The collective tenure of head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady has completely overhauled much of New England Patriots history.

But there’s one long-standing aspect of the franchise’s past that Belichick and Brady have done little to change.

Like those that have come before them, they haven’t been able to consistently beat the Denver Broncos.

In his 12th year at the helm of the Patriots, Belichick is just 3-6 against Denver — his worst winning percentage against an AFC squad. Brady, meanwhile, is an unseemly 1-6 facing the Broncos, including the postseason. Brady against everyone else, by the way? 134-34.

In this regard, they’re far from unique in Patriots history. Bill Parcells? Two losses to Denver by an average of 30 points. Raymond Berry? Winless in five tries. Drew Bledsoe? Two wins in six games.

In fact, New England is 4-17 in its last 21 meetings with the Broncos, dating to Nov. 4, 1984.

On one level, it would seem to make sense. Despite some down years of late, the Broncos have been one of the best franchises in the conference since, well, John Elway arrived in 1982. Denver was really New England’s dynastic forerunner in the AFC, having back-to-back championships in the late 1990s behind Elway and Terrell Davis, ending the NFC’s decades-long dominance of the Lombardi Trophy.

But at the same time, this past decade hasn’t been Denver’s best, and it’s stunning that any team — let alone one that has dabbled in mediocrity of late — can boast this kind of sustained success against this Patriots administration. After all, it isn’t like the Broncos have been piling up 12-win seasons and Super Bowl appearances, like the Colts and Steelers, respectively, in the AFC. Yet New England handles those two teams much better than Denver.

Denver has made the playoffs four times while Belichick has been the head coach in New England, but the last trip was in 2005. One more victory this season would give the Broncos their first winning campaign since 2006, or back when Vince Young was the league’s Offensive Rookie of the Year.

So what gives?

“We just haven’t played very well. We’ve had some very close games against them; we just haven’t pulled it out,” said Brady last week. They’re a good team. They’ve had a good team for a long time — when [Mike] Shanahan was there, and I think we’ve played a bunch of very tight games with them. Hopefully we can start working our way to getting even.”

It’s tempting to pin much of the blame on the difficulty of playing in Denver, what with the trip out west and the thinner air. The Patriots did fly out on Friday, a day earlier than usual, to have an extra day to acclimate to the weather.

“Maybe it’s the mile-high air. Maybe there’s something to that,” said Brady.

But that excuse doesn’t hold much water, not when the Dolphins, Bills and Jets have all won a mile-high since 2009. And not when the Broncos haven’t had a winning season at home since 2007.

“Both teams will be breathing the same air,” Belichick said. “Best thing we can do is play well. We’ve gone out there and played well and won. We’ve gone out there and not played well and haven’t won.”

Denver is the site of Brady’s first playoff loss ever, and Belichick’s first with the Patriots — a game sealed by perhaps the most memorable interception of Brady’s career, when Champ Bailey picked him off in the end zone and returned it to the New England one.

Of course, that was six years ago, and the Patriots don’t suffer the past like a Faulkner character. Asked about his 1-5 regular-season record against the Broncos, Brady didn’t put too much stock in it.

“1-5? Man, that’s pretty bad. Hopefully we get to 2-5 this week,” the quarterback said. “Losing [stinks]; you hate losing, but there’s nothing I can do about those games in the past now. So I’ll just try to win this one. That will make me feel pretty good.”

One of the stranger aspects of Denver’s dominion over the Patriots is its consistency despite the turnover of personnel for the Broncos. Their success against Belichick and Brady has come with different coaches and different quarterbacks. Denver has beaten New England under Mike Shanahan and Josh McDaniels — both eventually fired — and with Brian Griese, Jake Plummer and Kyle Orton under center — all eventually traded or released.

This is a decidedly different Broncos regime, with John Fox in his first season as head coach and Tim Tebow making his first career start against New England. Both bring strong track records — Fox’s just in a larger sample than Tebow’s so far.

“I think it’s been obviously always a tough week to prepare for John’s teams,” said Belichick, who is 3-1 against Fox in his career, including a win in Super Bowl XXXVIII. “They do a good job with their different schemes, give you some different looks, really keep you honest, and we’ve certainly seen that in all three phases this week. There’s a lot to get ready for.”

But the Patriots hope that the changes in personnel for the Broncos lead to a change in their head-to-head history.

“It doesn’t really matter about what happened in other years,” said Belichick. “This is a new team and it’s a new coach out there. They do things differently than they’ve done them in the past, so it doesn’t really matter. They’re good right now. They’re playing well.

“Damn right, they’re a tough team to face. I don’t really think the ’87 team has anything to do with this game, in all honesty. I think it has no bearing on it whatsoever.” PATRIOTS AT BRONCOS TIME : 4:15 p.m. Sunday at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. ON TV : CBS (Channel 12 in Providence, Channel 4 in Boston). Jim Nantz play-by-play, Phil Simms color. ON RADIO : WBZ-FM (98.5), WPRO (630 AM), WEAN (99.7 FM), WSAR (1480 AM), WBSM (1420 AM). WEATHER : Sunny, 49 degrees. ALL-TIME SERIES : Denver leads, 27-16, including postseason. The Patriots are 8-18 in Denver. NOTEWORTHY : Tim Tebow is the 11th different quarterback to start for the Broncos since John Elway retired in 1999. Elway was 10-0 against New England in his career; the Broncos are 5-4 against the Pats since Elway retired.

tbritton@providencejournal.com

Read More: Tom Brady (QB – NEP), Rob Gronkowski (TE – NEP), Tim Tebow (QB – DEN), New England Patriots, Denver Broncos

The Denver Broncos are going to face their first real challenge of the season since Tim Tebow took over as starting quarterback when they welcome the New England Patriots to Mile High. The only elite quarterback the Broncos have faced this season before Tom Brady was the Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers, who threw for 408 yards and four touchdown passes and rushed for two more scores.

And the Broncos defense has allowed 45, 24 and 32 points during this winning streak. It is quite possible that Brady and the Patriots could beat up the Broncos defense. The early projections from numberFire have both Brady and his star tight end Rob Gronkowski are the top of their respective positions. Brady is the No. 2 quarterback and overall player (behind Rodgers) this week and projected to reach 17.69 points. Gronkowski ranks as the No. 23 best fantasy option and No. 1 at the tight end position with his 13.40 points. Will Gronkowski be able to make it seven straight games with a touchdown pass?

For more on this game visit Broncos blog Mile High Report and Patriots blog Pats Pulpit. For extra help during the fantasy football playoffs, head over to SB Nation Fantasy or ask on Twitter, @sbnationfantasy.

  FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The sideline spat between Tom Brady and
his offensive coordinator seems to have been patched up. The New
England Patriots defense will take longer to fix.

 They’ve allowed more than 430 yards to each of their last three
opponents, all with losing records. Starting with the third week of
the season, they’ve been ranked as the worst team in yards passing
and overall yards allowed.

 And their secondary has been so weak and banged up that wide
receivers Matthew Slater and Julian Edelman have played there a
lot.

 Somehow, the Patriots have won their last five games and are
tied for the AFC’s best record at 10-3.

 ‘‘It’s always a concern when one running back gets over 100
yards,’’ linebacker Dane Fletcher said Monday after the Patriots’
34-27 win at the Washington Redskins on Sunday. ‘‘It’s getting (to
be) crunch time here, so we’ve got to work on it.’’

 The Patriots allowed Washington 463 yards, the eighth time in
13 games they’ve given up at least 427. Roy Helu rushed for 126 and
Rex Grossman threw for 252 and two touchdowns. The journeyman
quarterback directed the Redskins from their 20-yard line to the
Patriots 5 with 1:15 to go.

 New England finally stopped them when wide receiver Santana
Moss tipped a pass into the hands of linebacker Jerod Mayo for an
interception with 20 seconds remaining.

 That drive wouldn’t have meant much if Brady hadn’t thrown an
interception in the end zone on the previous series when a field
goal would have given the Patriots a 37-27 lead.

 When he went to the sideline, Brady got into a shouting match
with offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien. Backup quarterback Brian
Hoyer stepped between them. When the game ended, Brady and O’Brien
embraced.

 ‘‘We’re all held accountable,’’ Brady said Monday on his weekly
appearance on WEEI radio. ‘‘I’m glad our defense really made the
play to win the game at the end, because I’d have been feeling
pretty crappy if we’d somehow not pulled that game out with that
interception there at the end.’’

© 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

New England QB Tom Brady (Denver Post file photo)

For the record: New England is 10-3 and has a two-game lead in the AFC East over the New York Jets (owning the tiebreaker against the Jets).

Last game: The Patriots extended their win streak to five games with a 34-27 victory at Washington. The streak began vs. the Jets and was followed by wins over Kansas City, Philadelphia and Indianapolis.

Who’s hot: Tight end Rob Gronkowski, a second-year player from the University of Arizona, set an NFL record Sunday for most touchdowns in a season by a tight end (15). He had been tied with Antonio Gates (2004) and Vernon Davis (2009) at 13. Gronkowski, who had 160 yards in receptions Sunday, has had at least four catches in all but one game this year.

Who’s not: New England’s defense. The Pats yielded 463 total yards to the Redskins, including a 126-yard rushing day by former Nebraska standout Roy Helu. New England ranks last among NFL teams (No. 32) in total defense, allowing 308.7 yards per game. Only six AFC teams have allowed more points than the 274 yielded by New England.

Key stat: The Patriots have overcome their defensive deficiencies by ranking second to New Orleans in total offense among all NFL teams (319.3). New England ranks second among AFC teams in turnover margin (plus-9).

FYI: With 357 yards passing and three touchdowns against the Redskins, Tom Brady surpassed 4,000 yards for the fourth time in his career and moved into sole possession at sixth place all time with 294 TD passes. He had been tied with Warren Moon at 291.

Coachspeak: “(Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien) and I have a great relationship. … Because you’re a veteran (player), you don’t think, ‘Oh, man. I can’t be yelled at.’ But you can. And you should. We’re all held accountable.” — Brady, on Boston radio station WEEI, regarding his screaming match with O’Brien after Brady threw an interception into the end zone with 6:37 remaining in the fourth quarter vs. Washington. They later chatted and hugged.

Tom Kensler, The Denver Post

And their secondary has been so weak and banged up that wide receivers Matthew Slater and Julian Edelman have played there a lot.

Somehow, the Patriots have won their last five games and are tied for the AFC’s best record at 10-3. But can they continue winning with that shaky defense once the competition stiffens in the playoffs?

“It’s always a concern when one running back gets over 100 yards,” linebacker Dane Fletcher said Monday after the Patriots’ 34-27 win at the Washington Redskins on Sunday. “It’s getting (to be) crunch time here, so we’ve got to work on it.”

The Patriots allowed Washington 463 yards, the eighth time in 13 games they’ve given up at least 427. Roy Helu rushed for 126 and Rex Grossman threw for 252 and two touchdowns. The journeyman quarterback even marched the Redskins from their 20-yard line with 6:30 left to the Patriots 5 with 1:15 to go.

New England finally stopped them when wide receiver Santana Moss tipped a pass into the hands of linebacker Jerod Mayo for an interception with 20 seconds remaining.

That drive wouldn’t have meant much if Brady hadn’t thrown an interception in the end zone on the previous series when a field goal would have given the Patriots a 37-27 lead.

When he went to the sideline, Brady got into a shouting match with offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien. Backup quarterback Brian Hoyer stepped between them. When the game ended, Brady and O’Brien embraced.

“We’re all held accountable,” Brady said Monday on his weekly appearance on WEEI radio. “I’m glad our defense really made the play to win the game at the end, because I’d have been feeling pretty crappy if we’d somehow not pulled that game out with that interception there at the end.”

He also said he and O’Brien have a “great relationship.”

On the interception, cornerback Josh Wilson stepped in front of wide receiver Tiquan Underwood at the back of the end zone. Underwood was signed as a free agent on Nov. 8, cut on Nov. 12 and re-signed Nov. 24. In three games with the Patriots, he has two receptions.

The argument “is just part of the game. We’re all passionate about our jobs,” Underwood said.

He accepted blame for the interception.

“As a wide receiver, we run to get open and catch the ball,” he said, “and if we can’t catch it, no one catches it. So I have to just become a defender for Tom there and don’t let the guy intercept the ball. It was a good play by (Wilson), but I know that I’ve got to run a better route to catch the ball and, if not, I have to bat it down.”

Fortunately for the Patriots, they came up with the game-clinching interception six minutes later. It was the latest example of a bad defense playing well in the red zone.

They’ve allowed opponents inside their 20-yard line 52 times, tied for second most in the NFL. But they’ve given up touchdowns on just 50 percent of those possessions, 16th in the league. When 15 field goals are added in, teams have scored on 41 of those 52 possessions, a rate of 78.8 percent. And that’s tied for fourth best in the NFL.

So how does a porous defense tighten up like that?

“The closer and closer you get to the goal line, the more it relies on attitude, the more you’ve got to rely on the guy next to you to keep them out of the end zone,” Fletcher said. “In the field, it comes down to schemes and what they may or may not do, whereas on the goal line it mainly comes down to attitude and winning one-on-one battles.”

The Redskins reached the red zone four times, scoring two touchdowns and a field goal before falling short at the end.

“We’ve tried to work hard on it,” coach Bill Belichick said Monday. “There are still some things we can do better there.”

They may have to on Sunday when they visit Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos, who pulled out another late comeback win Sunday, 13-10 over the Chicago Bears. They’re 7-1 with Tebow as the starting quarterback and came from behind in six of those wins.

“You have to give credit to how well the team’s doing as opposed to one guy,” Fletcher said, “because they’re all stepping up.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — The sideline spat between Tom Brady and his offensive coordinator seems to have been patched up. The New England Patriots defense will take longer to fix.

They’ve allowed more than 430 yards to each of their last three opponents, all with losing records. Starting with the third week of the season, they’ve been ranked as the worst team in yards passing and overall yards allowed.

And their secondary has been so weak and banged up that wide receivers Matthew Slater and Julian Edelman have played there a lot.

Somehow, the Patriots have won their last five games and are tied for the AFC’s best record at 10-3. But can they continue winning with that shaky defense once the competition stiffens in the playoffs?

“It’s always a concern when one running back gets over 100 yards,” linebacker Dane Fletcher said Monday after the Patriots’ 34-27 win at the Washington Redskins on Sunday. “It’s getting (to be) crunch time here, so we’ve got to work on it.”

The Patriots allowed Washington 463 yards, the eighth time in 13 games they’ve given up at least 427. Roy Helu rushed for 126 and Rex Grossman threw for 252 and two touchdowns. The journeyman quarterback even marched the Redskins from their 20-yard line with 6:30 left to the Patriots 5 with 1:15 to go.

New England finally stopped them when wide receiver Santana Moss tipped a pass into the hands of linebacker Jerod Mayo for an interception with 20 seconds remaining.

That drive wouldn’t have meant much if Brady hadn’t thrown an interception in the end zone on the previous series when a field goal would have given the Patriots a 37-27 lead.

When he went to the sideline, Brady got into a shouting match with offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien. Backup quarterback Brian Hoyer stepped between them. When the game ended, Brady and O’Brien embraced.

“We’re all held accountable,” Brady said Monday on his weekly appearance on WEEI radio. “I’m glad our defense really made the play to win the game at the end, because I’d have been feeling pretty crappy if we’d somehow not pulled that game out with that interception there at the end.”

He also said he and O’Brien have a “great relationship.”

On the interception, cornerback Josh Wilson stepped in front of wide receiver Tiquan Underwood at the back of the end zone. Underwood was signed as a free agent on Nov. 8, cut on Nov. 12 and re-signed Nov. 24. In three games with the Patriots, he has two receptions.

The argument “is just part of the game. We’re all passionate about our jobs,” Underwood said.

He accepted blame for the interception.

“As a wide receiver, we run to get open and catch the ball,” he said, “and if we can’t catch it, no one catches it. So I have to just become a defender for Tom there and don’t let the guy intercept the ball. It was a good play by (Wilson), but I know that I’ve got to run a better route to catch the ball and, if not, I have to bat it down.”

Fortunately for the Patriots, they came up with the game-clinching interception six minutes later. It was the latest example of a bad defense playing well in the red zone.

They’ve allowed opponents inside their 20-yard line 52 times, tied for second most in the NFL. But they’ve given up touchdowns on just 50 percent of those possessions, 16th in the league. When 15 field goals are added in, teams have scored on 41 of those 52 possessions, a rate of 78.8 percent. And that’s tied for fourth best in the NFL.

So how does a porous defense tighten up like that?

“The closer and closer you get to the goal line, the more it relies on attitude, the more you’ve got to rely on the guy next to you to keep them out of the end zone,” Fletcher said. “In the field, it comes down to schemes and what they may or may not do, whereas on the goal line it mainly comes down to attitude and winning one-on-one battles.”

The Redskins reached the red zone four times, scoring two touchdowns and a field goal before falling short at the end.

“We’ve tried to work hard on it,” coach Bill Belichick said Monday. “There are still some things we can do better there.”

They may have to on Sunday when they visit Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos, who pulled out another late comeback win Sunday, 13-10 over the Chicago Bears. They’re 7-1 with Tebow as the starting quarterback and came from behind in six of those wins.

“You have to give credit to how well the team’s doing as opposed to one guy,” Fletcher said, “because they’re all stepping up.”

Just two words say it all for the New England Patriots—Rob Gronkowski.

The Patriots tight end had a monster game on Sunday, December 11 as New England defeated the Washington Redskins by the score of 34-27. New England improves to 10-3 on the season after having won five straight while Washington slips to 4-9 on the year.

Gronkowski was the hands-down hero of the game recording six receptions for 160 yards and a pair of touchdowns. With three games remaining in the season he has already set the NFL single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end with 15 on the season thus far.

Quarterback Tom Brady had another typical outstanding performance completing 22 of 37 pass attempts for 37 yards and three touchdowns. His one interception was his first since November 6, which led to a heated exchange between he and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien.

With any other quarterback on any other team, an interception would surely be a disappointment but this was Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. The two do not make mistakes on offense and when they do happen, they are not taken lightly.

Frankly, it was a game much closer than it should have been.

Washington dominated time of possession controlling the football for 36 minutes compared to New England’s 24 minutes. The Patriots also lost the battle in total yards with Washington netting 463 to New England’s 431.

The difference was turnovers whereas New England’s only mistake was Brady’s interception that could have led to a tie game sending the two teams into overtime. For the Patriots, they took advantage of a Rex Grossman fumble in the first quarter, recovered by Vince Wilfork for a touchdown.

Regardless, all that matters in the end is the final score, which went in favor of the Patriots. New England is now two games ahead of the New York Jets in the AFC East.

New England will have a battle on their hands next week on Sunday, December 18 when they travel to take on the red-hot Denver Broncos led by Tim Tebow. Can Brady and company pull of the victory or will Tebow summon another miracle for the Broncos?

More New England Patriots Commentary from this Contributor:

Patriots end slump, defeat Jets: A fan’s reaction

Patriots lose second straight in loss to NY Giants: A fan’s reaction

New England Patriots fall short in loss to Pittsburgh: A fan’s reaction

Sources:

All stats provided by NFL.com

Paul Rados is an avid New England Patriots fan and a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network. Follow him on Twitter @PSRados or leave him a message on Facebook. For a complete look at his freelance work please visit his Blog.

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The Patriots (9-3) scored two touchdowns in the last 2:57 of the first half, then piled on two more in the third quarter before the winless Colts rallied too late in a 31-24 loss Sunday.

“Guys played well and did some things well, but you’re still measured by wins,” Indianapolis coach Jim Caldwell said.

Orlovsky is the latest quarterback called upon by the Colts as starter Peyton Manning continues his recovery from neck surgery. He completed 30 of 37 passes for 353 yards and two touchdowns, but the Colts couldn’t overcome New England’s surge of 28 straight points.

Manning was on the sideline once again, offering any help he could as he hoped to see his teammates rally without him. The Colts did make it interesting in the fourth when Donald Brown ran for a 5-yard touchdown, and Orlovsky and Pierre Garcon connected for a pair of touchdowns.

That gave Indianapolis a glimmer of hope before Deion Branch recovered the onside kick for New England with 34 seconds left.

“There were a lot of positives at the end of the game, but we should have played like that the entire game,” said Garcon, who finished with nine catches for 150 yards.

Manning said he expects to increase his physical rehabilitation this week with more throwing, but is still uncertain whether he will be on the field at all this season.

“You just can’t help quite as much when you’re not playing. It’s been a new role for me. I don’t think I’m doing very good because we haven’t won any games. But I try to help and just try to be there as a resource for the guys,” Manning said. “Being 0-12 is frustrating for everybody in our building. It’s disappointing. I hate everything about it.”

The Patriots have won four in a row. Indianapolis must beat Baltimore, Tennessee, Houston or Jacksonville to avoid becoming the second NFL team to go 0-16.

The Patriots entered as three-touchdown favorites with the teams, from different divisions, meeting for the ninth straight season.

With two touchdown passes, both to Rob Gronkowski, Tom Brady overtook Johnny Unitas and tied Warren Moon for sixth place in NFL history with 291 during the regular season. Brady completed 29 of 38 for 293 yards.

Caldwell gave Orlovsky his first start of the season in place of the ineffective Curtis Painter. While Orlovsky played well, 240 of his passing yards came in the fourth quarter and in the end he could not lead the Colts to their first win of the season.

“My goal is to go out there and win a ballgame — bar none,” Orlovsky said. “The best chance for us to do that is to play well at this position. I just didn’t play good enough to win today.”

The Colts tied it at 3 on Adam Vinatieri’s 31-yard field goal early in the second quarter. And the Patriots punted on their next series.

Then Brady got the offense rolling as New England scored touchdowns on its next four possessions, taking a 31-3 lead late in the third quarter.

The Colts had a new defensive coordinator, linebackers coach Mike Murphy, after Larry Coyer was fired Tuesday.

But the Patriots rarely lose in December, no matter their opponent. They’re 38-5 in that month starting in 2001, tops in the NFL. And they’re 19-1 at home in December, with wins in their last 18 games, since Gillette Stadium opened in December 2002.

Gronkowski has 13 touchdown catches, tying San Diego’s Antonio Gates in 2004 and San Francisco’s Vernon Davis in 2009 for most by a tight end in a regular season. He originally was given another touchdown catch, but that was changed to a lateral on which he ran 2 yards for the 31-3 lead.

Thinking he had set the record, Gronkowski held onto the ball as a souvenir instead of spiking it as he usually does. He even accepted congratulations from his teammates on the bench.

Trailing 3-0, Orlovsky led a 19-play drive lasting 10:19. The Colts had first-and-goal at the 1, but a run for no gain, an incompletion, a false-start penalty and a sack forced them to settle for Vinatieri’s field goal.

New England finally took command by scoring twice in the last three minutes of the first half on Brady’s 11-yard pass to Gronkowski and BenJarvus Green-Ellis’ 1-yard run for a 17-3 lead.

The Patriots got the ball to start the third quarter and Brady passed on each of the seven plays, completing all of them to drive 77 yards, ending with a 21-yard touchdown to Gronkowski. After Kyle Arrington recovered Delone Carter’s fumble on the next series, Gronkowski scored again when he went in motion, took a pitch from Brady and ran untouched into the right side of the end zone.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Rob Gronkowski scored three more touchdowns. Chances are the New England Patriots are thinking more about the three touchdowns they allowed in the fourth quarter.

Against the winless Colts, no less.

The Patriots needed Deion Branch to recover an onside kick in the final minute to hold off Indianapolis 31-24 on Sunday. Trailing 31-3, the Colts rallied with a touchdown run by Donald Brown and two scoring passes from Dan Orlovsky to Pierre Garcon, the last with 36 seconds to go.

Tom Brady took a knee on the final play to complete the victory.

“We played good for 45 minutes and then didn’t do anything offensively,” Brady said. “So we’ll hear about that.”

The Patriots (9-3) have won four straight and are tied for the AFC’s best record. Indianapolis (0-12) must beat Baltimore, Tennessee, Houston or Jacksonville to avoid becoming the second NFL team to go 0-16.

“People can say what they want to say about not playing hard, but I think that (comeback) pretty much shut that up right there,” Colts tight end Jacob Tamme said.

With two touchdowns passing, both to Gronkowski, Brady overtook Johnny Unitas and tied Warren Moon for sixth place in NFL history with 291 during the regular season. Brady was 29 of 38 for 293 yards.

Gronkowski has 13 touchdown catches, tying San Diego’s Antonio Gates in 2004 and San Francisco’s Vernon Davis in 2009 for most by a tight end in a regular season. He originally was given another touchdown catch, but that was changed to a lateral on which he ran 2 yards for the 31-3 lead.

Thinking he had set the record, Gronkowski held onto the ball as a souvenir instead of spiking it as he usually does. He even accepted congratulations from his teammates.

“I wasn’t thinking about whether it was a pass or a lateral,” Gronkowski said. “I’ll take the rushing touchdown. It’s the first of my whole career.”

The Patriots entered the game as three-touchdown favourites with the teams, from different divisions, meeting for the ninth straight season.

“Guys played well and did some things well,” Colts coach Jim Caldwell said, “but, still, we’re measured by wins.”

Caldwell gave Orlovsky his first start of the season in place of the ineffective Curtis Painter. Orlovsky, a member of the winless Detroit Lions team in 2008, completed 30 of 37 for 353 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

“We felt confident going into the game that if we stayed patient we could move the ball,” Orlovsky said. “We fell short. I wish we had more time on the clock.”

Watching from the sideline was Peyton Manning, whose preseason neck surgery forced Caldwell to go with backups.

“We almost had a big win today. It would have been huge for us,” Manning said.

The Colts tied the score 3-3 on Adam Vinatieri’s 31-yard field goal early in the second quarter. And the Patriots punted on their next series.

Then Brady got the offence rolling as New England scored touchdowns on its next four possessions, taking a 31-3 lead late in the third quarter. Wes Welker caught 11 passes for 114 yards, increasing his NFL-leading total to 93 receptions.

The Colts had a new defensive co-ordinator, linebackers coach Mike Murphy, after Larry Coyer was fired Tuesday.

The Patriots rarely lose in December, no matter their opponent. They’re 38-5 in that month starting in 2001, tops in the NFL. And they’re 19-1 at home in December, with wins in their last 18 games, since Gillette Stadium opened in December 2002.

Trailing 3-0, Orlovsky led a 19-play drive lasting 10:19. The Colts had first-and-goal at the 1, but a run for no gain, an incompletion, a false-start penalty and a sack forced them to settle for Vinatieri’s field goal.

New England took command by scoring twice in the last three minutes of the first half on Brady’s 11-yard pass to Gronkowski and BenJarvus Green-Ellis’ 1-yard run for a 17-3 lead.

The Patriots got the ball to start the third quarter and Brady passed on each of the seven plays, completing all of them to drive 77 yards, ending with a 21-yard touchdown to Gronkowski. After a fumble recovery, Gronkowski scored again when he went in motion, took a toss from Brady and ran untouched into the right side of the end zone.

“He is a tough kid and he knows how to run the routes,” Colts defensive back Jerraud Powers said. “It also helps when you have one of the greatest quarterbacks.”

Gronkowski finished with five catches for 64 yards after entering the game tied for sixth in the NFL with 60 receptions.

The Colts scored in the fourth quarter on Donald Brown’s 5-yard run and Orlovsky’s passes of 33 and 12 yards to Garcon.

“If we don’t play four quarters, we’re not going to end up in the situation we want to be in,” Welker said.

The Patriots want to win the Super Bowl. The Colts have a more modest goal — winning just one game.

“I thought Dan was patient,” Manning said. “I really thought he did a good job. He gave us a chance there at the end.”

And Orlovsky gave Patriots coach Bill Belichick something to harp on when he meets with his players.

“We’ve obviously got to do a better job of finishing the game,” Belichick said. “That was disappointing, but we’ll work on that.”

Notes: Brady has thrown for 30 touchdowns, becoming the sixth player in NFL history to do that at least three times. … The Colts outgained the Patriots 437 yards to 366. … The Patriots clinched a winning record for the 11th straight season.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP)—Patient and poised, first-time starter Dan Orlovsky(notes)
led the Indianapolis Colts within a yard of taking a lead on the New England
Patriots.

The surprises pretty much ended right there at the New England 1-yard line
early in the second quarter. A penalty and a sack quickly turned the touchdown
opportunity into a field goal, and then the Colts’ troubles really began.

The Patriots (9-3) scored two touchdowns in the last 2:57 of the first half,
then piled on two more in the third quarter before the winless Colts rallied too
late in a 31-24 loss Sunday.

“Guys played well and did some things well, but you’re still measured by
wins,” Indianapolis coach Jim Caldwell said.

Orlovsky is the latest quarterback called upon by the Colts as starter
Peyton Manning(notes) continues his recovery from neck surgery. He completed 30 of 37
passes for 353 yards and two touchdowns, but the Colts couldn’t overcome New
England’s surge of 28 straight points.

Manning was on the sideline once again, offering any help he could as he
hoped to see his teammates rally without him. The Colts did make it interesting
in the fourth when Donald Brown(notes) ran for a 5-yard touchdown, and Orlovsky and
Pierre Garcon(notes) connected for a pair of touchdowns.

That gave Indianapolis a glimmer of hope before Deion Branch(notes) recovered the
onside kick for New England with 34 seconds left.

“There were a lot of positives at the end of the game, but we should have
played like that the entire game,” said Garcon, who finished with nine catches
for 150 yards.

Manning said he expects to increase his physical rehabilitation this week
with more throwing, but is still uncertain whether he will be on the field at
all this season.

“You just can’t help quite as much when you’re not playing. It’s been a new
role for me. I don’t think I’m doing very good because we haven’t won any games.
But I try to help and just try to be there as a resource for the guys,” Manning
said. “Being 0-12 is frustrating for everybody in our building. It’s
disappointing. I hate everything about it.”

The Patriots have won four in a row. Indianapolis must beat Baltimore,
Tennessee, Houston or Jacksonville to avoid becoming the second NFL team to go
0-16.

The Patriots entered as three-touchdown favorites with the teams, from
different divisions, meeting for the ninth straight season.

With two touchdown passes, both to Rob Gronkowski(notes), Tom Brady(notes) overtook Johnny
Unitas and tied Warren Moon for sixth place in NFL history with 291 during the
regular season. Brady completed 29 of 38 for 293 yards.

Caldwell gave Orlovsky his first start of the season in place of the
ineffective Curtis Painter(notes). While Orlovsky played well, 240 of his passing yards
came in the fourth quarter and in the end he could not lead the Colts to their
first win of the season.

“My goal is to go out there and win a ballgame—bar none,” Orlovsky said.
“The best chance for us to do that is to play well at this position. I just
didn’t play good enough to win today.”

The Colts tied it at 3 on Adam Vinatieri’s(notes) 31-yard field goal early in the
second quarter. And the Patriots punted on their next series.

Then Brady got the offense rolling as New England scored touchdowns on its
next four possessions, taking a 31-3 lead late in the third quarter.

The Colts had a new defensive coordinator, linebackers coach Mike Murphy,
after Larry Coyer was fired Tuesday.

But the Patriots rarely lose in December, no matter their opponent. They’re
38-5 in that month starting in 2001, tops in the NFL. And they’re 19-1 at home
in December, with wins in their last 18 games, since Gillette Stadium opened in
December 2002.

Gronkowski has 13 touchdown catches, tying San Diego’s Antonio Gates(notes) in 2004
and San Francisco’s Vernon Davis(notes) in 2009 for most by a tight end in a regular
season. He originally was given another touchdown catch, but that was changed to
a lateral on which he ran 2 yards for the 31-3 lead.

Thinking he had set the record, Gronkowski held onto the ball as a souvenir
instead of spiking it as he usually does. He even accepted congratulations from
his teammates on the bench.

Trailing 3-0, Orlovsky led a 19-play drive lasting 10:19. The Colts had
first-and-goal at the 1, but a run for no gain, an incompletion, a false-start
penalty and a sack forced them to settle for Vinatieri’s field goal.

New England finally took command by scoring twice in the last three minutes
of the first half on Brady’s 11-yard pass to Gronkowski and BenJarvus
Green-Ellis’(notes) 1-yard run for a 17-3 lead.

The Patriots got the ball to start the third quarter and Brady passed on
each of the seven plays, completing all of them to drive 77 yards, ending with a
21-yard touchdown to Gronkowski. After Kyle Arrington(notes) recovered Delone Carter’s(notes)
fumble on the next series, Gronkowski scored again when he went in motion, took
a pitch from Brady and ran untouched into the right side of the end zone.

Posted: 4:21 PM
Updated: 6:43 PM

The New England Patriots withstand a fourth-quarter rally to keep the Indianapolis Colts winless with a 31-24 victory today.

By HOWARD ULLMAN The Associated Press

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Rob Gronkowski scored three more touchdowns. Chances are the New England Patriots are thinking more about the three touchdowns they allowed in the fourth quarter.

Against the winless Colts, no less.

The Patriots needed Deion Branch to recover an onside kick in the final minute to hold off Indianapolis 31-24 today. Trailing 31-3, the Colts rallied with a touchdown run by Donald Brown and two scoring passes from Dan Orlovsky to Pierre Garcon, the last with 36 seconds to go.

Tom Brady took a knee on the final play to complete the victory.

“We played good for 45 minutes and then didn’t do anything offensively,” Brady said. “So we’ll hear about that.”

The Patriots (9-3) have won four straight and are tied for the AFC’s best record. Indianapolis (0-12) must beat Baltimore, Tennessee, Houston or Jacksonville to avoid becoming the second NFL team to go 0-16.

“People can say what they want to say about not playing hard, but I think that (comeback) pretty much shut that up right there,” Colts tight end Jacob Tamme said.

With two touchdowns passing, both to Gronkowski, Brady overtook Johnny Unitas and tied Warren Moon for sixth place in NFL history with 291 during the regular season. Brady was 29 of 38 for 293 yards.

Gronkowski has 13 touchdown catches, tying San Diego’s Antonio Gates in 2004 and San Francisco’s Vernon Davis in 2009 for most by a tight end in a regular season. He originally was given another touchdown catch, but that was changed to a lateral on which he ran 2 yards for the 31-3 lead.

Thinking he had set the record, Gronkowski held onto the ball as a souvenir instead of spiking it as he usually does. He even accepted congratulations from his teammates.

“I wasn’t thinking about whether it was a pass or a lateral,” Gronkowski said. “I’ll take the rushing touchdown. It’s the first of my whole career.”

The Patriots entered the game as three-touchdown favorites with the teams, from different divisions, meeting for the ninth straight season.

“Guys played well and did some things well,” Colts coach Jim Caldwell said, “but, still, we’re measured by wins.”

Caldwell gave Orlovsky his first start of the season in place of the ineffective Curtis Painter. Orlovsky, a member of the winless Detroit Lions team in 2008, completed 30 of 37 for 353 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

“We felt confident going into the game that if we stayed patient we could move the ball,” Orlovsky said. “We fell short. I wish we had more time on the clock.”

Watching from the sideline was Peyton Manning, whose preseason neck surgery forced Caldwell to go with backups.

“We almost had a big win today. It would have been huge for us,” Manning said.

The Colts tied the score 3-3 on Adam Vinatieri’s 31-yard field goal early in the second quarter. And the Patriots punted on their next series.

Then Brady got the offense rolling as New England scored touchdowns on its next four possessions, taking a 31-3 lead late in the third quarter. Wes Welker caught 11 passes for 114 yards, increasing his NFL-leading total to 93 receptions.

The Colts had a new defensive coordinator, linebackers coach Mike Murphy, after Larry Coyer was fired Tuesday.

The Patriots rarely lose in December, no matter their opponent. They’re 38-5 in that month starting in 2001, tops in the NFL. And they’re 19-1 at home in December, with wins in their last 18 games, since Gillette Stadium opened in December 2002.

Trailing 3-0, Orlovsky led a 19-play drive lasting 10:19. The Colts had first-and-goal at the 1, but a run for no gain, an incompletion, a false-start penalty and a sack forced them to settle for Vinatieri’s field goal.

New England took command by scoring twice in the last three minutes of the first half on Brady’s 11-yard pass to Gronkowski and BenJarvus Green-Ellis’ 1-yard run for a 17-3 lead.

The Patriots got the ball to start the third quarter and Brady passed on each of the seven plays, completing all of them to drive 77 yards, ending with a 21-yard touchdown to Gronkowski. After a fumble recovery, Gronkowski scored again when he went in motion, took a toss from Brady and ran untouched into the right side of the end zone.

“He is a tough kid and he knows how to run the routes,” Colts defensive back Jerraud Powers said. “It also helps when you have one of the greatest quarterbacks.”

Gronkowski finished with five catches for 64 yards after entering the game tied for sixth in the NFL with 60 receptions.

The Colts scored in the fourth quarter on Donald Brown’s 5-yard run and Orlovsky’s passes of 33 and 12 yards to Garcon.

“If we don’t play four quarters, we’re not going to end up in the situation we want to be in,” Welker said.

The Patriots want to win the Super Bowl. The Colts have a more modest goal — winning just one game.

“I thought Dan was patient,” Manning said. “I really thought he did a good job. He gave us a chance there at the end.”

And Orlovsky gave Patriots coach Bill Belichick something to harp on when he meets with his players.

“We’ve obviously got to do a better job of finishing the game,” Belichick said. “That was disappointing, but we’ll work on that.”

Notes: Brady has thrown for 30 touchdowns, becoming the sixth player in NFL history to do that at least three times. … The Colts outgained the Patriots 437 yards to 366. … The Patriots clinched a winning record for the 11th straight season.

The long connection came early in the second quarter of the Patriots’ 38-20 win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. Branch ran out of gas and was tackled at the Eagles 1-yard line, but BenJarvus Green-Ellis rushed for the touchdown on the next play. Suddenly, the Patriots had a 14-10 lead and never trailed again.

Branch finished with six catches for 125 yards, one of his best games of the season.

“Deion is a very instinctive receiver,” coach Bill Belichick said Monday. “He has a great sense of timing, of when the quarterback is ready to throw the ball, when he needs to be open, how to get open. Tom, from his position, kind of has that same sense of what the receiver would expect him to do and what he should do in certain situations and that’s almost always what Deion would do.”

The Patriots improved to 8-3, tied for the best record in the AFC. They should improve on that Sunday when the Indianapolis Colts (0-11) visit. New England has scored the most points in the AFC. Indianapolis has allowed the most in the NFL.

So the Patriots, who have dominated their last three opponents, figure to do that again.

Belichick, though, likely will emphasize the strengths of the Colts, not the season-long absence of Peyton Manning.

“Schematically, (the Colts) look pretty much the same as they usually do,” he said. “Obviously, a couple of changes in personnel, but a team we always have trouble with.”

Eight of the Colts losses have been by more than seven points. The Patriots have the passing game to win by a lot more than that.

At the start of the season, Welker and Gronkowski were the big producers. In the first three games, Welker had 31 catches for 458 yards and Gronkowski scored five touchdowns. Branch started off well with 15 catches for 222 yards in the first two games but managed just a total of one in the next two.

Welker leads the NFL with 82 receptions and Gronkowski is tied for fifth with 60 and second with 11 touchdown catches. Even tight end Aaron Hernandez, with 47 receptions, is ahead of Branch’s 45.

But Branch can still help Brady turn a broken play into a big one.

On Sunday, Brady threw for the first time in his career to a wide-open Tiquan Underwood, who had just been signed. The receiver couldn’t latch onto the ball.

“It would have been a tough play,” Belichick said. “It could have been a little better executed all the way around. I thought he ran a good route. The ball was a little inside.”

On the very next play, Brady turned to a receiver he has plenty of experience with — Branch.

The quarterback scrambled to his left as Branch ran 13 yards down the left sideline and stopped at the first-down marker. That’s when Brady pointed. That was Branch’s cue to cut inside cornerback Brandon Hughes, who played more because cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha was limited by a knee injury.

Branch caught it at the Eagles’ 45 and nearly went all the way.

“It wasn’t a play that I made,” he said. “It was a play that (Brady) made with his feet.”

Brady isn’t known for his speed, but he’s good at escaping the rush.

“I think just about anybody who would evaluate Tom would say he’s probably got as good a pocket presence as just about any quarterback,” Belichick said. “He has very good pocket awareness and quickness in the pocket in a short space. I think that’s one of his big strengths.”

Brady and Branch were teammates for five years before the receiver was traded to the Seattle Seahawks before the 2006 season in a contract dispute. The Patriots reacquired him after their fourth game last year and he finished with 48 catches for 706 yards and five touchdowns in 11 games for them.

“You have two smart guys, both very instinctive players, that if something comes up that you haven’t done or talked about before, I’d say both of them probably would do the right thing,” Belichick said. “Or what you would want them to do if you haven’t told them what to do.

“Certainly, the experience and reps they’ve had together (in) practice, games and walkthroughs and talking about situations and talking about things that come up, I’m sure that’s all added to it. And of course, actually going out there and doing it on the field in live game situations, under pressure, adds to it as well.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Rob Maaddi
AP Pro Football Writer

The way Tom Brady was getting everyone involved, it’s a surprise no linemen or linebackers caught passes.

Brady threw for 361 yards and three touchdowns and the New England Patriots beat the Eagles 38-20 Sunday in a rematch of the 2005 Super Bowl.

Filling in for the injured Michael Vick for the second straight game, Vince Young couldn’t keep Philadelphia’s fading playoff hopes alive despite throwing for a career-best 400 yards passing.

The AFC East-leading Patriots (8-3) stayed in the hunt for the No. 1 seed in the conference behind a surgical-like effort from Brady.

The six-time Pro Bowl quarterback finished 24 of 34, Deion Branch had 125 yards receiving and Wes Welker caught eight passes for 115 yards and two TDs. Brady’s favorite targets, tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez, also chipped in.

Gronkowski caught his 11th TD pass and Hernandez had six receptions. BenJarvus Green-Ellis scored twice on the ground.

“It was more balanced today,” Brady said. “That’s how it needs to be. You have to run it. You have to throw it to everybody. We did a good job maximizing all the guys.”

The Eagles (4-7) are all-but-mathematically eliminated from playoff contention in a season that began with Super Bowl expectations.

Angry fans made their feelings known about coach Andy Reid, chanting “Fire Andy!” in the second half.

“The way we played, I can understand,” Reid said.

The defending NFC East champions fell to 1-5 at home and have lost eight of nine at the Linc, including a playoff loss to Green Bay last January.
Down 10-0 early, the Patriots rallied behind Brady. New England scored on five of its next six possessions, excluding a kneel-down at the end of the first half.

“Overall we did a great job of staying composed on the sideline and making the right adjustments and doing pretty much what we game planned for,” Branch said.

Brady and coach Bill Belichick improved to 4-0 against Reid’s Eagles, including a 24-21 win for their third NFL title in four years after the 2004 season.

“Tom did a good job really pressing the issue,” Belichick said. “He felt he had them on the run with some of the mismatches. Tom kept pressing it, guys got open and Tom did what he does best, finding the open guys.”
Young led the Eagles to a 17-10 win against the New York Giants last week in his first start in nearly a year. He put up decent numbers against the worst-ranked defense in the league, but couldn’t overcome another inept performance by the Eagles’ defense.

Young finished 26 of 48. It was just his third career game over 300 yards.
“Andy’s a tremendous guy,” Young said, defending Reid. “I have the utmost respect for him. Fans don’t understand some of the situations that goes on during the game. You can’t put it all on Andy. We’re going to always continue to keep fighting hard, playing hard for him.”

Michael Vick broke two lower ribs in a loss to Arizona on Nov. 13. He got hurt on the second play of that game and stayed in, but hasn’t practiced the past two weeks. It’s uncertain whether Vick can play when Philadelphia visits Seattle on Thursday night.

After a fast start, the Eagles fizzled.

Brady engineered a 70-yard drive capped by Green-Ellis’ 4-yard TD run to cut it to 10-7. The Pats converted two third downs on the drive, including two by penalty.

Helped by a missed call, New England’s defense then forced a three-and-out. Young was sacked by Rob Ninkovich, who spun the quarterback down by pulling his facemask. But the referees didn’t see it, eliciting loud boos from the crowd when the replay was shown on the video screen.

One play after just-signed Tiquan Underwood dropped a wide-open pass, Brady connected with Branch for 63 yards to the Eagles 1 on a third-and-13. Green-Ellis scored on the next play to put the Patriots up 14-10.

Antwaun Molden intercepted Young’s deep pass intended for DeSean Jackson on Philadelphia’s next play and returned it 27 yards to the Eagles 34. But the Patriots couldn’t convert the turnover into points. Stephen Gostkowski missed a 39-yard field goal wide right.

No problem for Brady and Co.

The Eagles went three-and-out again, and the Patriots went to a no-huddle when they got the ball back.

Welker blew past the secondary and Brady hit his wide-open target in stride for a 41-yard TD pass to give New England a 21-10 lead.

“He said if he got a certain look he could get it,” Brady said. “Afterward he came to the sideline and said, ‘I told you! I told you!’ It’s nice when they work out the way you talk about.”

Jackson dropped what could’ve been a 4-yard TD pass and the Eagles settled for a 22-yard field goal to get within 21-13.

It was the second time in the first half that Jackson appeared to shy away from contact and dropped a pass across the middle.

Fans let him hear it with a chorus of boos. Jackson, a two-time Pro Bowl pick, is in the final year of his rookie contract and has been unhappy that he didn’t get a new deal. He dropped a deep pass that could’ve been a TD in the third quarter, and was benched in the fourth quarter.

The Patriots got the ball to start the second half and Brady led them into the end zone again, tossing a 9-yard TD pass to Welker for a 31-13 lead.
Brady threw a 24-yard TD pass to Rob Gronkowski to extend it to 38-13 in the fourth quarter. Notes: Patriots WR Chad Ochocinco sat out with a hamstring injury. … Gostkowski’s miss was his second from under 40 yards in 14 attempts. … McCoy has 11 TDs rushing, five shy of breaking the single-season team record held by Hall of Famer Steve Van Buren. … Young’s last 300-yard game was against Arizona on Nov. 29, 2009. He threw for 387 yards in Tennessee’s 20-17 win.