Sunday Football Afterword: Patriots vs Broncos

Despite a late bid by his opponent, Tom Brady got the best of
Peyton Manning on Sunday night in their 14th meeting.

Cory Puffett

It may go down as an instant classic, but this game was truly ugly. It was ugly from the beginning. Three Patriot turnovers led to a 17-0 Denver lead early. During those first three Denver ‘drives,’ Peyton Manning was completed four of six passes for just nine yards. In fact, Denver had -2 passing yards due to sacks. Yet they held a 17-0 advantage.

Denver stretched their lead to 24-0 at halftime.

The tables turned in the second half. Bronco turnovers allowed New England to score 31 unanswered points. It reminded many of us of what the Denver Broncos did to the San Diego Chargers last season.

Peyton Manning led a late touchdown drive to tie the game up and ultimately send it to overtime, but he was helped by two poor plays by New England’s defense that each resulted in penalties for first downs.

The Patriots won the overtime coin toss and Bill Belichick chose to take the wind rather than the ball. If you take hindsight into account, that decision turned out to be gutsy rather than stupid. The teams traded possession until a crucial mistake by Wes Welker on a punt, clearing his teammates too late, and the ball touched Tony Carter, making it a live ball. New England recovered and, after running some clock off, kicked the game winning field goal.

Denver still holds the top seed in the AFC, but they face Kansas City next week in Arrowhead. As much as injuries are never good news, Tamba Hali and Justin Houston both have MRIs scheduled for Monday. If they miss next week’s game, Denver’s offense could have an even bigger day than San Diego did against Kansas City on Sunday.

New England will play in Houston next week. The Texans are playing like the worst team in the NFL right now, especially after losing at home to Jacksonville on Sunday. The Patriots seem to be getting hot, in spite of the weather, at just the right time.

Final Score:

Denver Broncos – 31

New England Patriots – 34 (OT)