Quarterback Tom Brady led four scoring drives — two after turnovers — as New England’s defense kept the Denver Broncos out of the end zone on Sunday in a 16-3 victory that clinched the Patriots’ eighth straight American Football Conference East title and the playoff berth that goes with it.
Stephen Gostkowski finished three of those drives with field goals, the last from 21 yards with 8 minutes, 16 seconds remaining. LeGarrette Blount capped the other with a one-yard touchdown run in a game that was largely a defensive struggle.
Brady, who misfired on his first six passes, finished 16 of 32 for 188 yards and it was enough for New England (12-2) to retain their hold on the conference’s No. 1 playoff seed with two games left in the regular season.
Photo: AFP
It was a rare win in Denver for Brady, who improved to 3-7 lifetime in the Mile High City.
New England set an NFL record with the eighth consecutive division title.
“It was a great team win,” Brady said. “Defense was playing so great all day. Offensively we made some plays, just didn’t make enough to score more points than we have, but it ended up being enough. It could certainly have been better today, but happy we won.”
Head coach Bill Belichick described the division victory as a “huge accomplishment,” but observed that the business part of the season was still ahead.
The mistake-prone Broncos (8-6) lost their hold on the sixth and final wild-card berth. They need help and in all likelihood wins in their final two games, against West rivals Kansas City and Oakland, to reclaim a post-season berth and the chance to defend last season’s Super Bowl title.
Trevor Siemian finished 25 of 40 for 282 yards, hamstrung by an ineffective rushing attack and failing to get his offense untracked against the Patriots. He also had a costly interception.
The Patriots led 10-3 at halftime, with both scores coming after Denver turnovers.
While the Patriots were claiming the title, the Oakland Raiders were celebrating their first post-season berth since 2002.
Derek Carr completed 19 of 30 passes for 213 yards with a touchdown for the Raiders, who defeated the Chargers 19-16 in San Diego.
Additional reporting by AFP
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