The New England Patriots have now taken full advantage of the late season struggles of the Houston Texans. After a 28-16 Houston loss in Indianapolis, the Patriots needed a win over division rival Miami to secure a bye-week in the AFC playoffs. The Patriots came through at home with a 28-0 victory over the Dolphins.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Patriots added another touchdown to their lead when returning tight end Rob Gronkowski caught a 23-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 28-0.
There would be no further scoring as the 28-0 score would hold for a New England victory.
With all the game's over in the conference, the AFC playoff picture has taken shape. The Denver Broncos (No. 1) and New England Patriots (No. 2) will earn the bye week and await the winners of the two wild card match-ups; Cincinnati(No. 6) at Houston (No. 3) and Indianapolis (No. 5) at Baltimore (No. 4).