New England Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts Final Score: Pats Win 42-20

After two weeks of hyping up a matchup between two of the best quarterbacks in the league, it was an undrafted running back that stole the show for the New England Patriots. Jonas Gray, who is in his third year in the league, racked up 199 yards on 38 carries, and a whopping 4 touchdowns tonight, leading the Patriots to an impressive 42-20 win over the Colts.

The game started off well for the Pats, as they forced a quick 3-and-out, then marched 89 yards down the field for a touchdown. The tone was set on that first drive, as they just lined up and beat the crap out of the Colts’ front seven, going for 77 yards on the ground on that opening drive. The offensive line was dominant, driving Indy off the ball, and opening up huge holes for Gray to run through. The Colts couldn’t stop the Pats running attack, and that was the biggest story of the game.

On the other side of the ball, it was all about stopping the run, containing T.Y. Hilton, and Darrelle Revis completely shutting down Reggie Wayne. Andrew Luck struggled to find open players not named Coby Fleener, and ultimately the absence of the running game, and no Hilton or Wayne made life tough for the young signal caller. The Colts gained 19 rushing yards on 17 attempts, and 15 of those yards came on Luck scrambles. Vince Wilfork and that much maligned front seven deserve a ton of credit for their play in this one.

Tom Brady played one of the worst halves of his career, including arguably the worst decision of his career on a 3rd and 1 close to the end of the half. But he rebounded in the second half, as he completed nine of 11 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns. Rob Gronkowski had the play of they year with a miraculous 26 yard touchdown reception, which of course came right after he killed Sergio Brown.

What does this win mean? Well, it means the Patriots are the best team in the league, and have firm control of the number one seed in the AFC. They have now beaten the three other AFC division leaders by a combined 70 points, and have done it in many different ways. The Pats can slice you up with their weapons through the air, they are obviously dominant with that secondary, and they have now proven they can do it on the ground.

Who can stop these Pats?