Brady, Pats’ O Look Strong

The New England Patriots came out clicking on all  cylinders, offensively, as they blew past the struggling Chicago Bears, Sunday at Gillette Stadium.

New England's offense was paced by a dominant performance by veteran quarterback Tom Brady, who received solid protection from his offensive line throughout the game. Brady completed 30 of 35 pass attempts on the day for 354 yards. He also added five passing touchdowns to his impressive stat line.

Since New England's blowout loss at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs, four weeks ago, Brady has been on a torrid pace. The quarterback, who was highly criticized after the week four loss, has completed 100 of 144 pass attempts for 1,268 yards and 14 touchdowns without throwing a pick, during this latest stretch.

While Brady's play has been exceptional since the team's last defeat, he has been the benefactor of better play from his teammates as well.

Tight end Rob Gronkowski has reverted to his old ways of offensive dominance in the past few weeks and played a significant role in the dismantling of the Bears' defense. The overpowering pass catcher snagged nine of Brady's 30 completions for 149 yards and three scores on the day. Simply put, there was no one on the defense that could stop him.

Brady's passing game also got a boost Sunday from a strong effort put together by running back Jonas Gray, who was added to the active roster last week after starting running back Stevan Ridley was lost for the year with a knee injury two weeks ago. Gray proved to be more than capable of carrying the load as the team's leading back in Ridley's absence as he rushed for 86 yards on just 17 carries. That's an average of 5.1 yards per carry for the young, developing back.

With other contributions coming from wide receiver Brandon LaFell and tight end Tim Wright, who both had a TD reception, and a very solid performance from the starting offensive line unit, the Pats' offense looked like a well-oiled machine ready to go up against any defense that could be thrown at them.

Next week will be a big test for the Pats, who seem to have righted the ship since a 2-2 start to the season, as they welcome the reigning AFC Champion Denver Broncos to town for the latest installment of the ever-popular Brady-Manning Bowl. Game time is set for 4:25, next Sunday.