The Patriots and Broncos have traded field goals in the third and fourth quarters, keeping the New England lead steady at 35 points.
The Broncos picked up their first points since the first quarter after Stevan Ridley, on his way into the end zone, coughed up the ball on a short catch out of the backfield. With Tim Tebow managing some big conversions on 3rd-and-13 and 4th-and-3 the Broncos finally made their way deep into New England territory before the defensive pressure once again proved to be too much. First stuffing Willis McGahee and then sacking Tim Tebow, the Patriots forced the Broncos into a 3rd-and-19, and when the ensuing pass fell incomplete, John Fox opted to take the three points in what is looking every bit a lost cause.
The Patriots wasted little time in responding. Facing a 3rd-and-10 on the drive's first series of downs, Tom Brady found Rob Gronkowski over the middle for 20 yards and the first. A few plays later, and the two hooked up again, this time with Brady throwing a deep ball down the right sideline which Gronkowski managed to corral before stumbling out of bounds. Unfortunately, with the Pats choosing to keep it on the ground from there, the drive fizzled out at the goal line, with Danny Woodhead's final attempt being shut down on the 2-yard line. Stephen Gostkowski's chip shot was good, and the lead was back up to 35 points at 45-10.