New England Patriots at Broncos, 2:25 p.m. Sunday, CBS KCNC-4
For the record: The Patriots (11-2) held off a second-half rally by the Baltimore Ravens to become the second team in the NFL to reach 11 victories, joining the Dallas Cowboys. They can clinch the AFC East title and a first-round playoff bye with a win over the Broncos.
Who’s hot: Tom Brady. At 39, the same age as Peyton Manning in his final season last year, Brady is surging. On long passes of 15 or more yards, Brady has a 55 percent completion percentage — his best mark on long passes in the past 10 years, according to ESPN stats.
Who’s not: Patriots’ secondary. If there’s an avenue to excel for the Broncos’ offense, it might be passing against New England. Trevor Siemian threw for 334 yards against Tennessee while the Broncos rushed for just 18 yards. The Pats’ rush defense is nearly as good as the Titans. But their pass defense ranks 15th, with 19 touchdowns allowed and eight interceptions (Denver’s No. 1-ranked pass defense has 10 TDs against and 12 INTs).
Key stat: 5-6. Brady on Monday moved his home record to 100-17, the quickest quarterback to reach 100 wins at home in NFL history, according to ESPN. On the road, he is 80-37. And against the Broncos specifically, he is 5-6 in his career. Denver is one of only two teams with a winning record against him (Seattle is 2-1).
FYI: The Patriots rank 30th in the NFL on punt returns, averaging just 5.1 yards per return. Their returner, rookie Cyrus Jones, has five fumbles in nine games. And Bill Belichick on Tuesday refused to commit to Jones as their returner Sunday in Denver.
Against the Broncos: Denver swept two games against the Patriots last season, winning 30-24 in overtime in Week 12 and 20-18 in the AFC championship game, both in Denver. The Broncos have won three in a row at home against the Patriots — and they are 7-3 against New England in Denver since 2000.
They said it: “I’ve already spoken my piece on that. I have a short week to get ready for a great opponent. I’m focused on the Broncos. I know there are a lot of things going on out there, but my focus and my attention is going to stay right here in the building.” — Josh McDaniels, Patriots offensive coordinator, on his interest in the vacant Los Angeles Rams coaching job.
