Brady: Nowhere near where we need to be

Share

FOXBORO -- The Patriots tied their own franchise record for most points in a game with 59 in Sunday's 59-24 win over the Colts at Gillette Stadium.

And once again, it was Tom Brady who played a role.

Brady and the Patriots had previously set the franchise record in October of 2009 against the Titans at Gillette. Brady threw for six touchdowns in a 59-0 win over Tennessee.

He threw three touchdowns in Sunday's win to tie the team's record. Even after such a gaudy team performance, that still wasn't good enough for Brady.

"I think were trying to make improvements," said Brady after Sunday's win. "I don't think we're anywhere near where we need to be at this point. Weve got a lot of football left and this Thursday is going to be a big game, so I look forward to it.

"We got some good matchups out there, so I try to take advantage of those where we could. I thought I missed a few other opportunities where I could have had my receivers. Its a short week, quick turnaround, so weve got to get started on the Jets."

Brady finished the game completing 24-of-35 passes for 331 yards. With another without an interception under his belt, Brady has now gone four straight games without throwing a pick, with his last coming back on Oct. 14 in Seattle.

And perhaps Brady would have had more than three touchdown passes on Sunday against the Colts had his defense and special teams not combined for three touchdowns, keeping Brady off the field more than he was on it.

"I'll take it if we're scoring, so it didnt matter much," said Brady about his team's 27:05 time of possession. "The punt return for a touchdown, the interception return for a touchdown, those were awesome. So when you get those types of plays, those are game-changing plays. I dont remember too many times when weve lost games when weve gotten returns for touchdowns."

The Patriots had only three offensive possessions in the first half on Sunday. And on their first of those possessions, Brady finished an eight-play, 81-yard drive with a four-yard touchdown pass to tight end Rob Gronkowski, which answered Andrew Luck's opening-game touchdown drive, and tied the game, 7-7.

Brady opened the second half with a 10-play, 76-yard drive, which he finished with a two-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Julian Edelman, hitting him right in the breadbasket on the left side of the end zone, putting New England up 31-17.

The Patriots recovered a Luck fumble on the next possession, and Brady responded on the first play, finding Gronkowski on the left side for a 24-yard touchdown pass, giving the Patriots a 38-17 lead.

While Brady still wants more out of his offense, he credits Sunday's franchise-tying production to his offensive line.

"It was a great effort," said Brady. "I think it starts with those guys. When they play well, we play well. The way they were blocking up front in the run game and the pass game, I was able to make my reads, make my throws, and our receivers were doing a great job getting open. That's what we needed. It was a defense that is very unique and puts a lot of pressure on the offensive line and our guys really stepped up."

Contact Us