Final Game Stats

41-7.  It is pretty hard to say it.  Even harder to spell it out - Forty One to Seven - yikes.  I am going to try not to pile on the negativity, that seems to be handled over in the Fan Posts.  I can't say I blame anyone, it was hard to watch.  In the end, it is one game, one loss.  We can talk about the trends, like the downward spiral of the offense, or the inability of the defense to stop the run, those are all valid points, but this game only counts as one loss and the BYE week allows a beat up Broncos team to hopefully regroup and get healthy.

The stats are above, so I don't need to rehash them for you.  I will mention that the Broncos are averaging over 3 turnovers a game the past 4 weeks and that is a certain recipe to fail.  It is even worse in the 3 losses the Broncos have earned over the same period - 12 turnovers(4 per game).  In short, the Broncos are literally giving games away.  Tonight was no different.  Two drives into New England territory, two fumbles, two field goals by the Pats.  At the least, it was a 12 point swing.  At the least.  At that moment, everything changes, especially for a team that is thin at running back to begin with.

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Start of 4th Quarter

For the view from a Patriots fan, check out Pats Pulpit!!

Start of 3rd Quarter

For the view from a Patriots fan, check out Pats Pulpit!!

Start of 2nd Quarter

For the view from a Patriots fan, check out Pats Pulpit!!

For the view from a Patriots fan, check out Pats Pulpit!!

Looking to earn their 400th overall victory and enter their bye week on a winning note, the Denver Broncos (4-2) visit the New England Patriots (3-2) this week for a Monday Night Football contest at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m. EDT.

Denver saw its NFL-best six-game home winning streak snapped last week with a 24-17 loss to Jacksonville. Despite three first-half turnovers that led to 10 points by the Jaguars, the Broncos still had an opportunity to win the game but were forced to punt on three of their final four possessions.

For the second week in a row, the Broncos face a team coming off a Sunday Night Football appearance with their contest against the Patriots, who lost at San Diego by a 30-10 margin. The Chargers took a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and held the Patriots to just 4.4
yards per play (68-299).

Since 2001, when the Patriots won their first of three Super Bowls in a four-year period, the Broncos are the only team in the NFL with a winning record against New England in regular season and postseason play combined. Denver is 5-1 (.833) against the Patriots since 2001 while the rest of the NFL is a combined 26-102 (.203) versus the club during that time.

The Broncos hold a one-game lead over the Chargers atop the AFC West and feature an offense that leads the NFL in first downs (136) while ranking fourth in the league in yards per game (399.7). Quarterback Jay Cutler, who has thrown for an AFC-best 1,694 yards, has benefited from an offensive line that has allowed just two sacks in 231 pass plays for an NFL-low 0.9 sack percentage per pass play.

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