The Dolphins gained just 21 yards in the third quarter and blew a 17-0 lead in less than 15 minutes as the New England Patriots rallied for a 27-24 win on Sunday.

“This one’s pretty tough,” said Reggie Bush, who ran for 113 yards on 22 carries.

Bush also surpassed 1,000 yards rushing in a season for the first time in his career, yet was in no mood to celebrate.

After gaining 255 yards in the first half, Miami (5-10) had just 126 in the second half and 80 of those came during a late touchdown drive as the Dolphins desperately tried to recover after bumbling their way through the third and most of the fourth quarters.

“We felt like we had the right game plan. We knew what we had to do, we just didn’t execute it for four quarters,” Bush said. “We made some mistakes on offense. That gets you beat playing against good teams like this.”

Both of Miami’s turnovers came in the second half and the pressure it had gotten on New England’s Tom Brady early was gone.

Brady shook off a poor start and passed for 304 yards and a touchdown. He also had a pair of 1-yard TDs rushing as the Patriots once again looked like contenders for the top seed in the AFC with one scoring drive after another.

“We stalled there a little bit in the second half. You can’t do that against a team like this,” said Matt Moore, who completed 17 of 33 passes for 294 yards and three touchdowns for Miami.

New England opened the second half with a drive for a field goal to cut Miami’s lead to 17-3, then got the ball right back when Moore fumbled a snap and Vince Wilfork pounced on it for the Patriots.

That led to a touchdown pass from Brady to Deion Branch to get New England within 17-10 with 7:10 left in the third quarter and New England’s defense kept up the pressure.

Moore was sacked for a loss of 10 on the first play after the kickoff, then sacked again at the 10-yard line on third down. The Dolphins’ punt from their end zone gave New England the ball at Miami’s 41 and the Patriots continued their surge, scoring on Brady’s 1-yard run to tie it at 17l with 2:17 still left in the third quarter.

“We put our defense on the short field too many times, which made it easy for them,” Bush said.

The Dolphins didn’t score at all in the second half until Moore threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Davone Bess, pulling Miami within a field goal with 1:48 left to play. The Dolphins still had all three timeouts, but that no longer mattered when Brady converted on third-and-5 with a pass to Wes Welker, who had 12 catches for 138 yards.

New England (12-3) won its seventh straight game. After the Houston Texans lost to the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night, the Patriots needed a win or a tie to lock up one of the top two spots in the AFC.

Miami lost for the third time in eight games after opening 0-7 and is 1-1 under Todd Bowles, who took over when Tony Sparano was fired.

“The guys fought, but we didn’t finish,” Bowles said. “We didn’t stop them and we didn’t get points.”

The Dolphins seemed headed for a victory and got a break even before the game started when Patriots left tackle Matt Light hurt his ankle in warm-ups and didn’t play. Left guard Logan Mankins took his spot, but he left with a knee injury suffered on New England’s second series.

Their absence showed as the Dolphins kept pressuring Brady. He completed just 7 of 19 passes for 87 yards and was sacked three times in the half. But once the third quarter began, Brady and the Patriots — both their offense and defense — looked completely different starting with the very first play, a 22-yard completion to Rob Gronkowski.

Bush had another outstanding game for Miami with his fourth straight rushing day of at least 100 yards. He finished with 113 on 22 carries one week after gaining a career-high 203 yards.

The Dolphins had taken a 3-0 lead on Dan Carpenter’s 47-yard field goal 4:01 into the game and made it 10-0 with 1:15 gone in the second quarter on Moore’s 19-yard pass to Brandon Marshall.

They stretched that to 17-0, the Patriots’ biggest deficit of the season, on a 1-yard touchdown pass from Moore to Charles Clay. The 89-yard drive was helped by two defensive pass interference penalties on third down.

The Patriots punted on their first six possessions, then wasted a chance to score when Stephen Gostkowski’s 51-yard field goal attempt on the next to last play of the half went wide to the left.

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

-FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP)—The Miami Dolphins were halfway to an upset that
could have jumbled the AFC playoff picture.

Then came the second half.

The Dolphins gained just 21 yards in the third quarter and blew a 17-0 lead
in less than 15 minutes as the New England Patriots rallied for a 27-24 win on
Sunday.

“This one’s pretty tough,” said Reggie Bush, who ran for 113 yards on 22
carries.

Bush also surpassed 1,000 yards rushing in a season for the first time in
his career, yet was in no mood to celebrate.

After gaining 255 yards in the first half, Miami (5-10) had just 126 in the
second half and 80 of those came during a late touchdown drive as the Dolphins
desperately tried to recover after bumbling their way through the third and most
of the fourth quarters.

“We felt like we had the right game plan. We knew what we had to do, we
just didn’t execute it for four quarters,” Bush said. “We made some mistakes
on offense. That gets you beat playing against good teams like this.”

Both of Miami’s turnovers came in the second half and the pressure it had
gotten on New England’s Tom Brady early was gone.

Brady shook off a poor start and passed for 304 yards and a touchdown. He
also had a pair of 1-yard TDs rushing as the Patriots once again looked like
contenders for the top seed in the AFC with one scoring drive after another.

“We stalled there a little bit in the second half. You can’t do that
against a team like this,” said Matt Moore, who completed 17 of 33 passes for
294 yards and three touchdowns for Miami.

New England opened the second half with a drive for a field goal to cut
Miami’s lead to 17-3, then got the ball right back when Moore fumbled a snap and
Vince Wilfork pounced on it for the Patriots.

That led to a touchdown pass from Brady to Deion Branch to get New England
within 17-10 with 7:10 left in the third quarter and New England’s defense kept
up the pressure.

Moore was sacked for a loss of 10 on the first play after the kickoff, then
sacked again at the 10-yard line on third down. The Dolphins’ punt from their
end zone gave New England the ball at Miami’s 41 and the Patriots continued
their surge, scoring on Brady’s 1-yard run to tie it at 17l with 2:17 still left
in the third quarter.

“We put our defense on the short field too many times, which made it easy
for them,” Bush said.

The Dolphins didn’t score at all in the second half until Moore threw a
15-yard touchdown pass to Davone Bess, pulling Miami within a field goal with
1:48 left to play. The Dolphins still had all three timeouts, but that no longer
mattered when Brady converted on third-and-5 with a pass to Wes Welker, who had
12 catches for 138 yards.

New England (12-3) won its seventh straight game. After the Houston Texans
lost to the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night, the Patriots needed a win or a
tie to lock up one of the top two spots in the AFC.

Miami lost for the third time in eight games after opening 0-7 and is 1-1
under Todd Bowles, who took over when Tony Sparano was fired.

“The guys fought, but we didn’t finish,” Bowles said. “We didn’t stop
them and we didn’t get points.”

The Dolphins seemed headed for a victory and got a break even before the
game started when Patriots left tackle Matt Light hurt his ankle in warm-ups and
didn’t play. Left guard Logan Mankins took his spot, but he left with a knee
injury suffered on New England’s second series.

Their absence showed as the Dolphins kept pressuring Brady. He completed
just 7 of 19 passes for 87 yards and was sacked three times in the half. But
once the third quarter began, Brady and the Patriots—both their offense and
defense—looked completely different starting with the very first play, a
22-yard completion to Rob Gronkowski.

Bush had another outstanding game for Miami with his fourth straight rushing
day of at least 100 yards. He finished with 113 on 22 carries one week after
gaining a career-high 203 yards.

The Dolphins had taken a 3-0 lead on Dan Carpenter’s 47-yard field goal 4:01
into the game and made it 10-0 with 1:15 gone in the second quarter on Moore’s
19-yard pass to Brandon Marshall.

They stretched that to 17-0, the Patriots’ biggest deficit of the season, on
a 1-yard touchdown pass from Moore to Charles Clay. The 89-yard drive was helped
by two defensive pass interference penalties on third down.

The Patriots punted on their first six possessions, then wasted a chance to
score when Stephen Gostkowski’s 51-yard field goal attempt on the next to last
play of the half went wide to the left.

By: SportsDirect

Tim Tebow is going up against a New England Patriots defense that might allow him to get yards in the first three quarters of a game. Rather than waiting until the fourth quarter on Sunday (Dec. 18), Tebow could put up some really good statistics over the course of the entire game.

The Patriots defense is giving up 410 yards per game this year, including a league worst 309 passing yards per game. That all adds up to ample opportunities for Tebow to hook up with his receivers and post some of his best statistics through the air this season. Even if the nice winning streak that Tebow and the Denver Broncos have going comes to an end, it is still very likely that he can put up some good fantasy numbers.

Last week I predicted that Tebow would have 220-240 passing yards against the Chicago Bears and he finished with a decent 234. I think he will get more than 200 again this week, but will also add 50 on the ground. If he gets into the end zone twice, it will turn into the perfect week for fantasy football owners needing him to do well in league playoffs. If he can have 200 passing yards, 50 rushing yards, a touchdown through the air and another on the ground, he would finish with 23 fantasy points using the standard Yahoo! scoring system.

23 points for a quarterback during fantasy league playoffs is a really good number, and if you also agree that Tebow can put up the numbers I mentioned, he becomes a must-start in fantasy leagues. With the momentum that the Broncos have going and the weaknesses in the Patriots secondary, it certainly seems like the perfect opportunity for Tebow to put up some good numbers. What he has to do though, is put up numbers during the full game, because it seems very unlikely that the Patriots will cave in the fourth quarter like some recent opponents have done.

Both teams really need a win on Sunday, with the Patriots playing for one of the top playoff seeds in the AFC and Denver trying to hold on to the lead in the AFC West. That will lead to an exciting game with Tebow trying to prove he belongs on the same stage as Tom Brady.

More From YCN :

The_Enigma_Of_Tebow

Top_Week_14_Fantasy_Players

Week 13 Top Defenses

2011 Best Fantasy Defenses

5 Best Fantasy Players of 2011

Sources:

Week 15 NFL Scores

Defensive Team Leaders

Yahoo! Fantasy Football

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

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

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — Rob Gronkowski got his record, and the New England Patriots ‘ bend-but-don’t-break defense almost broke.

Gronkowski set the NFL single-season mark for touchdown catches by a tight end, and Jerod Mayo ‘s interception of a tipped pass with 22 seconds to play Sunday preserved the Patriots’ fifth straight win, 34-27 over the Washington Redskins .

Tom Brady completed 22 of 37 passes for 357 yards with three touchdowns – two to Gronkowski – and survived an interception in the end zone as the Patriots (10-3) won at Washington for the first time in franchise history. The Redskins were the only current NFL franchise New England had never beaten on the road.

Brady (294) also moved ahead of Warren Moon into sole possession of sixth place for most touchdown passes in NFL history and reached the 4,000-yard mark for the fourth time in his career. Gronkowski caught six passes for 160 yards.

Rex Grossman was 19 of 32 for 252 yards, and Roy Helu (126 yards) became the first Washington rookie to run for 100 yards in three straight games. But it wasn’t enough for the Redskins (4-9), who have lost eight of nine.

With the Patriots leading by seven in the fourth quarter, Brady had a chance to extend the lead, but he was picked off in the end zone by Josh Wilson with 6:30 to play. Afterward, Brady was involved in a heated exchange on the sideline with an assistant coach.

The Redskins took advantage of the miscue, driving from their own 20 to the New England. But Santana Moss ‘ catch at the goal line was negated by a pass interference call on the receiver, and then Moss tipped a pass into the hands of Mayo to save the day for a New England defense that ranks last in the league in yards allowed.

There was lots of scoring, and nearly every drive had a highlight.

Already playing without tight end Fred Davis and left tackle Trent Williams – both suspended for the rest of the season last week for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy – the Redskins lost another offensive starter during pregame warm-ups when right tackle Jammal Brown injured his right groin.

So, with Washington starting its sixth different starting offensive line in nine weeks, it was almost predictable that Grossman would hold the ball too long in the end zone while undrafted rookie left tackle Willie Smith was getting beat by ex-Redskins defensive end Andre Carter . Carter jarred the ball loose, getting his 10th sack of the season, and Vince Wilfork recovered for a touchdown to put the Patriots ahead before the game was three minutes old.

After that, it was mostly offense, and Gronkowski had the best highlights in a series that lasted all of two plays: one remarkable, one record-setting.

On the first, he made a diving catch, got up, dragged DeJon Gomes and Reed Doughty a few yards and escaped while tiptoeing along the sidelines as cornerback DeAngelo Hall stood and watched. Gronkowski tiptoed again when hit by Wilson and stumbled ahead before falling to complete the 49-yard gain.

On the next play, Gronkowski was open to catch Brady’s 11-yard pass, his 14th touchdown reception of the season, passing Antonio Gates (2004) and Vernon Davis (2009). Gronkowski unleashed an almighty spike and retrieved the ball for safekeeping, just as he did last week when he thought he had set the record, only to realize that the play had been scored as a lateral instead of a pass.

Washington’s Jabar Gaffney was a bit overenthusiastic while celebrating the game’s next touchdown, a 9-yard catch. He leaped into the first row of stands – but no one caught him and he sank behind the barrier.

The next score came on the first offensive play of the year for Redskins kick returner Brandon Banks , who took a pitch on a double reverse and flung his first career pass – 49-yards to Moss give Washington a 17-14 lead.

A couple of curious personal foul calls for hits to the quarterback, one on Carter and one on Washington’s London Fletcher , highlighted a pair of field goal drives that left the score tied at 20 at the half. The whistle on Fletcher appeared particularly egregious; the refereed announced that Fletcher hit a late-sliding Brady with a forearm to the head, but Fletcher’s arm clearly hit the quarterback in the chest.

The second half continued at the same whiplash speed, with three third-quarter drives going for touchdowns. Gronkowski broke rookie Ryan Kerrigan ‘s attempt at a tackle and padded his record with a 37-yard scoring reception, and David Anderson ‘s first TD catch since 2008 tied the game at 27 on the next drive. Then it was Brady to Wes Welker for 24 yards to restore New England’s lead.

Sunday’s contest with the winless Indianapolis Colts was a little too close for comfort for the New England Patriots.

The Patriots jumped out to a 31-3 lead and held off the Colts late to grab a 31-24 victory before another sellout crowd at Gillette Stadium.

With the win, the Patriots (9-3) maintain their two-game lead on the New York Jets in the AFC East Division.

“It feels good to be 9-3,” New England head coach Bill Belichick said. “We put our team in decent position here and hopefully we can keep improving here through the last four (games) of the season. I thought we did some good things out there today. We obviously have to do a better job at finishing the games. That was disappointing. But we’ll work on that. We get back to work here and get ready for Washington next week.”

It was Rob Gronkowski’s day in Foxboro.

The second-year tight end scored three touchdowns, including a rushing touchdown on a 2-yard lateral pass from Tom Brady.

Gronkowski has now tied the all-time single season mark for touchdowns with 13 along with Vernon Davis (49ers; 2009) and Antonio Gates (Chargers; 2004).

He caught five passes for 64 yards on the day and has for the season — 65 catches for 928 yards.

“Records mean really nothing at the end of the day,” Gronkowski said. “The only thing that matter is the whole team and getting the victory.”

Sunday’s contest marked the first time since 1997 that Colts quarterback Peyton Manning wasn’t under center against the Patriots. Manning was on the sidelines on Sunday.

Dan Orlovsky was making his first start at quarterback since playing for the winless Detroit Lions in 2008.

Orlovsky, who had a strong game with 30 completions in 37 attempts for 353 yards and two touchdowns, led Indianapolis (0-12) on three long drives in the fourth quarter to keep the score respectable at the end.

“Dan played well,” Colts head coach Jim Caldwell said. “I thought he was able to put some pretty nice drives together. He was accurate, threw the ball well and got the ball in the end zone.”

New England had a 28-point cushion going into the fourth quarter after two Gronkowski scores in the third quarter — including a 21-yard scoring strike from Brady.

Indianapolis began its comeback effort with an 86-yard drive that started late in the third quarter with a Donald Brown five-yard touchdown run to slice the Patriots margin to 31-10.

New England, who couldn’t convert any points after a spectacular interception by Jerod Mayo near midfield, punted for the second time in the quarter and Orlovsky went back to work.

This time, the Colts went 93 yards down the field on 11 plays which was capped by a 33-yard touchdown strike to Pierre Garcon from Orlovsky and the lead dwindled to 31-17.

Orlovsky completed five straight passes on the next drive — the last one, a 12-yard touchdown to Garcon with 40 seconds and the lead was just seven at 31-24.

“You know we started out fast and we just couldn’t finish the game,” Mayo said. “Those guys fought back and executed at the end of the game. We just have to learn how to put two halves together next week.”

Deion Branch pounced on the onside kick with 34 seconds remaining to seal the deal.

“Yeah, we played good for 45 minutes and then didn’t do anything offensively in the fourth quarter,” said Brady, who finished the day with 29 completions of 38 attempts for 293 yards. “So we’ll hear about that tomorrow.”

Indianapolis won the opening coin toss but was forced to punt after Orlovsky was sacked by Vince Wilfork.

Brady led New England down the field and Stephen Gostkowski booted a 39-yard field goal to give the Patriots a 3-0 lead.

Orlovsky guided the Colts on a long 19-play drive upfield on the ensuing possession. Rob Ninkovich recorded New England’s second sack of the half and Indianapolis had to settle for a 31-yard field goal by Adam Vinatieri.

After both teams traded punts, the Patriots went to the no-huddle offense and it produced 14 straight points.

A 16 play, 86-yard drive was capped off with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Brady to Gronkowski to give New England a 10-3 lead after Gostkowski’s extra point.

After Indianapolis punted, Brady quickly led the Patriots downfield on a six-play drive and BenJarvus Green-Ellis capped the scoring attempt with a 1-yard plunge with 13 second remaining in the first half to give the Patriots a 17-3 lead.

Wes Welker finished with his 22nd career 100-yard game and personal-best seventh of the season. Welker ended up with 11 catches for 110 yards, which now gives him an NFL leading 93 receptions and 1257 yards.

NOTES: Branch recorded his 500th career reception in the second quarter … Brady has thrown at least one touchdown pass in his 29th straight game, extending his Patriot record… Brady also tied for sixth all-time for most career touchdown passes (291). Colts center Jeff Saturday started his 182nd consecutive game … Special return team’s captain Matthew Slater forced a fumble on defense in the third quarter that was recovered by Kyle Arrington.

Contact Steven Sanchez at ssanchez@tauntongazette.com

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.

BOSTON (CBS) – The New England Patriots improved to 9-3 on Sunday with a 31-24 win over the Indianapolis Colts, but after lackluster first and fourth quarters, the team knows they can do better.

“I thought we did some good things out there today, we obviously have to do a better job of finishing the game,” Belichick said after the win. “That was disappointing. But we’ll work on that; go back to work and get ready for Washington next week.”

The Colts had a 19-play, 67-yard drive that ate up over 10 minutes over the first and second quarter. The Pats limited the damage, allowing just three points on the drive. While it did not hurt in the end, the Patriots want to limit long drives, especially from an offense as poor as the Manning-less Colts.

Burton, Reid Discuss Win On 5th Quarter 

The Patriots put their sluggish start in their rearview mirror though, with the offense scoring four straight touchdowns en route to a 31-3 lead. Even the defense was showing signs of improvement, until the fourth quarter hit.

Once the Patriots had their lead, both the offense and defense sputtered. On offense, Brady and Co. had two straight three-and-outs. On defense, they let the Colts nearly get back in it with 21 unanswered points. Colts quarterback Dan Orlovsky was able to shred the secondary in the final 15 minutes, connecting with Pierre Garcon on scores of 33 and 12 yards.

“It’s disappointing. Go back to the drawing board and continue to try to improve. We just have to finish games,” said defensive captain Jerod Mayo, who had his first career interception in the game. “We have to learn how to put two halves together; hopefully we do it next week.”

“We’re not happy with how we finished the game. We got to finish games better, especially down the stretch,” said Matthew Slater, who started at safety for New England. “It’s in all three phases, not just defensively. We’re not happy with that, and we have work to do.”

Inefficiencies in the defense have haunted the Patriots all season, but it is more recent that the offense has struggled to start games.

“We got off to kind of a slow start, but we picked it up and really got things going and were able to get a good lead. From there, we have to finish a lot better than we have in the last few weeks,” said receiver Wes Welker. “I’m sure it’s going to be a huge emphasis by coach as something we have to do.”

Highs & Lows: Not A Full Effort From Pats

While the score is all that matters in the end, the Colts had more first downs (26), passing yards (338), and rushing yards (99) than New England.

“If we don’t play four quarters, we’re not going to end up in the situation that we want to be in,” added Welker. “We have to fight on through, convert on third downs and move the ball down the field and ultimately score.”

“It’s just not executing,” receiver Deion Branch said of the first quarter struggles. “It may be one thing here, someone missing a block, missing an assignment, a mental error here and there. That stuff happens though; it’s all about how you respond the next drive.”

While the Patriots were able to put puts on the board in a hurry once switching to the no-huddle, the most important thing is how they finish. And with a lackluster performance against a 0-12 team, the team is certain they’ll hear about it this week in practice.

“We played good for 45-minutes and didn’t do anything in the fourth quarter,” said Brady, who watched from the bench after the two fourth quarter three-and-outs. “We’ll hear about that tomorrow.”

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.

Read More: James Ihedigbo (DB – NEP), Kevin Faulk (RB – NEP), Devin McCourty (CB – NEP), Sergio Brown (SS – NEP), New England Patriots

The New England Patriots inactive list for its game against the Indianapolis Colts is out, and again safety Patrick Chung will miss his fourth straight game. Reports have rookie Sterling Moore playing in Chung’s place. Currently, the Patriots are thin at the position, as James Ihedigbo and Sergio Brown are the only other two active safeties.

Those fans who thought that rookie quarterback Ryan Mallet could see some action Sunday against the 0-11 Colts, well, it will not happen as he’s listed as a healthy scratch.

Some good news is that after missing the last two games with a shoulder injury, corner back Devin McCourty will be active. Also, veteran running back Kevin Faulk will be active.

Here’s the rest of the Patriots inactives:

S Patrick Chung (foot)
OL Dan Connolly (groin)
LB Dane Fletcher (thumb)
LB Brandon Spikes (knee)
QB Ryan Mallett (healthy scratch)
RB Shane Vereen (hamstring)
OL Sabastian Vollmer

For more New England Patriots coverage, visit our team page and blog, Pats Pulpit

Patriots defensive end Andre Carter (93) sacks Mark Sanchez. (Staff photo by Keith Nordstrom)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – The New England Patriots are right where they always expect to be: in first place in the AFC East.

And, the New York Jets are looking up at them – as usual.

Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes, including two to Rob Gronkowski, and the Patriots took control of the division with a convincing 37-16 victory Sunday night.

After the Jets got within a score at 23-16 early in the fourth quarter, Brady coolly led the Patriots (6-3) down the field on an 84-yard drive that was capped by an 8-yard touchdown catch by Deion Branch.

New England linebacker Rob Ninkovich then sealed the victory – which snapped a two-game skid – on the Jets’ next possession with a 12-yard interception return for a touchdown midway through the final quarter.

The game was a showdown for the top spot in the division, but it was no contest as the Patriots took over sole possession by snapping the Jets’ three-game winning streak and sweeping the regular-season series.

Buffalo entered the day tied with New England and New York, but the Bills were blown out by the Dallas Cowboys 44-7 earlier in the day.

It was also the first home loss for the Jets (5-4) after opening 4-0, but they can’t dwell on it because they play again at Denver on Thursday night.

Jets coach Rex Ryan insisted his team was greatly improved since a 30-21 loss at New England on Oct. 9 and declared it a must-win if New York wanted to get some home playoff games. Turns out, the Jets still have plenty of work to do if they expect to dethrone the Patriots.

New England was coming off consecutive losses to Pittsburgh and the Giants, but said there was no concern in its locker room. It certainly showed as the Patriots avoided their first three-game losing streak since 2002.

Brady finished 26 of 39 for 329 yards, the 40th time he reached the 300-yard mark in a regular-season game, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Joe Montana for eighth on the NFL’s list. He also joined New Orleans’ Drew Brees as the only players to throw for 3,000 yards in their team’s first nine games. Brees also accomplished the feat this season.

Gronkowski finished with eight catches for 113 yards and the two scores, and Stephen Gostkowski kicked three field goals. Andre Carter had 41/2 sacks as the Patriots’ defense – ranked last in the league coming in – harassed Mark Sanchez all night.

Sanchez was 20 of 39 for 306 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted twice and sacked five times.

The Jets appeared to get back in it when Plaxico Burress caught a 7-yard fade pass over Antwaun Molden in the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, making it 23-16.

But Brady went right back to work, leading the Patriots on a typically efficient drive, going 84 yards on 13 plays using a no-huddle offense that kept the Jets’ defense off balance. Mixing in some solid runs by Danny Woodhead, Brady coolly spread the ball around to his receivers before connecting with Branch with 8:04 remaining.

The score sent many in the crowd at MetLife Stadium headed for the exits.

Many of those who remained didn’t stick around much longer once Ninkovich returned an errant pass by Sanchez 12 yards to make it 37-16 with 7:45 left.

Three Jets bobbled a muffed punt by Joe McKnight to set up Gostkowski’s short field goal for a 16-9 lead. Isaiah Trufant had two shots at recovering the loose ball and Donald Strickland one – it squirted out of his hands – before Niko Koutouvides came up with it at the Jets 13 early in the third quarter.

Gronkowski appeared to catch his second TD pass of the night, but video replay showed he stepped out of bounds. Gostkowski then booted his third field goal, from 27 yards.

But Gronkowski ended up getting into the end zone again a few minutes later after Ninkovich returned a twice-tipped interception as Sanchez’s throw went off the hands of running back Shonn Greene, then was deflected by linebacker Jerod Mayo to Ninkovich.

The Jets got on the scoreboard when they got some rare pressure on Brady. Jamaal Westerman got to the Patriots quarterback in the end zone, and Brady threw the ball away left-handed and was called for intentional grounding and a safety.

New York took the free kick and moved 65 yards on seven plays, including a 21-yard run by LaDainian Tomlinson and a 22-yard grab by Patrick Turner, his first catch of the season. Sanchez ran in from the 2 on a quarterback draw for a 9-6 lead.

But the Jets quarterback made a mistake on the play right before his score, calling a timeout with 1:24 left in the half. Ryan was so angry, he told NBC at halftime that the timeout was the “stupidest play in NFL history.”

Adding to the frustration was New York not opting to try a pooch kickoff following a 15-yard penalty on New England’s Vince Wilfork, and Nick Branch kicked the ball through the end zone. Brady hit five passes on an 80-yard drive, with Gronkowski getting open over the middle for the 18-yard score with 9 seconds left in the half that made it 13-9.

The Jets were impressive on their opening drive, getting down to the Patriots 6 but came up empty when Folk was wide left on a 24-yard field goal attempt.

New England took advantage by taking a 3-0 lead on Gostkowski’s 50-yard field goal that squeezed over the crossbar. The Patriots appeared to be on their way to an impressive drive after a 12-yard catch by a wide-open Chad Ochocinco – his first reception in more than a month, the last time these teams played on Oct. 9 – and he could’ve had more but stepped out of bounds.

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