The New England Patriots absolutely crushed the Indianapolis Colts, scoring eight touchdowns in a 59-24 romp behind scores in all three phases of the game.
The Colts actually jumped out to an early lead after one quarter, but 60 points later, the Pats left the result in little doubt. Rather than describe each of the eight touchdowns in detail, Patriots blog Pats Pulpit chose to just list them one after the other in their postgame recap. Later when breaking down the game, blogger Tony Santorsa called the outing the Pats' "first complete game of the season."
On the one hand, the Patriots defense played spectacularly, forcing three interceptions and running two back for touchdowns, but Santorsa still couldn't resist a shot at the Colts' previous quarterback:
Before we move into the recap of the game, I'd like to say just one thing: I guess Andrew Luck is following in the footsteps of Peyton Manning, as he throw three interceptions, with two of those being pick-sixes.
On offense, Tom Brady played extremely well as usual, throwing for 331 yards with three touchdowns and no picks, but Pats blogger Greg Knopping made sure to credit to his offensive teammates:
Offensively, the Patriots had a very strong day through the air. Tackles Nate Solder and Sebastian Vollmer held up well against the duo of Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney, and when Brady was pressured, he found a way to escape the sacks. Brady was terrific, but of course, I have to mention the performances of Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman. Gronkowski's was Brady's go-to target all day with seven catches for 137 yards and two touchdown. Meanwhile Edelman contributed with two big punt returns (one for a TD), a 40 yard reverse, and five catches for 58 yards and a touchdown.
The game may have been the last of Gronkowski's season, as X-rays revealed a broken forearm after the game.