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| Brady was back to top form tonight. Photo Credit: USA Today Sports |
Stevan Ridley ran for 133 yards and a touchdown, Rob Gronkowski had 100 yard receiving and a touchdown as the Patriots (3-2) steamrolled the Bengals (3-1) 43-17 on Sunday night at Gillette Stadium.
By: Michael Hanley
Tom Brady and the Patriots offense got off to a red hot start as they marched down the field 80 yards in 10 plays that was capped off with a Stevan Ridley 1 yard touchdown run to gave the Pats a 7-0 lead. It was a big statement drive after a weeks worth of media who questioned Tom Brady's ability as a quarterback and the whole team's credentials on just how good they could be.
The New England offense would continue to roll as they drove right through the Bengals defense again. Tom Brady was firing bullets to his receivers and ended the drive with a beautiful 17 yard touchdown pass to Timothy Wright who made the Patriots lead go to 14-0. It was the perfect start for this team against a stingy and tough team in the Bengals.
Cincinnati would finally get on the board courtesy of a 23 yard field goal by Mike Nugent to cut the deficit to 14-3. Bengals could have gotten a touchdown but were unable to pick up the first down by by the goal line of the Patriots as they were stonewalled on a run attempt by the New England defensive line.
Patriots would find their way down the field again only this time Cincinnati was up to the task and able to stop them before getting to the end zone. That brought Stephen Gostkowski who nailed the 48 yard field goal to extend their lead 17-3.
Bengals wide receiver A.J Green made a big gaffe as he was tackled and stripped of the ball by Darrelle Revis. It was a terrific play by Revis and led to New England being able to tack on another Gostkowski field goal which stretched the lead to 20-3 and closed out a dominant first half by the 'Patriots.
Bengals meanwhile had issues generating any consistency with their offense as they had drive after drive stall on them. Andy Dalton was out of rhythm and was pressured several times by the pass rush of the Patriots. Their running game was getting stuffed no matter where they tried to run.
After a slow start to the second half, the Bengals offense finally came to life as Dalton connected with Mohamed Sanu on a gorgeous 37 yard touchdown pass to get Cincinnati back in the game at 20-10.
Tom Brady calmly lead his team on a drive that would counter the Bengals score by driving 86 yards, using a nice mix of run and pass that had the Bengals defense on their heels. They converted some key downs, including a 3rd and 16 to keep the drive alive.
Eventually Brady found Gronkowski for another touchdown hook up, this time from 16 yards out. It gave the Patriots a commanding 27-10 lead. Brady would finish off an impressive night 23/35 for 292 yards and threw two touchdowns.
The defense of New England then would make a big play as Kyle Arrington had a fumble recovery return for a touchdown and a 34-10 Patriots lead. It highlighted the much improved and active play by the defense who was coming off a clunker of a performance against the Chiefs.
The Bengals would not go away quietly into the night as A.J Green would step up and make a 17 yard catch for a touchdown from Dalton to keep hope alive for the team. It took a half plus but the offense finally had some rhythm and flow to it which was giving them an opportunity to keep their defense a rest as well. Dalton would wind up 15/24 for 204 yards, throwing for two touchdowns.
New England , as they had all night long, answered back as they methodically worked their way down the filed and ended up settling for a 23 yard Gostkowski field goal to push the lead to 20 at 37-17.
The Patriots would tack on two more field goals to just add some more window dressing to the final stats and score.
This win washes away a weeks worth of criticism from the media local and national on Tom Brady's ability to be a top flight quarterback still and the overall quality of this Patriots squad.
The Bengals meanwhile have to go back to the drawing board and figure out how to regroup from such a dud of a performance in prime time. Though it is only their first defeat of the season it keeps a troubling trend of this Bengals team not performing well on a big stage.
Follow me on Twitter: @Magic20099
