In the words of Miley Cyrus, “We can’t stop and we won’t stop.”
The New England Patriots Reunion Tour rolled through Buffalo, New York, on Oct. 30 and marked the seventh win this season after defeating Rex Ryan and his Buffalo Bills 41 to 25. To make a long story short, Tom Brady is a football god and the Patriots are in full control of the American Football Conference (AFC) east.
Earlier this season, when rookie Jacoby Brissett was playing quarterback, the Patriots picked up their first and last loss of the season so far, making them now 7-1 on the season.
As much as I want to write a novel about how great Tom Brady is, there was another star in this game, and he goes by the name of Rob Gronkowski.
We all know that Gronk is a fired-up and goofy kid, but he is also one hell of a tight-end, and I often think that he may be the best the National Football League (NFL) has ever seen. Brady returned in week five and by then, Gronk was making a full recovery after his hamstring injury.
Since his return, these are the statistics he has recorded: 21 catches for 473 yards and three touchdowns. Also in Sunday’s game, Gronk set the franchise record with touchdown catch number of 69, surpassing his previous tie with former Pats’ wide receiver Stanley Morgan. These stats and historical milestones just reaffirm my notion that Gronk is one of the greatest tight ends of all time. Now that we discussed the of the game, let’s go back to Brady.
Brady took his fair share of big hits this game, yet racked up these 22 of 33 for 315 yards, with four touchdowns and no interceptions. He was moving pretty well on the field and even tacked on a 15-yard run for a first down. I can’t say it makes me comfortable watching my long-legged, gazelle-like quarter back running that much, especially against a defense like the Bills.
According to ESPN, Brady is the third player in NFL history to have 12 touchdown passes, and zero interceptions in his first four games on the season.
We were even lucky enough to see kicker Stephen Gostkowski get back to his normal self after a few out-of-the-norm games. He was two-of-two on field goals and five-of-five on extra points in some extreme Buffalo weather. The Pats don’t play for another two weeks, which means NFL action is going to be slightly less exciting until then. When they return back home on Nov. 13, the Seattle Seahawks are next on the agenda, as the Pats look for their eighth win of the season.
Winning has become second nature and I have gotten so used to it, so I may be lost when the Pats finally lose a game.
Mary Curtin can be contacted at MCurtin@kscequinox.com