It took them a while to get going but once Tom Brady and the New England Patriots found their groove they sailed to a convincing 34-3 win over the Kansas City Chiefs. The Monday Night Football contest improved the Patriots record to 4-1 at Gillette Stadium and 7-3 overall.
Though he certainly didn't start out too well, Brady overcame an early lost fumble to pull out another victory. Overall on the evening, Brady completed 15 of 27 passes for just 234 yards and two touchdowns. In Brady standards, this is not much and his yardage was slightly edged by rookie quarterback Tyler Palko who started his first game for Kansas City. Palko however threw three picks in the game as well.
"We just sucked in the first half," Brady said in his post-game press conference. "If you can't complete a pass, you're not going to move the ball. Can't run it, can't complete a pass – we just didn't do anything."
Like other recent games, Brady's favorite target on Monday was his tight ends and Rob Gronkowski in particular who caught two touchdown passes. Julian Edelman and Shane Vereen also added touchdowns on the ground with Edelman returning a punt 72 yards early in the second half and Vereen running the ball in four yards in the final moments of the game.
For Gronkowski, the touchdowns put him not only second in the NFL for touchdowns on the season at 10 but also the fastest tight end to reach the 20-touchdown plateau in league history. According to Brady, Gronk adds so many positive qualities to the team.
"He catches the ball great," Brady said of the second-year tight end out of Arizona. "He's tough. He runs well. He blocks. He really does everything you ask a tight end to do. He's dangerous out there."
Speaking of dangerous, the Patriots might not face a team with a winning record in their remaining five games but they are certainly preparing for a challenge this week against the Eagles. He told WEEI Tuesday morning that Coach Belichick reiterated that message after their win calling Philadelphia "the best team that we've played all year."
Kickoff against the Eagles is Sunday, November 27, 2011, at 4:15 p.m. EST in Philadelphia.
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