Thus far this season, no one has been able to figure out how to stop the New England Patriots juggernaut — and now that the dream of a perfect 19-win campaign is only two games away, it seems everyone is eager to see history made. Everyone, that is, except for the San Diego Chargers, who have ridden a late-season wave of eight straight wins en route to this Sunday's AFC Championship game. But the Chargers have also hit a number of speed bumps — in last week's divisional game against the Indianapolis Colts, both quarterback Philip Rivers and running back LaDainian Tomlinson suffered knee injuries that kept them out of the game during the crucial final minutes. (It's unclear whether either will be unable to play this Sunday.) Tight end Antonio Gates is also questionable, having suffered a dislocated left big toe in the wild-card game against Tennessee two weeks back. (Gates did play against the Colts last week but was not up to his usual production.)CBS analyst Phil Simms s...
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Displaying his trademark steely composure, quarterback Tom Brady rallied the New England Patriots to a 38-35 come-from-behind victory over the New York Giants Saturday night, earning the squad a place in NFL history as the first team to complete an undefeated 16-game regular season. Brady broke Peyton Manning's regular-season record for touchdown passes, with his 50th of the year. That score - a gutsy 65-yarder which turned out to be the game winner - also gave Randy Moss a record of his own: 23 touchdown receptions, one more than Jerry Rice.Though the Giants had little motivation - they'd already qualified for the playoffs and a win on Saturday wouldn't improve their seeding - they showed that they should not be ignored by their NFC rivals in the upcoming postseason. New York led 21-16 at halftime and extended that to 28-16 in the third quarter (the Pats' largest deficit of the season) before New England came roaring back, clicking off 22 straight points. At halftime NFL Network an...
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They've been unstoppable so far this fall, but do the Patriots have what it takes to complete an undefeated season? New England (10-0) will attempt to keep their streak alive against the beat-up Philadelphia Eagles (5-5) this week on Sunday Night Football (Nov. 25, 8:15 pm/ET, NBC). "The Patriots are showing to be the greatest team that we've seen in a long time," says Tiki Barber, an analyst for NBC's Football Night in America studio show. "I don't know if it will be a close game, but it will be entertaining."John Madden, who will call the game alongside Al Michaels, praises the Patriots firepower. "It's the best offense that I've ever seen," he says. "Tom Brady is playing the position of quarterback, right now, better than anyone I've ever seen play it." In their last game, a 56-10 thumping of the Buffalo Bills, Brady threw for five touchdowns, four of them to a rejuvenated Randy Moss.The Patriots are on their way to becoming the second undefeated team in NFL history. (The 1972 Mi...
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