Patriots at Broncos
THE STORY: It's rare that Tom Brady enters an opposing NFL stadium and is looked at as “The other guy.” But that's the case this week, and it’s because Tim Tebow is converting non-believers one fourth-quarter comeback at a time. Tebow faces his biggest test of the season, however, as Brady and the AFC East-leading New England Patriots travel to Denver in hopes of ending the Broncos’ six-game winning streak. A polarizing figure, Tebow has silenced critics and resurrected the AFC West-leading Broncos’ season by winning seven of his eight starts. The Patriots, meanwhile, have won five straight and are one of four teams in the conference vying for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. They can clinch their eighth AFC East title in nine years with a win or a New York Jets' loss to Philadelphia. New England, however, is just 2-15 in Denver since 1969.
TV: CBS, 4:15 p.m. ET. LINE: Patriots -6, O/U 46
ABOUT NEW ENGLAND (10-3): Brady threw for 357 yards and three touchdowns in a closer-than-expected 34-27 win over Washington last week, but his sideline spat with offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien was the story. The two had a heated exchange after Brady threw a rare red-zone interception – his first in more than a month – late in the fourth quarter. Before the dust-up, Brady threw two touchdowns to Rob Gronkowski, who had six catches for a career-high 160 yards and set a single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end (15) in the process. Gronkowski has 10 scores in his last six games. The Patriots’ league-worst defense (416.0 ypg) gave up 170 yards on the ground to Washington, which is a concern as it prepares to face the NFL's top-ranked rushing attack (156.2 ypg).
ABOUT DENVER (8-5): The Broncos were on the verge of being shut out at home for the first time in the franchise’s 52-year history last Sunday before they rallied for an improbable 13-10 overtime victory over Chicago. Tebow started 3 of 16 for 45 yards, but went 18 of 24 for 191 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter and OT as Denver erased a 10-point deficit in the final 4:34 of regulation. Matt Prater sent the game to overtime with a 59-yard field goal and won it with a 51-yarder – his third straight game-winning kick – after Marion Barber fumbled in overtime. It was Tebow’s sixth fourth-quarter comeback in 11 starts – the most since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. Tebow isn’t the only reason for the turnaround. Veteran RB Willis McGahee has an NFL-best six 100-yard games and is nearing his first 1,000-yard season since 2007. The defense, led by outstanding rookie LB Von Miller (11.5 sacks), is allowing an average of 15.6 points over the last five contests.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. NBC tried to “flex” this game into its prime-time slot since the matchup wasn’t protected at the start of the season by CBS, but Commissioner Roger Goodell stepped in.
2. “If you make bad plays, you are supposed to get yelled at by your coaches.” – Brady, on the confrontation with O’Brien.
3. Tebow’s completion percentage is an abysmal 39.4 percent in the first half this season, but it jumps to 61.3 in the fourth quarter.