. Full numeric table follows below.6121824Episode 1: 9Episode 2: 9Episode 3: 11Episode 4: 11Episode 5: 11Episode 6: 11Episode 7: 11Episode 8: 11Episode 9: 11Episode 10: 11Episode 11: 11Episode 12: 11Episode 13: 11Episode 14: 11Episode 15: 11Episode 16: 11Episode 17: 12Episode 18: 12Episode 19: 12Episode 20: 12Episode 21: 12Episode 22: 12Episode 23: 12Episode 24: 12Episode 25: 12Episode 26: 12Episode 27: 12Episode 28: 12Episode 29: 12Episode 30: 12Episode 31: 12Episode 32: 12Episode 33: 12Episode 34: 18Episode 35: 12Finale: 13E1E10E20E30Finale18 · HOH
9Start · E1
18Peak · E34
13Finale
Six ratings, each from 1 to 4. These totals describe demonstrated Power—not winning chances. An unchanged score does not mean nothing happened.
See every score and all six ratings ↓

Official cast photographs: Evan Mulling ©2026 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Photo source.

The arguments behind the story

Start with what viewers said. Check what Taylor actually did.

The Audience Belief Check compares arguments from four selected Reddit threads with the game record. This is not a poll of all fans. The checks run through Taylor’s story, including the moves that worked, the ones that failed, and the help she needed.

A verdict can be Supported, Partly supported, Mostly contradicted, or Not established. Missing proof is not the same as proof that a claim is wrong.

The ending, in four steps

A win gives her a chance. A pitch helps secure her seat.

  1. Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
    Taylor
    Taylor wins Part 1She reaches the last HOH contest.
  2. Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
    Taylor
    Taylor makes her pitchBefore Part 3, she warns Devens about taking Drew.
  3. Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Devens
    Devens
    Devens wins and cuts DrewHe wins Part 3, then cites Taylor’s warning.
  4. Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
    Taylor
    Taylor finishes secondThe jury chooses Devens, 6–1.

Her warning helps explain the cut. It does not prove what Devens would have done without it.

The whole season—not just the last pitch

Eleven turns in Taylor’s game

01
Episode 3On the block, Taylor finds people she can work with.
02
Episodes 16–17LaTrice holds HOH. Taylor helps shape the nominations.
03
Episode 19Drew and Barrett tell the veterans about Taylor’s role.
04
Episode 23Melody listens. Dee pushes back.
05
Episode 27Taylor stays. Her closest ally leaves.
06
Episode 29Taylor and Yash choose to keep Dee.
07
Episode 32Taylor tries to save Yash. Melody and Drew choose otherwise.
08
Episodes 34–35Taylor wins HOH—but Drew gets the deciding vote.
09
Finale · before the last choiceA win gives Taylor a chance—not the final say.
10
Finale · the pitch and the cutTaylor gives Devens a reason to break his promise to Drew.
11
Finale · the jury voteGetting picked is not the same as getting the votes.
01

Episode 3

On the block, Taylor finds people she can work with.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of LaTrice
LaTrice
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Dee
Dee
Taylor’s Power9 → 11

Taylor is one of Dee’s nominees. She works repeatedly with LaTrice, shares target information, and counts votes with Dee. Being nominated does not shut her out of game conversations.

What was there to gain?

These talks give her a way to seek protection and help shape the next decision. That is the practical value of the moves; the record does not give us every private reason she had.

What happened?

LaTrice coordinates with her, and Taylor gains access to planning. She has people willing to work with her—not the right to tell the house what to do.

What Power explains

Trust-based influence, called Referent Power, rises from 2 to 3. Her use of information rises from 2 to 3. Her total moves from 9 to 11.

Keep the limit: A working relationship is not a promise that someone will always save her.

02

Episodes 16–17

LaTrice holds HOH. Taylor helps shape the nominations.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of LaTrice
LaTrice
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Chuk
Chuk
Taylor’s Power11 → 12

Taylor steers LaTrice away from targeting Devens, advises her on one-on-one talks, and pushes for Chuk to go on the block. LaTrice then nominates Haley, Chuk, and Barrett.

What was there to gain?

Taylor can help get the nominations she wants without being the person announcing them. Afterward, she acts surprised. Chuk still underestimates how much say she had.

What happened?

Her advice is followed by a real choice. This is stronger evidence of influence than simply knowing the plan. But LaTrice makes the decision, and other players also help shape it.

What Power explains

Informational Power rises from 3 to 4 after the nomination result. Taylor’s total reaches 12. The earlier advice alone had not yet earned the increase.

Keep the limit: This shows influence over a decision, not secret control of every HOH.

03

Episode 19

Drew and Barrett tell the veterans about Taylor’s role.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Drew
Drew
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Barrett
Barrett
Taylor’s Power12 · unchanged

Drew and Barrett expose planning against the veterans and identify Taylor, Yash, and LaTrice’s involvement. Taylor also gives Devens a warning that changes what he knows.

What was there to gain?

Taylor is still using information to affect the game. But the other players’ disclosures make it harder for her to influence choices without taking the blame.

What happened?

Dee, Devens, and Angela begin treating Taylor as someone they may need to target. The problem is specific: they now recognize her part in plans against them.

What Power explains

Her total stays at 12. The new danger does not erase her demonstrated use of information. What fails is the idea that she can keep doing it without others catching on.

Keep the limit: Being identified as a threat does not, by itself, prove that she will be evicted next.

04

Episode 23

Melody listens. Dee pushes back.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Melody
Melody
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Dee
Dee
Taylor’s Power12 · unchanged

Taylor gives Melody an account blaming Drew, and Melody becomes more distrustful of him. Later, Taylor makes a jury-vote argument to Dee. That pitch draws a negative response, and Dee puts Taylor on the block.

What was there to gain?

The talks offer two possible gains: turn someone against Drew and improve Taylor’s own position with the HOH. They do not produce the same response.

What happened?

Taylor can persuade one person and fail with another. Dee also hears other accounts and has her own reasons for her choices.

What Power explains

Informational Power stays at 4 and the total at 12. A high rating records demonstrated influence; it does not mean every argument works.

Keep the limit: The record does not show that Taylor’s pitch alone caused her nomination.

05

Episode 27

Taylor stays. Her closest ally leaves.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of LaTrice
LaTrice
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Devens
Devens
Taylor’s Power12 · unchanged

Devens wins the Blockbuster safety competition, leaving Taylor beside LaTrice, also called LaLa. Dee, Barrett, Yash, and Devens vote LaTrice out. Angela and Melody vote against Taylor. LaTrice leaves 4–2.

What was there to gain?

Taylor needs enough votes to stay, but surviving this vote means losing someone she works closely with. In her later Parade interview, she describes LaLa as the ally she wanted beside her at the end.

What happened?

Barrett delivers a promised vote to keep Taylor. The other votes also save her, but we cannot credit all of them to her persuasion. The final hours before the vote are missing from the feed record.

What Power explains

Taylor remains at 12. Survival does not automatically add Power, and losing an ally does not automatically subtract it.

Keep the limit: The bond matters, but the evidence does not let us blame later choices on grief or any other unspoken feeling.

06

Episode 29

Taylor and Yash choose to keep Dee.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Yash
Yash
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Dee
Dee
Taylor’s Power12 · unchanged

Taylor and Yash make a final-two agreement. They then join Devens in voting Angela out over Dee, 3–2. Dee has offered protection and gained commitments from the three voters.

What was there to gain?

Keeping Dee offers Taylor and Yash a possible partner for the next rounds. It also leaves a strong opponent in the house. Taylor later describes Yash as an important source of personal support.

What happened?

Their pair follows through on one shared vote. That is real cooperation. It is not proof that everyone in the vote will protect everyone else later.

What Power explains

Taylor’s total stays at 12. The choice shows how relationships can guide a vote without producing a new rating.

Keep the limit: We can identify the risk of keeping Dee. We cannot replay the season with Angela staying and claim Taylor would have won.

07

Episode 32

Taylor tries to save Yash. Melody and Drew choose otherwise.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Yash
Yash
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Melody
Melody
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Drew
Drew
Taylor’s Power12 · unchanged

During the double eviction, Devens wins the veto and removes himself. Taylor asks HOH Melody to put Drew up. Melody refuses and nominates Yash. Taylor votes against Dee, but Drew and Devens vote Yash out, 2–1.

What was there to gain?

Taylor’s proposed replacement would keep Yash off the block. Once he is nominated, her vote tries to keep him in the house. Neither effort gets the help it needs.

What happened?

She loses her final-two partner because the people making the key choices have other priorities. Knowing what she wants—and saying it—does not give her their votes.

What Power explains

Taylor stays at 12. Her strong information record does not establish control over Melody’s nomination or Drew’s ballot.

Keep the limit: In a later interview, Taylor describes exhaustion and difficulty keeping up game conversations. That adds human context; it does not prove tiredness caused this eviction.

08

Episodes 34–35

Taylor wins HOH—but Drew gets the deciding vote.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Devens
Devens
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Drew
Drew
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Dee
Dee
Taylor’s Power12 → 18 → 12

First, Taylor survives another vote: Drew votes to evict her, Dee votes to evict Melody, and Devens breaks the tie against Melody. Taylor then wins the final-four HOH and nominates Dee and Drew. She wants Devens out.

What was there to gain?

The HOH win makes Taylor safe and gives her the nominations. Removing Devens would also remove a major opponent. She makes that case to Drew.

What happened?

Drew wins the veto, so he—not Taylor—holds the only eviction vote. Devens promises him final two, and Drew has his own plan for the final HOH. He keeps Devens and evicts Dee, against Taylor’s preference.

What Power explains

The HOH job raises Taylor’s total to 18: Legitimate and Coercive Power each rise from 1 to 4. When the job ends, both return to 1 and the total to 12. That drop is the end of her authority, not a six-point penalty for a bad pitch.

Keep the limit: Taylor gets safety, but not the removal she wants. We cannot know the result if Drew had cut Devens instead.

09

Finale · before the last choice

A win gives Taylor a chance—not the final say.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Devens
Devens
Taylor’s PowerNo bonus for a safety or qualifying win

Taylor wins Part 1 of the final HOH, earning a place in Part 3. Devens wins Part 2. Before their last contest, she makes her case for him to take her. Devens then wins Part 3 and gets the only eviction vote.

What was there to gain?

Winning Part 3 would let Taylor choose her opponent herself. A deal offers another route if she loses. Those are different ways to reach the same seat.

What happened?

After Devens wins, Taylor cannot send Drew home herself. Her place in the final two depends on Devens’s decision.

What Power explains

Part 1 gives competition access, not the authority to make the final cut. RPM does not turn that win into Expert Power. The effect of her separate pitch is explained next.

Keep the limit: Competition results are part of the cause. Calling the whole ending luck would leave out both performance and persuasion.

10

Finale · the pitch and the cut

Taylor gives Devens a reason to break his promise to Drew.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Devens
Devens
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Drew
Drew
Taylor’s Power12 → 13

Taylor warns Devens that taking Drew could cost him the jury vote. She also offers a mutual final-two deal. Devens asks for the same promise in return, weighs her case, and later cites her warning when he evicts Drew.

What was there to gain?

Taylor wants a seat beside Devens if he wins the last competition. After the season, she says her promise was a bluff: she would have taken Drew if she had won. She also says she did not really believe Drew would beat Devens.

What happened?

The warning enters Devens’s decision, and Taylor reaches the final two. Her pitch helps. It does not follow that he would have kept Drew without it; Devens has his own reasons to choose the opponent he thinks he can beat.

What Power explains

The warning supports her existing Informational 4. The final-two offer raises Reward Power from 1 to 2 because she could provide that benefit at the time and Devens considers it. Her total reaches 13. His response is real even though she later says she did not intend to keep the promise.

Keep the limit: The promise and the warning are separate. The record links the cut most clearly to the warning—not proof that the offered deal alone caused it.

11

Finale · the jury vote

Getting picked is not the same as getting the votes.

Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Taylor
Taylor
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of Devens
Devens
Official Big Brother 28 cast portrait of LaTrice
LaTrice
Taylor’s Power13 · final profile

The jury votes 6–1 for Devens. Taylor’s only vote comes from LaTrice, according to her post-season interview.

What was there to gain?

The task has changed. Taylor no longer needs one player to keep her; she needs a majority of seven jurors to choose her as the winner.

What happened?

Her final pitch solves the first problem, not the second. The one vote from LaTrice is consistent with their strong bond, but a close ally’s vote is not proof of broad jury support.

What Power explains

Taylor finishes with a Power total of 13. Second place does not add or remove points. The ratings describe demonstrated influence, not the probability of winning.

Keep the limit: The record does not contain every juror’s reasoning or the complete final speeches and questions. We cannot reduce six votes to one mistake in her speech.

What her season shows

Taylor could change a decision. She could not make everyone choose her.

She helped shape LaTrice’s nominations, lost cover when others exposed her role, and watched key requests fail. Later, she made a pitch Devens took seriously. All of that belongs in her story.

So do the people who saved her, the competitions that changed her options, and the jury that chose someone else. Power helps explain those events. It does not turn second place into proof of a bad player—or a strong final pitch into proof she should have won.

What do you think?

Which showed Taylor’s influence more clearly: helping shape LaTrice’s nominations, or persuading Devens at the end?

Check the numbers

Her final Power profile

Finale total: 13. These are six different kinds of influence—not six grades for how well she played.

Legitimate
1Authority from a role
Reward
2Benefits she can offer
Coercive
1Consequences she can impose
Expert
2Influence through trusted expertise
Referent
3Influence through trust and connection
Informational
4Influence through information and reasons
Show all 36 recorded snapshots and all six ratings

Episode labels follow RPM’s analysis sequence, which differs from CBS’s broadcast numbering. The last snapshot is the Finale, not Episode 36. Some earlier assessments were reconstructed after airing.

Taylor’s frozen Power history · no scores changed for this story
WhenTotalLegitimateRewardCoerciveExpertReferentInformational
Episode 19111222
Episode 29111222
Episode 311111233
Episode 411111233
Episode 511111233
Episode 611111233
Episode 711111233
Episode 811111233
Episode 911111233
Episode 1011111233
Episode 1111111233
Episode 1211111233
Episode 1311111233
Episode 1411111233
Episode 1511111233
Episode 1611111233
Episode 1712111234
Episode 1812111234
Episode 1912111234
Episode 2012111234
Episode 2112111234
Episode 2212111234
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Episode 2712111234
Episode 2812111234
Episode 2912111234
Episode 3012111234
Episode 3112111234
Episode 3212111234
Episode 3312111234
Episode 3418414234
Episode 3512111234
Finale13121234

Sources and limits

Game facts, later interviews, and viewer arguments are different evidence.

The Episode and Finale links beside each chapter lead to the underlying RPM reports. The original ratings remain unchanged. October 2 interviews add what Taylor later said she intended or felt; they were not part of the original Finale analysis.

The Finale record is an availability reconstruction: some scheduled records, complete playback and captions, full jury discussion, and the complete questions and final pleas are unavailable. We cannot supply missing motives or an alternate jury result.

See the audience discussions reviewed

Reviewed October 4, 2026. Four purpose-selected threads from two Reddit communities, on one platform. Repeated arguments within this sample are not a measure of what most viewers believe. Interview coverage of the same player is not independent proof of her private motives.